August 11, 2023

(Ottawa / Traditional, Unceded Territory of the Algonquin Anishnaabeg People) –

The long-awaited first draft of the Clean Electricity Regulations was released by the federal government in the Canada Gazette on August 10th, 2023.

These regulations were promised during the 2021 federal election campaign and provide a framework for moving Canada’s electricity sector to net-zero emissions by 2035. 

The proposed  regulations underline the fact that  creating a clean electricity grid is the health and economic opportunity of our generation.

In response to the publication of the draft of the Clean Electricity Regulations, Dr. Melissa Lem, President of the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (CAPE), offered the following reaction:

“This week, an important step was made towards achieving an emissions-free clean electricity grid by 2035 – a necessary step for protecting the health and safety of people across Canada. Ending our dependence on fossil fuels will improve our health by reducing the air pollution that kills thousands of people in Canada every year, and slowing runaway climate change that fuels deadly wildfires, extreme heat and flooding. However, the federal government must further strengthen the proposed Clean Electricity Regulations by closing loopholes for unsafe and untested technologies like fossil gas and carbon capture and storage that delay the progress we need. Moving rapidly towards a true zero-emissions future is the prescription Canada needs for a healthy future.”

For media inquiries: 

Reykia Fick, Communications Director, Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (CAPE)

647-762-9168, reykia@cape.ca