Canada to Participate in Climate and Clean Air Coalition to Reduce Short-Lived Climate Pollutants

The Honourable Leona Aglukkaq, Minister of the Environment, Minister of the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency and Minister for the Arctic Council, will travel to Oslo, Norway from September 2-3 to participate in the high-level assembly of the Climate and Clean Air Coalition (CCAC) to Reduce Short-Lived Climate Pollutants.

As chair of the Arctic Council, she will also meet with Arctic experts on Canada’s Arctic Council chairmanship initiatives (2013-15).

“As an Arctic nation, Canada profoundly understands the climate and public health benefits of reducing short-lived climate pollutants, such as black carbon and methane,” said Minister Aglukkaq. “I look forward to meeting with my international colleagues to advance the collective efforts of the CCAC.”

Canada’s North is especially sensitive to the effects of black carbon as there is an additional warming effect when deposited onto snow and ice. Reducing emissions of short-lived climate pollutants is an integral part of Canada’s broader climate change and clean air agenda, and the Arctic Council program during Canada’s chairmanship.

The Government of Canada's is taking strong action at home to reduce short-lived climate pollutants. Measures include:

• Regulations to reduce air pollutants from on-road and off-road vehicles, marine shipping in Canadian coastal waters, and the Canadian rail sector.
• Greenhouse gas regulations for the coal-fired electricity sector.
• The Air Quality Management System which will provide stringent air quality limits for fine particulate matter, ground-level ozone, and new standards for nitrogen dioxide.

Canada is proud to be a founding member, lead partner and the largest financial contributor of the CCAC – the first global effort to treat these pollutants as a collective challenge. The work of the CCAC is complementary to that of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, where Canada is working with other Parties to achieve substantial reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, notably through negotiations on a new international climate change agreement with commitments by all major emitters.