British Columbia in ‘green’ drive

– The Western Canadian province of British Columbia on Wednesday outlined the first measures it will take to cut carbon emissions by 40% by 2030, including shifting homes and vehicles to clean or renewable energy.

The province would still support its nascent liquefied natural gas industry, with the 68-page CleanBC plan calling for LNG firms to use the “greenest technology available.”

Some 75% of British Columbia’s planned emission cuts would be achieved by shifting homes, vehicles and industry off fossil fuels and onto clean or renewable energy and by attracting low-carbon investment.

British Columbia wants to cut carbon emissions to 38.2 million tons by 2030, down 40% from 2007 levels, then dropping to 12.7 million tons by 2050.

One LNG export terminal in the town of Kitimat is expected to add 3.45 million tons of carbon to the province’s total emissions once operations begin in the mid2020s. A second plant north of Vancouver is expected to start construction in the first quarter of 2019. –