Canada’s Federal Climate Plan – Agricultural Initiatives

On Dec. 11th, 2020, the federal government announced a strengthened climate plan: A Healthy Environment and a Healthy Economy. This plan, which continues to build on the 2016 Pan-Canadian Framework on Clean Growth and Climate Change, includes several measures aimed at reducing agricultural emissions:

• Investing up to $631 million over 10 years to work with provinces, territories, conservation organizations, Indigenous communities, private landowners, and others to restore and enhance wetlands, peatlands, grasslands and agricultural lands to boost carbon sequestration. This initiative will support improved land and resource management practices in sectors that have some of the greatest potential for increased carbon storage, and will conserve carbon-rich ecosystems.
• Providing $98.4 million over 10 years to establish a new Natural Climate Solutions for Agriculture Fund. This fund will leverage $85 million in existing programming and will be guided by a new Canadian Agri-Environmental Strategy, to be developed in collaboration with partners, to support the sector’s actions on climate change and other environmental priorities towards 2030 and 2050.
• Appointing an advisory committee of experts on nature-based climate solutions to advise on program delivery to maximize emission reductions, while also delivering biodiversity and human wellbeing co-benefits.

Further reading:

• What’s in Canada’s Climate Plan?
• A Healthy Environment and a Healthy Economy
• Annex: Natural Climate Solutions
• 2020 Fall Economic Statement highlight – see A Competitive, Green Economy section