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Challenges and opportunities on Canada’s path to net zero transportation
22/6/2022
6 min read
Feature
Canada’s road transport accounted for 21% of the country’s total greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in 2018, according to its government. Advanced biofuels, low carbon substitutes for petroleum, are becoming an increasingly popular way to reduce emissions. Ian Thomson, President of Advanced Biofuels Canada (ABFC), writes about decarbonising the Canadian transportation sector.
On the basis of population, Canada is a small player in the global energy sector. But behind its modest profile, the country of 38mn has outsized production and export of fossil fuels, agricultural commodities, forest products, minerals and clean electricity.
In order to meet emission-reduction targets and international climate commitments, advanced liquid biofuels will play a key part in Canada’s low carbon transport developments. Liquid biofuels, requiring minimal changes to fuel distribution infrastructure or the transport fleet, can be deployed rapidly to cut greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
When paired with a comprehensive suite of policies at the national and sub-national level, and a robust cleantech sector, Canada is well poised to decarbonise its transportation sector and contribute to this goal globally.