The following statement was read in the House of Assembly today by the Honourable Lisa Dempster, Minister of Environment and Climate Change:

Speaker, we are witnessing the growing impacts of climate change. Flooding, storm surges, and forest fires are increasing in frequency and intensity here at home and around the world. It is essential that all governments, industries, businesses, and residents work to reduce their emissions and adapt to our changing environment.

I am pleased to say that the province has implemented all 45 recommendations in the 2019-2024 Climate Change Action Plan, with the development of two climate change action plans underway for the 2025-2030 timeline.

Our Climate Change Mitigation Plan will focus on reducing greenhouse gas emissions to meet our reduction targets while setting out a framework to achieve net zero emissions by 2050.

The Climate Change Adaptation Plan will focus on actions to adapt to the impacts of climate change. This plan will be the first stand-alone climate change adaptation plan for the province.

There are signs that we are moving in the right direction. Newfoundland and Labrador’s climate change initiatives have resulted in the lowest greenhouse gas emissions levels since 1996; 8.6 million tonnes in 2022. This is a significant drop under the 10.1 million tonne average of the past 10 years.

We all share a responsibility to tackle the impacts of climate change and protect our environment. While the work ahead is challenging, I am heartened to see the progress we are making towards transitioning to a lower carbon economy.

Thank you.