George Heyman, Minister of Environment and Climate Change Strategy, will introduce British Columbia’s CleanBC plan to global climate change leaders, as part of discussions at the United Nations COP24 climate change conference in Katowice, Poland.

“Our message for the international audience at COP24 is that sub-national governments like B.C. can be difference-makers in the fight against climate change,” Heyman said. “We’re there to listen to ideas and to share how our plan puts our province on the path to a cleaner, better future - with a low-carbon economy that creates opportunities for all.”

From Dec. 10-13, 2018, Heyman will participate in a number of panels with international government and private-sector leaders, as well as provide keynote addresses on carbon pricing and sustainable transport policy.

Heyman will also receive the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Momentum for Change award, on behalf of British Columbia, for its Carbon Neutral Government Program, now in its 10th year of operation.

The conference is an opportunity to connect with world leaders and share what is being done to reduce greenhouse gas emissions at home, as well as to learn what other nations and sub-national governments are doing to combat one of the greatest challenges facing the planet.

Quick Facts:

Highlights of the CleanBC plan include:

• By 2040, every new car sold in B.C. will be a zero-emission vehicle. Government is helping people afford cleaner cars and save money on fuel with incentive programs, and making it easier to charge or fuel them.
• The Province is speeding up the switch to cleaner fuels at the gas pump – with further reductions to the carbon intensity of transportation fuels.
• Every new building constructed in B.C. will be “net-zero energy ready” by 2032, meaning they will be so energy efficient they will be able to produce their own power. Along the way, government will require new buildings to become progressively more efficient through changes to the building code, and by ramping up funding for renovations and energy retrofits to existing homes and offices, including $400 million to support retrofits and upgrades for B.C.’s stock of publicly funded housing.
• Government is helping B.C. to reduce residential and industrial organic waste, turning it into a clean resource.
• The Province is helping industry lower its emissions and reduce its pollution by reinvesting some of the carbon tax paid by industry in technologies that reduce their emissions.

Learn More:

Read about the Government of B.C.’s CleanBC plan: www.cleanbc.gov.bc.ca

For details about COP24, visit: https://cop24.gov.pl/