Net zero claims simply aren’t true

Re:” Let’s celebrate that Canada is likely a net zero polluter” Opinion, by Danielle Smith, Jan. 11.

Canada isn’t a net zero polluter, as Danielle Smith wants us to believe.

The 2018 B.C. forest fires alone added an estimated 190 million tons of greenhouse gases to the atmosphere. And due to climate change, forest fires will likely become the new norm, not the exception. Recent satellite images of the Amazon show it breathing in huge amounts of CO2 during the day and releasing virtually all of it back out at night; I imagine Canadian forests work in a similar manner.

Unfortunately, forest fires aren’t the only way Canada is contributing naturally to greenhouse gases. Scientist estimate there are 300-400 billion tons of greenhouse gases trapped under the permafrost of the Canadian North. As the permafrost thaws, these gases will be released into our atmosphere, making Canada one of the largest greenhouse gas emitters on the planet, something the net zero proponents always seem to ignore. Robert Clark, Calgary