Statistics Canada - Government of Canada
Accessibility: General informationSkip all menus and go to content.Home - Statistics Canada logo Skip main menu and go to secondary menu. Français 1 of 5 Contact Us 2 of 5 Help 3 of 5 Search the website 4 of 5 Canada Site 5 of 5
Skip secondary menu and go to the module menu. The Daily 1 of 7
Census 2 of 7		 Canadian Statistics 3 of 7 Community Profiles 4 of 7 Our Products and Services 5 of 7 Home 6 of 7
Other Links 7 of 7

Warning View the most recent version.

Archived Content

Information identified as archived is provided for reference, research or recordkeeping purposes. It is not subject to the Government of Canada Web Standards and has not been altered or updated since it was archived. Please "contact us" to request a format other than those available.

Skip module menu and go to content.
Online catalogue: Canadian Environmental Sustainability Indicators: Socio-economic Information Related products PDF version Online catalogue Main page Executive summary Introduction Findings Conclusion Figures and maps Methods and data quality List of acronyms References More information

Findings >

Greenhouse gas emissions

  • In 2004, Canada’s total greenhouse gas emissions reached an estimated 758 megatonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent, up 27% from 1990.
  • Canada’s 2004 emissions were 35% above the target to be achieved in the period 2008 to 2012 under the Kyoto Protocol.
  • Emissions per person rose 10% from 1990 to 2004; emissions per unit of GDP fell 14%.
  • The production and consumption of energy (including road transportation, oil and gas industries and fossil fuel-fired electricity generation) accounted for 82% of total Canadian emissions in 2004 and 91% of the growth in emissions from 1990 to 2004.
  • Alberta and Ontario had the highest emissions of all provinces in 2004.

Context

Naturally occurring greenhouse gases, mainly carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide, methane and water vapour, help regulate the Earth’s climate by trapping heat in the atmosphere and reflecting it back to the surface. Over the past 200 years, increased atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases resulting from human activities such as burning fossil fuels (oil, coal and natural gas) and deforestation have amplified this natural process, and scientists predict that this trend will continue (Environment Canada 2006a). [Full text]

Status and trends

National status and trends

Canada’s greenhouse gas emissions were an estimated 758 megatonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent in 2004, up 27% from 1990, when they were estimated to be 599 megatonnes. To put this in perspective, a typical mid-sized car driven 20 000 kilometres per year produces about 5 tonnes of carbon dioxide (Environment Canada n.d.c). The trend in estimated emissions and the target to which Canada committed in December 2002 when it ratified the Kyoto Protocol—6% below the 1990 baseline by the period 2008 to 2012—are shown in Figure 4. In 2004, Canada was 35% above the Kyoto target. [Full text]

What's next?

Environment Canada is continuously planning and implementing refinements to the national greenhouse gas emissions inventory that will improve the accuracy of emission estimates and the quality of the indicator reported here. These refinements take into account the results of annual quality assurance and quality control procedures and reviews and verifications of the inventory, including an annual external examination of the inventory by an international expert review team (Environment Canada 2006a). [Full text]

Home | Search | Contact Us | Français Top of page
Date modified: 2006-11-23 Important Notices
Main page _satellite.pageBottom(); >