Follow-up petition on the quantification of Canada’s total carbon dioxide emissions from exported fossil fuels

Petition: 390G

Issue(s): Climate change, Human/environmental health, International cooperation, Natural resources, Transport

Petitioner(s): A Canadian organization

Petitioner location(s): Ottawa, Ontario

Date received: 7 May 2025

Status: Replies pending

Summary: This petition is a follow‑up to petition 390 and its follow‑up petitions 390B, 390C, 390D, 390E, and 390F. The follow‑up petition refers to recent Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change findings, which highlight the urgency of limiting global warming to 1.5°C. The petition notes that Canada’s current emissions reporting does not include downstream emissions from fossil fuels that are extracted domestically or abroad and exported internationally through Canada. The petition claims that this results in an incomplete picture of Canada’s overall contributions to climate change. The petition notes that these emissions, which occur during the combustion of exported fossil fuels, are not currently captured in national inventories because the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change does not require its inclusion. The petition claims that Canada could choose to report this data voluntarily in an effort to mitigate Canada’s contributions to climate change.

The petition seeks updated 2024 data on fossil fuels exported or re‑exported from Canada, including the quantities, transportation methods, and estimated greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuel combustion. In addition, it requests updated figures on thermal coal that was exported from, re‑exported from, or shipped through Canada and the associated greenhouse gas emissions from the combustion of thermal coal.

Federal departments/organizations responsible for reply: Canada Energy Regulator; Environment and Climate Change Canada; Statistics Canada; Transport Canada