OTTAWA/TRADITIONAL, UNCEDED TERRITORY OF THE ALGONQUIN ANISHNAABEG PEOPLE — As Canada braces for another summer of dangerous heat, wildfires and storms, three young Canadians, alongside health and environmental organizations, are taking the federal government to court, arguing that Prime Minister Carney’s government no longer has a credible plan to meet its legally binding 2030 climate target.
The case, launched by Ecojustice on behalf of Sophia Mathur, Marie Maltais, Shirley Barnea, Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (CAPE), and Environmental Defence, alleges that the federal government’s comprehensive rollbacks of key measures in the federal climate plan have created legal violations of the Canadian Net-Zero Emissions Accountability Act (CNZEAA).
The applicants are asking the court to order the federal government to revise its 2030 climate plan so that it meets its legal obligation to chart a credible, up to date course of action capable of achieving Canada’s 2030 emissions target, to protect Canadians from the worsening impacts of climate change. The government would be free to choose the measures it intends to take to achieve the target but the public would have a right to weigh in.
