Montreal: Federal Transport Minister Marc Garneau and Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development Navdeep Bains announced May 26 that the Government of Canada is moving forward with provincial and territorial partners, industry and stakeholders to develop a national strategy to increase the number of zero-emission vehicles (ZEVS) on Canadian roads by 2018.
The announcement noted that transportation accounts for about 24 percent of Canada's emissions, mostly from cars and trucks. ZEVs offer the potential to significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the light-duty vehicle sector.
Under the Pan-Canadian Framework on Clean Growth and Climate Change, federal, provincial and territorial governments committed to work with industry and stakeholders to develop an “ambitious,” Canada-wide ZEV strategy by 2018. The strategy will build on existing initiatives, such as light-duty vehicle regulations, provincial ZEV programs, and Canadian innovation superclusters, to help meet Canada’s 2030 greenhouse gas emissions reduction target.
To advance the strategy, a national Advisory Group has been established to contribute to developing options for addressing the key barriers for greater deployment of these technologies in five areas: vehicle supply, cost and benefits of ownership, infrastructure readiness, public awareness, and clean growth and clean jobs. The Advisory Group includes representatives from governments, industry, consumer and non-government organizations and academia.
Ottawa has made a start in supporting further deployment of ZEVs by providing $62.5 million through Budget 2016, and an additional $120 million through Budget 2017 for Natural Resources Canada to deploy infrastructure for electric vehicle charging and refuelling stations for alternative fuel such as natural gas and hydrogen, as well as to support technology demonstration projects.