David Suzuki Foundation comments on new report from federal electricity council

MONTREAL | TRADITIONAL, UNCEDED TERRITORY OF THE KANIEN’KEHÁ:KA FIRST NATION (June 10, 2024)

Today, the Canada Electricity Advisory Council released their final report with a wide range of analysis and recommendations for provincial and federal governments on the priorities of maintaining affordability and reliability while expanding and cleaning up Canada’s electricity system from fossil fuels.

The David Suzuki Foundation participated as a stakeholder in the Council’s work. The Foundation’s research from 2022, Shifting Power, showed it is possible to have an electricity grid powered largely by renewable energy sources by the year 2035. Its campaign Renewable Power for All is backed by over 22,000 people in Canada.

Stephen Thomas, Clean Energy Manager, David Suzuki Foundation, said:

“This council gets the balance right on many important topics and recommendations: affordability, collaboration between provinces, upgrading the grid, centering Indigenous rights, and setting the right pathways to move forward quickly. It’s encouraging to see a federal council focus on solutions – we hope the federal government will move quickly on many of these recommendations.

“What’s disappointing about this report, is that it doesn’t hold the federal government to account to meet important 2035 targets for cleaning up the grid. We must phase out fossil fuel electricity which continues to raise energy bills, drive climate disasters like wildfires, and impact the health of Canadians.

“We believe transitioning to zero-emissions electricity by 2035 presents the greatest economic opportunity of our time. This new electricity system will create hundreds of thousands of new jobs, attract billions in investments, be better for our health, and make energy more affordable for households. As the backbone of Canada’s work on climate solutions it’s worth doing, and it needs to be done right to achieve all of these benefits.

“Our expectations for the upcoming clean electricity regulations are clear: we believe the best path for Canada is one that ensures no new fossil fuel projects are connected to the grid, and where nearly all fossil fuel projects are phased out by 2035. We remain concerned that the fossil fuel industry has been successful in their significant lobbying effort to secure loopholes, extensions and exemptions to keep polluting electricity sources on the grid until well into the 2040 decade.

“Wind and solar are now the cheapest forms of electricity in history, while fossil fuel prices are more and more volatile. Achieving the federal government’s stated goal of affordable, reliable, emissions-free electricity is best achieved with renewables – not more fossil fuels.”

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Background:

  • The Canada Electricity Advisory Council was formed in May 2023 with a12-month mandate to advise the federal government
  • On August 10, 2023 the federal government introduced the draft Clean Electricity Regulations, which aim to achieve a net-zero electricity system across Canada by 2035. The final regulations are expected by the end of 2024.
  • The Foundation’s research from 2022, Shifting Power, showed it is possible to have an electricity grid powered largely by renewable energy sources by the year 2035. Its campaign Renewable Power for All is backed by over 22,000 people in Canada.
  • Canada’s commitment to achieve net-zero electricity by the year 2035 is popular in Canada, with 71 per cent of people living in Canada saying they either support or strongly support the target, according to a 2023 poll.”

For more information or media interviews, please contact:

Melanie Karalis, mkaralis@davidsuzuki.org, 548-588-1279

The David Suzuki Foundation (DavidSuzuki.org | @DavidSuzukiFdn) is a leading Canadian environmental non-profit organization, founded in 1990. We operate in English and French, with offices in Vancouver, Toronto and Montreal. We collaborate with all people in Canada, including First Nations leadership and communities, governments, businesses and individuals to find solutions to create a sustainable Canada through scientific research, traditional ecological knowledge, communications and public engagement, and innovative policy and legal solutions. Our mission is to protect nature’s diversity and the well-being of all life, now and for the future.