N.S. wins deal to use coal-fired plants past new federal deadline of 2030
HALIFAX — Ottawa and Nova Scotia announced an agreement in principle Monday that would allow the province to use coal-fired electrical plants beyond the new federal deadline to phase them out by 2030.
The concession is part of negotiations toward a new equivalency agreement that recognizes the work Nova Scotia has already done on greenhouse gas reductions. The province has already met Canada’s target of a 30 per cent reduction in emissions from 2005 by 2030.
Nova Scotia Premier Stephen McNeil also announced during a joint news conference with federal Environment Minister Catherine McKenna in Halifax that his province would also adopt a cap and trade system for industry, with the details to be worked out by 2018.
The province opted for cap and trade after McNeil had made it clear that he wanted no part of a proposed carbon tax, saying it would be too expensive for his province’s mainly rural economy.