Canada needs to double down on carbon removal and must set a target for doing so

Na’im Merchant is the co-founder and executive director of Carbon Removal Canada.
Following a summer of floods and fires, the pressure is on for the Government of Canada to step up its ambition in setting its emissions-reduction targets for 2035 this fall. For a more hopeful future, we need to lock in Canada’s leadership in permanent carbon removal.
A key pillar of reaching climate goals is, of course, to deeply cut carbon pollution across the economy in the years ahead. But reducing our greenhouse gas emissions is not enough. We need to invest in Canadian technologies that go beyond reducing emissions, and actually remove CO2 from the atmosphere.
The Canadian Net-Zero Emissions Accountability Act requires Ottawa to set national emissions reduction targets so Canada will be net-zero by 2050. To really be ambitious, Canada needs to set a carbon removal target informed by public consultations, in addition to emissions reduction targets. This will help fill a gap in Canada’s plans to reach net-zero, while attracting investment and boosting the economy in the process.
Carbon removal is the act of permanently removing existing carbon pollution from the atmosphere. It’s different from carbon capture, which prevents new emissions from entering the atmosphere but does nothing to remove the warming greenhouse gases already in the air, which can linger for thousands of years.
Furthermore, UN climate experts have already agreed that carbon removal is necessary, in addition to reducing emissions, if the world is to reach net-zero emissions. In the long-term, carbon removal is a major lever in our toolkit of climate solutions.
Opinion: One small reference to carbon removal in 2024 budget, one big leap for Canada?
Setting a national carbon removal target commits the government to finding the most effective policies and technologies, so we can scale them up and get us to net-zero. It will signal to Canadian researchers and entrepreneurs that there is economic demand for the social good that removing carbon pollution brings. Setting a target would also ensure that we don’t rely too much on carbon removal, ensuring the priority remains on reducing emissions first.
Research commissioned by Carbon Removal Canada has shown that investing in carbon removal could create 90,000 jobs and add over $100-billion to our GDP by 2050. We risk losing these benefits if major investors and entrepreneurs do not see Canada prioritizing carbon removal. As we have seen in industries across the country, we face brain drain to places such as the United States when we do not value Canadian enterprise.
Our trading partners have already taken notice of the carbon removal imperative, and have positioned themselves to benefit from the potential economic windfall. The United States has invested €1.86-billion ($281-billion) in carbon removal technologies since the passing of the Inflation Reduction Act, while the EU has invested €613-million and is setting standards for high integrity carbon removal.
Fortunately, Canadian entrepreneurs and researchers are leading the world in carbon removal innovation. B.C.-based Arca has a cutting-edge approach to absorbing CO2 in mine tailings, Deep Sky is setting up a direct air capture innovation centre in Alberta, while Carbon Engineering has built one in British Columbia, UNDO has partnered with Ontario farmers to launch a major enhanced weathering project, Airex is progressing biomass solutions in Quebec, Planetary is deacidifying the ocean to draw down carbon in Nova Scotia, and CarbonRun is using the power of our rivers to do the same (while restoring salmon habitats).
Critics argue carbon removal is unproven and pricey. But with the climate crisis, we should not limit the tools we can use to solve it. Canada has a culture of innovation and tackling big problems – this can be one of them.
Ottawa has announced plans for an investment tax credit for carbon capture that also applies to direct air capture (a carbon removal method). It is also working on a carbon removal procurement program through the Low-carbon Fuel Procurement Program, which is meant to tackle the government’s own emissions.
But the Canadian government can do much more to accelerate progress and ensure we don’t give up our lead. One simple, no-cost action they can take now is to launch a consultation on how to incorporate carbon removal into our national climate targets to start the process for setting a carbon removal target. Countries such as Britain are already seriously pursuing carbon removal targets, and there is a proposal for the EU in total to remove 400 megatonnes of CO2 per year by 2040 being actively discussed.
Carbon removal is not the stuff of science fiction. With more investment, we will see it become more affordable and more effective. The real question is, will we reap the benefits in Canada? Or pass them on yet again, to another country?
This article has been updated to state that Carbon Engineering has built a direct air caption innovation centre in British Columbia.