On Thursday, Environment and Climate Change Minister Steven Guilbeault announced Canada will aim to cut 45 to 50 per cent of emissions from 2005 levels by 2035. The new target is late — it was required to be set by Dec. 1 under the Canadian Net-Zero Emissions Accountability Act — and is expected to be formally submitted to the United Nations as Canada’s official commitment early next year.

The 2035 target is the smallest possible increase, given Canada’s current target is a 40 to 45 per cent reduction by 2030. Practically, that means if Canada were to meet its 2030 targets, it would have to do little else to hit its 2035 objective.

Right now, our political class is succumbing to pressure from oil- and gas-backed disinformation campaigns and some of the key political lackeys of that industry, which include President [Donald] Trump,” Caroline Brouillette, executive director of Climate Action Network Canada, said. “As a result, we’re seeing a quite consternating race to the bottom when it comes to climate action.”

The 45 to 50 per cent emission reduction target is a far cry from Canada’s fair share of global climate action efforts, according to an analysis published earlier this year by Climate Action Network Canada. The country’s fair share would be an 80 per cent reduction from 2005 levels by 2035 — a target the organization landed on by taking into account what science requires to meet the Paris Agreement’s goal of holding warming to 1.5 C above pre-industrial temperatures.