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Greenpeace report challenges Canada’s need for dirty, risky fossil fuels
News Articles | Greenpeace | MEDIA RELEASE | September 09, 2010
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(Toronto) — Greenpeace today released a comprehensive analysis of Canada’s energy potential that challenges the need for dirty oil from the tar sands and shows that Canada can create tens of thousands of green jobs, while providing over 90 per cent of the country’s electricity and heating needs from renewable sources by 2050.
“Greenpeace worked with energy experts to show how Canada can break its addiction to dirty tar sands oil, coal and gas and save consumers $5.3 billion a year by investing in renewable energy and energy efficiency,” said Keith Stewart, Greenpeace climate and energy campaigner. “We challenge the oil industry and governments to lay out their plan for protecting Canadians from climate change and rising costs for fossil fuels. It’s past time for this debate.”
Download the report (PDF)
The new research is in a report, Energy®evolution: A Sustainable Energy Outlook for Canada, prepared by Greenpeace and the European Renewable Energy Council (EREC) in conjunction with dozens of experts around the world (1). It shows that:
• Low-impact renewable energy can supply 96 per cent of electricity and 92 per cent of our total heating needs by 2050.
• Renewable sources of energy would rise from 15 per cent of Canada’s primary energy demand today, to 25 per cent by 2020 and 74 per cent by 2050.
• Primary energy demand would drop by 50 per cent through aggressive energy efficiency measures and reliance on wind, sun and other cost-free fuels,
• Canadians would save about $135 per person a year or $5.3 billion on average on their energy bills over the next 40 years, as we use less energy and switch away from increasingly costly fossil fuels,
• The market for the dirty oil of the tar sands could be eliminated through a global scenario of investments in public transit, more efficient vehicles and a rapid shift to electric vehicles that would reduce the world’s demand for oil by 25 per cent by 2030 and 66 per cent by 2050,
• About 77,000 jobs would be created in Canada in the renewables sector alone by 2030, as part of a global expansion of 12 million jobs,
• Energy-related greenhouse gas emissions in Canada would drop by 21 per cent by 2020, and by 95 per cent by 2050,
• Canada would cut its greenhouse gas emissions to the levels international scientists say would protect people from the catastrophic climate change now threatening millions,
• Canada could make a fair contribution to reductions in greenhouse gas emissions in developing countries, in line with our historic responsibility for creating the problem and capacity to pay.
Tagged with: greenpeace, clean energy, report, tarsands
