2010 Progress Report - International Joint Commission

Progress Report 2010
New Actions on Acid Rain, Ozone and Particulate Matter
For the past two years the federal
government has worked with provinces,
territories and other stakeholders
to develop a comprehensive air
management system (CAMS) framework
that could reduce air pollutant emissions from major
sources in Canada. The federal Minister of the
Environment and his provincial counterparts
are currently reviewing the framework and will
discuss next steps in the fall of 2010. The proposed
CAMS framework includes three key elements:
CANADA
Canadian Ambient Air Quality Standards
(CAAQS)
New ambient air quality standards for particulate
matter (PM) and ground-level ozone would be
established under CEPA 1999 and considered as new
national standards to replace the existing Canadawide
Standards. There is a recommendation to
subsequently develop additional CAAQS for nitrogen
oxides (NO x
) and sulphur dioxide (SO 2
) as our current
objectives were last updated in the mid eighties.
Air Zone Management/Regional Airsheds
The framework recommends the establishment of
trigger levels set relative to the CAAQS to ensure
proactive measures are taken to protect air quality if
it is deteriorating. If pollution levels rise within local
air zones (delineated and managed by the provinces),
increasingly stringent action would be taken to ensure
the CAAQS are not exceeded and do not become
“pollute up to” levels. Four air quality trigger levels
will drive a range of management actions in an
escalating sequence. Airsheds will provide a
framework for inter-jurisdictional collaboration and
coordination of overall system reporting. Six regional
airsheds will be established to understand and
coordinate action on transboundary emissions.
Base-level industrial emissions requirements
(BLIERs)
BLIERs would be quantitative or qualitative emissions
requirements (emissions-intensity like) proposed
at a national level for new and existing facilities in
major industrial sectors and three equipment types.
These requirements are based on what leading
jurisdictions inside or outside Canada are requiring of
industry in “attainment areas,” adjusted for Canadian
circumstances. The framework already proposes
preliminary BLIERs for some air pollutants in nine
sectors and one cross-sectoral equipment type.
Additional BLIERs would need to be developed and
all the proposed levels would still require validation
including cost-benefi t analysis.
In addition to this new framework and as mentioned
previously, several new regulations have been
announced which will have coincidental benefi ts for
ground-level ozone, particulate matter and acid rain
forming pollutants.
The Government of Canada has proposed greenhouse
gas regulations that will apply a stringent performance
standard to new coal-fi red electricity generation
units and those that have reached the end of their
economic life. The overall goal of the regulations is
to transition from high-emitting coal-fi red electricity
generation to low- or non-emitting generation such
as renewable energy, high-effi ciency natural gas, or
thermal power with carbon capture and storage. Draft
regulations are expected to be published in Canada
Gazette early in 2011, fi nal regulations are expected
be published later that year, with the regulations
scheduled to come into effect by July 1 st , 2015.
The proposed regulations are expected to have
important co-benefi ts in reducing air emissions and
improving local air quality. Coal-fi red generation in
2007 was a major contributor of total particulate matter
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