N.S. joins Western Climate Initiative for emissions plan tech support
Nova Scotia is yet to set targets for its new cap and trade regime to reduce greenhouse gases, but the province announced Monday that it has joined the Western Climate Initiative Inc. — a non-profit corporation formed to provide administrative and technical services to states and provinces with emissions trading programs.
Environment Minister Iain Rankin said joining the initiative would allow the province to use its IT system to manage and track its new cap and trade program.
Rankin said the province can join without trading greenhouse gas emission allowances with other jurisdictions — California, Quebec, and Ontario are currently linked through the program. Nova Scotia currently has no plans to trade outside the province as it works on emissions caps Rankin said will be ready sometime in June.
“By keeping our system internal it ensures that our greenhouse gas reductions are happening within our province,” said Rankin. “But we do have that opportunity (to join) and if there are new entrants or we need more access to credits then that may shift our strategy.”
The use of the system will cost Nova Scotia about US$314,000 for 2018-19, with an annual cost in subsequent years of about US$228,000 or more, if the province requests modifications.
“If we were to do something like that internally we would have to build a full database and hire more people, so this was an obvious choice for us,” said Rankin.
Nova Scotia has already met the national reduction target of 30 per cent below 2005 levels and says it’s on track to have 40 per cent of electricity generation from renewables by 2020.