Canadian businesses spent $27.4 billion on environmental protection in 2022, up 3.2% from 2021. In 2022, Canadian businesses continued to put more than half (56.8%) of their spending towards resource management activities, compared with 43.2% put towards environmental protection activities.
Chart 1: Canadian businesses' expenditures in resource management and environmental protection activities
Description - Chart 1
Data table: Canadian businesses' expenditures in resource management and environmental protection activities
Sources: Tables 38-10-0130-01 and 38-10-0145-01.
Electric power generation, transmission and distribution industry and oil and gas extraction industry continue to report top environmental protection expenditures
From 2018 to 2022, the lead contributor to resource management expenditures was the electric power generation, transmission and distribution industry. It spent $11.0 billion in 2022, which represented 70.5% of all Canadian businesses' resource management expenditures. Almost three-quarters (74.0%) of this amount was put towards the production of energy from nuclear sources.
The oil and gas extraction industry accounted for just over one-third (33.6%) of all environmental protection expenditures in 2022. This industry allocated the largest proportion of its expenditures to the wastewater management activity (32.6%).
Ontario has the highest resource management expenditures, while Alberta has the highest environmental protection expenditures
Businesses operating in Ontario accounted for over half (59.1%) of the $15.6 billion nationwide resource management expenditures in 2022, followed by Quebec businesses (12.2%). Businesses operating in Ontario allocated most of their resource management expenditures to the production of energy from nuclear sources (84.8%), while those operating in Quebec directed most of their expenditures to the production of energy from renewable sources (77.4%), such as hydroelectricity.
Businesses in Alberta (37.4%) had the largest share of environmental protection expenditures in 2022, followed by Ontario (19.6%). Wastewater management activities (31.0%) accounted for the largest proportion of environmental protection expenditures among Alberta businesses.
Note to readers
This release presents data from the 2022 Environmental Protection Expenditures Survey. This annual survey is conducted with around 6,000 establishments in selected primary industries and in the manufacturing sector.
Definitions
Environmental protection expenditures: All operating expenses and capital and repair expenditures whose primary purpose is the prevention, reduction or elimination of pollution and/or other forms of degradation of the environment, as well as measures taken to restore the environment from a degraded state. This includes expenditures that a business incurred for atmospheric pollution management; solid waste management; wastewater management; protection and remediation of soil, groundwater and surface water; protection and restoration of biodiversity and habitat; clean vehicles and transportation technologies; environmental monitoring; environmental assessments and audits; relevant training and administrative costs, etc.
Resource management expenditures: All operating expenses and capital and repair expenditures whose purpose relates to the effective management of resources. In this survey, resource management includes heat or energy savings and management, the purchase of biofuels, biochemical products or biomaterials, as well as expenditures for the production of energy from nuclear or renewable sources.
For more information on the variables and definitions used, see the page Annual Environmental Protection Expenditure.
Reference
Data tables: Access the latest tables.
- Note: some data tables may best be viewed on desktop.
Definitions, data sources and methods: survey number 1903.
Previous release: Environmental protection expenditures by businesses, 2021.
Contact information
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