The Government of Canada is releasing new draft guidelines to promote cleaner air.
One guideline is to encourage the use of renewable energy sources, and the other will lead to lower emissions from new power plants.
The guideline designed to help consumers identify electricity generated from renewable energy sources with low environmental impact is being released by Ottawa on Dec. 8 for a 90-day public comment period.
Once finalized, the draft Guideline on Renewable Low-Impact Electricity will formalize licensing and certification criteria under Environment Canada’s Environmental Choice Program.
The federal government is also taking steps to tighten emission limits for key air pollutants from new fossil fuel power plants. Following consultations this winter with partners and stakeholders, Environment Canada plans to issue the new emission guidelines under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act (CEPA) in the summer of 2002.
“Many of the pollutants that cause climate change and dirty air come from the same energy sources, so solutions to one are often solutions to the other,” said Environment Minister David Anderson. “These two new draft guidelines will tackle these issues from both a pollution-prevention and a pollution-control perspective.”
The certification and labelling of renewable low-impact electricity with Environment Canada’s EcoLogo provides consumers with an easy means of identifying electricity products that put less stress on the environment.
The Thermal Power Generation Emissions – National Guidelines for New Sources will provide national emission standards for new coal, oil and gas-fired steam-electric power plants.
The proposed new emission limits would mean at least a 60-per-cent reduction in nitrogen oxide emission limits and a 70-per-cent reduction in particulate matter emission limits from those in the existing guidelines, and would introduce a new minimum of 70-per-cent reduction in sulphur dioxide emissions from uncontrolled levels.
Web Watch:
www.ec.gc.ca
