Government of Canada Backgrounder : 98/76a

Government of Canada
98/76(a)

BACKGROUNDER

CLIMATE CHANGE ACTION FUND

The Climate Change Action Fund (CCAF) was established by the federal government to help Canada meet its commitments under the Kyoto Protocol to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. It is intended to support early actions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and to increase understanding of the impact, the cost and the benefits of the Protocol's implementation and the various implementation options open to Canada.

The federal budget allocated $150 million to the CCAF over three years. The Fund is expected to spark significant private sector and other government funding, which will allow it to make the most of opportunities to lessen the impacts of climate change. Where possible, the funding is provided through existing programs.

The CCAF has four components:

Technology Early Action Measures (TEAM)
Science, Impacts and Adaptation
Foundation Analysis
Public Outreach

Technology Early Action Measures (TEAM) ($56 million) TEAM will support cost-effective technology projects that will lead to significant reductions in greenhouse gas emissions.

TEAM will encourage the deployment and development of technologies that will reduce the causes of climate change and will help the economy by demonstrating solutions that can move quickly to market. These measures will be the building blocks of long-term efforts to reduce the gases that contribute to climate change. Projects will provide innovative, cost-effective solutions to the problem of greenhouse gas emissions by, for example, reducing emissions from energy and industrial processes, offering new ways to reduce energy consumption or to expand the use of alternative fuels. The expense of the projects will be shared by governments and industry.

Companies should refer technology proposals for early action to the most appropriate federal funding program, such as Natural Resources Canada's research and development programs for energy efficiency and alternative energy, Industry Canada's Technology Partnerships Canada, Environment Canada's Canadian Environmental Technology Centres, or to the federal regional development agencies — Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency, Western Economic Diversification Canada and Canada Economic Development for Quebec Regions. There are well over one hundred projects being assessed under TEAM, eleven of which are now under detailed commercial negotiations. Announcements of several projects are expected by the end of the year.

For further information, contact the TEAM Operations Office at (613) 996-6220.

Science, Impacts and Adaptation ($15 million)

Further research is required to advance our knowledge of the magnitude, rate and regional distribution of climate change and its impact on Canada in order to better estimate the risks of climate change.

The work in the Science, Impacts and Adaptation component of the CCAF will focus on

systematic climate monitoring to detect climate change, and to improve and validate our climate models;
the study of key climate processes, including those related to greenhouse gas sources and sinks;
regional scale climate modelling for impact and adaptation needs;
the impacts of climate change on Canada and
the development, assessment and implementation of adaptation responses

The CCAF will help improve our climate change knowledge, giving us the tools to provide better scientific advice when a greenhouse gas emissions reductions policy is being developed. It will also help us to identify the most appropriate portfolio of response strategies, including those required to adapt to the impacts of climate change.

For further information, contact the Adaptation Liaison Office at (613) 943-0650.

Foundation Analysis ($34 million)

The Foundation Analysis component of the CCAF will support the sound analysis of options to meet Canada's commitments in Kyoto. In addition to bolstering the federal domestic and international policy capacity in climate change, it provides the federal contribution to the national climate change process which was established by federal, provincial and territorial Energy and Environment Ministers in April 1998.

The national climate change process is an innovative consultation process to examine the impact, the cost and the benefits of the Protocol's implementation and of the various options open to Canada. Fifteen "Issue Tables," which include some 450 experts from all levels of government, the academic community, labour, environmental groups and business and industrial sectors from across the country, have been established to provide expert and detailed input to identify and analyze greenhouse gas reduction opportunities.

More information on the national climate change process can be found at the National Climate Change Process Web site: http://www.nccp.ca.

Public Outreach ($30 million)

Increased public awareness and understanding of climate change will motivate Canadians to take action. The Public Outreach component of the CCAF will support projects that build public awareness and understanding of the issue and that promote awareness of the consequences of changing behaviour to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. These projects will build on the valuable work of organizations already working in their communities to help raise public awareness of climate change and to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

The main objectives of the Public Outreach component of the Fund are to:

provide balanced information to Canadians;
explore barriers to action;
motivate positive changes in behaviour;
focus on what Canadians can do at home, at work and on the road;
encourage activities in communities, schools, businesses and industries and
lever resources and promote partnerships

For further information, contact the Climate Change Bureau at (819) 953-0733.

More information about climate change can be obtained by calling 1-800-959-9606.

Additional information about the Climate Change Action Fund can be found at the Government of Canada Web site: http://www.climatechange.gc.ca.