COP27: Canada urging countries to expand use of carbon pricing

Guilbeault is hosting an event at the United Nations climate talks in Egypt hoping to triple carbon pricing coverage from 20% of global emissions to 60% in eight years.

Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault says Canada is issuing a challenge to the rest of the world to expand the use of carbon pricing in the fight against greenhouse gas emissions.

Guilbeault is hosting an event at the United Nations COP27 climate talks in Egypt Tuesday hoping to triple carbon pricing coverage from 20 per cent of global emissions today, to 60 per cent in eight years.

He says eight other countries and the European Commission are already on board but most already have carbon pricing in place or have a program planned.

Canada’s carbon pricing system is a mix of federal and provincial policies that together cover more than 80 per cent of Canada’s total emissions, though at varying costs per tonne.

The idea is similar to the Powering Past Coal Alliance, which Canada launched with the U.K. at COP23 in 2017 to push for ending the use of coal as a source of electricity.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau first discussed expanding carbon pricing globally at the climate talks last year in Glasgow, but in the year since the total emissions covered by a carbon price has not changed.