No commitment to keep 2012 emissions deal in Nova Scotia

The federal government made no commitment Tuesday to maintain an equivalency agreementsigned in 2012 by the Harper Conservative government that mandated pollution reduction targets.

"Right now, we have different systems out there," federal Environment Minister CatherineMcKenna told reporters Tuesday in Halifax.

"We have B.C. and Alberta that have a carbon tax and we have Ontario and Quebec that have acap and trade system ... Weneed a national price [on carbon]... There needs to be comparability. I hear this frombusinesses that they need to be able to build into their assumptions what the price is going to beand they'll figure out how to innovate."

Nova Scotiawants the agreement to stand.

The deal exempted Nova Scotia from federal timelines to close coal-fired electricity plants,provided the province committed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 25 per cent by 2020,with a cap of 7.5 milliontonnes.

Flexibility key

The key, McKenna said, is having the flexibility for provinces and territories to determine how theywant to use the revenues and to ensure Canadian businesses are not disadvantaged and forcedto move elsewhere.

This week's talks, the minister said, are hinged on the Atlantic growth strategy that the federal andfour provincial governments announced a month ago.

"My colleagues and I agreed on pursuing a strategy to provide clean electricity in the Atlanticregion for years to come," McKenna said.

"As part of the Atlantic growth strategy, this will ultimately create good, clean jobs and driveinnovation in the transition to a low-carbon economy. It will grow the number of skilled workers inAtlantic Canada. The bigger goal, of course, is a national one.As Atlantic Canada improves its capacity to address climate change, it is part of Canada's actionas a nation to position Canada as a leader in the global clean-growth economy."

Province wants 2012 agreement

Nova Scotia's Environment Minister Margaret Miller said Nova Scotians have already done agood job embracing a green economy.

"Whether it's been recycling in low carbon and Nova Scotia Power, of course, electricity is ourbiggest greenhouse gas emitter, our biggest sector and we've had caps on the electricity sectorfor a long while and we let the electricity sector determine how those reductions are met," Millersaid.

Nova Scotia is already showing a 17 per cent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, which iswell above national figures, Miller said.

The province also expects to have 40 per cent of all its electricity generated from renewablesources by 2020 when the Muskrat Falls hydro project inLabrador comes online.