By: Hon. Lena Metlege Diab, Member of Parliament for Halifax West
I want to first share a sincere thank you to all the first responders who stepped up to help Nova Scotians in the wake of the recent flash floods in our community and province. There’s no question that we have been feeling punished over the past several months by unprecedented and destructive weather events. Many people are now dealing with damages and losses and, collectively, we are facing major costs to rebuild from these events.
What is abundantly clear is that Nova Scotia is not immune to the dangers of a warming climate, and that we can’t afford to lose the fight for a greener future. This is what our government understands, and it is why we have been steadfast in placing a strengthened, economy-wide price on pollution, all while delivering carbon rebates directly to Nova Scotians for the first-time last month.
However, while pricing pollution is an essential part of our comprehensive climate plan, it is far from the only measure. To protect the environment and prevent the worst of future climate linked weather disasters, your federal government is also:
- Ending inefficient government subsidies for domestic fossil fuels and Canada’s international public financing of fossil fuels—two years ahead of schedule.
- Continuing work to place a cap on oil and gas sector emissions.
- Developing a Canada Green Buildings Strategy to reduce emissions from buildings.
- Making historic investments in innovative research at Dalhousie to unlock new insights around the oceans’ role in carbon storage.
- Providing generous grants and loans for energy efficiency upgrades for Nova Scotian households, including for the installation of electric heat pumps to replace home heating oil.
- Helping to fund Halifax Transit’s transition to net-zero operations by retrofitting the Ragged Lake Transit Centre and purchasing 60 new electric buses.
- Introducing a Canadian Sustainable Jobs Act to ensure our workers are not left behind in the green transition and that Canada seizes the substantial economic opportunity that it will provide.
- Building out a coast-to-coast national electric vehicle charging network and providing up to $5,000 in federal support for the purchase of an electric vehicle.
Of course, climate action is not just the responsibility of the federal government; it is on all governments, industry, institutions, and all Canadians to be part of the solution. We will continue to lead on this issue and will work with every partner who is ready to step up in this fight. Thank you, as always, for your continued support.
