A busy fall for climate policy awaits, with a lot at stake

After a summer that was overwhelmed by the impacts of climate change, our governments must show up strong at the beginning of the parliamentary session. They must be ready to roll up their sleeves and get to work quickly and forcefully, to put concrete measures in place to better protect the citizens they serve.

The consequences of climate change are here to stay. Fortunately, some government officials are starting to get the message. Quebec’s Minister of Transportation and Sustainable Mobility realizes that the growth in the size and weight of Quebec's fleet of vehicles is causing public safety problems. The Minister of the Economy, Innovation and Energy has clearly stated that we need to significantly reduce the number of cars on the road if we are to achieve our climate targets, and we must ensure that we have the renewable energy resources we need to carry out our projects.

In the midst of the summer's climate chaos, we've seeing glimmers of hope and lucidity.

To keep this hope going, Équiterre’s government relations team has been working hard all summer, submitting recommendations to various federal and provincial government departments. Have a look:

Équiterre's political work

• Équiterre submitted its vision for Quebec’s energy future;
• Équiterre submitted its recommendations for the 2024 federal budget;
• Équiterre submitted proposals as part of the consultation on the draft regulations aimed at tightening the 2025-2035 provincial ZEV standard (in French);
• Équiterre submitted comments on the draft regulations and provisions for expanding the deposit-refund system;
• Équiterre and its partners called on the federal government to accelerate the transition to electric school buses in Canada;
• Équiterre and its partners shared their comments and recommendations during consultations on the government's land use planning policies.

We'll keep working on these dossiers this fall (and, let's face it, probably for years to come 🙄), and we’ll keep up the pressure on our governments.

Upcoming developments

There are a number of other upcoming developments into which we're also putting our Équiterrian energy (which is renewable, by the way), including:

• Public consultations on Quebec’s agricultural land;
• The Bill to protect consumers against programmed obsolescence and promote the durability, reparability and maintenance of goods;
• Updates to the Hydro-Québec Act and the Act respecting the Régie de l'énergie;
• An update on the Act respecting accountability, transparency and engagement to support the creation of sustainable jobs for workers and economic growth in a net-zero economy;
• Updates on the Competition Act;
• Protecting urban green spaces;
• And more!

A lot at stake

Forest fires, torrential rains, floods, ice storms, drought, melting ice—the repercussions of climate change are accelerating and expanding. Fossil fuels are the primary cause of climate change, and we need to transition away from them quickly. But we also need to radically transform our society. There are many transformations that must happen in agriculture and food, transportation and consumption - and Équiterre has no shortage of recommendations!

Our governments must rise to the challenge this fall. Équiterre will be following it all.