Why hasnt Canada banned thermal coal exports?
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- Published on Sunday, 29 November -0001 16:00
- Written by editor
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Dear ,
Canada’s continuing role as an exporter of thermal coal is putting our emissions obligations in jeopardy.
Thermal coal is the most polluting source of energy, and it poses a serious threat to the ability of Canada and the world to meet climate targets and prevent climate catastrophe.1
The Canadian government has been promising for years to champion climate action. And yet, in 2021, Canada is still mining and exporting thermal coal.
Join tens of thousands of Canadians in asking the government to take immediate, comprehensive, and consistent steps to phase out thermal coal exports by 2023.
In recent months, Council of Canadians chapters and supporters have helped to deliver a series of crushing setbacks to coal expansion in Alberta.
Alongside grassroots Indigenous leadership and partners like the Alberta Environment Network, you have stood in the way of a new coal rush, after the provincial government revoked policies that had long protected the Rockies from development and exploration.
Now, we need to build on that momentum – and we need your support.
While we continue to watch how the government of Alberta will respond to its consultation committee’s recommendations on further coal development, the proposed mines currently under review in that province all concern metallurgical – or steelmaking – coal.
To move Canada beyond coal altogether, we must also work to put an immediate end to thermal coal production and exports.
Sign our letter and demand that the federal government act now to ban thermal coal exports!
The Canadian government has recently shown leadership in saying no to new thermal coal mines2, and it has committed to ending our dependence on coal-powered electricity by 2030.3 But this progress is undermined by Canada’s continued export of thermal coal.
Right now, Canada exports millions of tonnes of American and Canadian coal through our ports on the West Coast.4
As long as these exports continue, Canada will be an emissions enabler – not an international climate leader.
During the last federal election campaign, the Liberals vowed to phase out these exports by 2030, but that is far too late. As Canada prepares to attend COP26 in Glasgow, now is our opportunity to demand a ban on thermal coal exports as soon as possible.
This ban must respect Indigenous rights and be consistent with the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People. It must also be a part of a planned and just transition to ensure that no worker or community gets left behind.
Will you join us in asking the Canadian government to stop being an emissions enabler, and ban the export of thermal coal by 2023?
Thank you for all you do in helping to move Canada, and the world, towards a more just and livable planet.
In solidarity,
Christina Kruszewski
Prairies-NWT Regional Organizer, The Council of Canadians
Notes:
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Read more of our analysis here: Why hasn’t Canada banned thermal coal exports?
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