Canada
Introduction
Canada is a founding member of the Global Methane Initiative (GMI) and provides significant ongoing support by serving in leadership roles in the Steering Committee and sector-specific Subcommittees. Canada has been instrumental in guiding GMI’s action to strengthen global collaboration throughout GMI’s history.
For decades, Canada has pursued a variety of methane mitigation approaches and helped other nations develop robust capacity to address methane issues and opportunities. These efforts include strategic international partnerships, regulatory policy, voluntary outreach programs, project financing, and collaboration with industry to reduce the negative climate effects of methane emissions. Canada has also advanced the use of technologies to capture methane as a valuable energy source.
Canada is currently active on the Steering Committee, the Biogas Subcommittee (Co-Chair), and the Oil & Gas Subcommittee (Co-Chair).
- Introduction
- Methane Emissions Summary
- Methane Commitments and Plans
- Methane Actions
- Ministries and Agencies Supporting Methane Actions
- GMI Delegates
Last Updated: October 2024
Methane Emissions Summary
Annually, Canada develops an official national greenhouse gas (GHG) report that is submitted to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) of the nation’s inventory of greenhouse gas emissions and sinks. Canada has a goal to reduce domestic methane emissions by more than 35% by 2030, compared with 2020 levels.
Methane Emission and Projections through 2030
Source: Faster and Further: Canada’s Methane Strategy, accessed September 2024, https://www.canada.ca/en/services/environment/weather/climatechange/climate-plan/reducing-methane-emissions/faster-further-strategy.html#toc0
Methane Emissions by Sector, 2022
Source: Reducing methane emissions, accessed September 2024, https://www.canada.ca/en/services/environment/weather/climatechange/climate-plan/reducing-methane-emissions.html
Methane Commitments and Plans
Methane mitigation efforts in Canada are guided by national and international commitments and plans. Canada also engages in many partnerships dedicated to addressing methane.
National
Canada has a national action plan, regulations, and strategies to provide leadership to government, non-government, and private sector institutions.
- Canada released Faster and Further: Canada’s Methane Strategy in September 2022 to build on the 2030 Emissions Reduction Plan to identify a path to further reduce methane emissions.
- Canada released its 2030 Emissions Reduction Plan in March 2022. The plan outlines a sector-by-sector path to reach its emission reduction target of 40 percent below 2005 levels by 2030 and next-zero emissions by 2050.
- Canada was the first country to commit to a 75 percent reduction in methane emissions from the oil and gas sector by 2030, relative to 2012 levels.
- Canada released a strengthened climate plan, A Healthy Environment and A Healthy Economy, in December 2020.
International Partnerships
Canada actively supports and engages with numerous international efforts to address methane challenges and share the country’s clean technology advancements.
- Canada joined the European Union to launch the Global Methane Pledge (GMP) in 2021 at the United Nations (UN) Climate Change Conference (COP26). As a “Global Methane Pledge Champion,” Canada provides leadership to advance the work of the GMP.
- Canada is an inaugural member of the GMP Energy Pathway, an effort to reduce methane emissions reductions in the oil and gas sector and eliminate routine flaring as soon as possible, and no later than 2030.
- Canada contributes expertise and resources to the UN Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), including support for the UNECE Group of Experts on Gas.
- Canada participates in the Global Research Alliance which focuses on addressing methane emissions from the agricultural sector.
- Canada is a founding member of the Climate and Clean Air Coalition (CCAC) and provides significant support including serving as a Co-Chair from 2016-2018, supporting sectoral hub work, and providing funds to the CCAC Trust Fund. CCAC addresses climate change by mitigating short-lived climate pollutants, including methane.
- Canada participates in the Artic Council, serving as the Chair for two terms and supporting efforts focused on establishment of the Artic Economic Council and the Artic Council Framework for black carbon and methane emissions reductions.
Methane Actions
The following highlights actions taken in Canada to address methane, organized by GMI sector.
Biogas Sector
- Canada launched the Agricultural Methane Reduction Challenge to award winners for proposing innovative, scalable solutions to reduce enteric methane emissions from the cattle sector. (November 2023)
- Canada’s Canadian Greenhouse Gas Offset Credit System Regulations provides financial incentives for reducing methane emissions through livestock feed management and landfill methane recovery and destruction. (June 2022)
Oil and Gas Sector
- The Alberta Methane Emissions Program is a 3-year $17.6 million initiative to support methane emissions reductions in the oil and gas sector. (2024)
- The Emissions Reduction Fund provided $750 million in funds to onshore and offshore gas companies for investment in solutions to reduce methane emissions and retain jobs in the oil and gas sector. (2022)
- Canada enacted regulations under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act to reduce fugitive emissions, limit the amount of vented methane, and restrict emissions from pneumatic devices. (2020)
Cross Sector
- Canada launched the Methane Centre of Excellence with an initial investment of $30 million to improve the accuracy, understanding, and reporting and mitigation of methane emissions with a focus on data, measurement techniques, and technology development. (2024)
- Canada, in partnership with Germany, announced the Climate Finance Delivery Plan to track progress of developed countries in meeting their commitment to the US$100 billion climate finance goals by 2025. (2024)
Ministries and Agencies Supporting Methane Actions
Explore the following websites to learn more about the government ministries addressing methane emissions.
GMI Delegates
| Committee/Subcommittee | Delegate Name | Affiliation |
|---|---|---|
| Biogas Subcommittee | Matt Hamilton | Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) |
| Biogas Subcommittee | Andrew McFarlan | Department of Natural Resources Canada |
| Biogas Subcommittee | Andrew Vanderzaag | Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada |
| Biogas Subcommittee | Maria Wellisch | Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada |
| Coal Subcommittee | Jane Amphlett | Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) |
| Oil & Gas Subcommittee | James Diamond | Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) |
| Steering Committee | Diane de Kerckhove | Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) |
| Steering Committee | Jennifer Kerr | Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) |