Climate Change

Lawson Lundell's Climate Change Group assists clients with a broad range of issues relating to the regulation of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions

Members of the group are fully up-to-date on the suite of legislation enacted by the British Columbia government in the Spring of 2008 in response to its 2007 Energy Plan, Alberta’s Climate Change and Emissions Management Act and other provincial and federal legislation. Members of the group are also knowledgeable about the Western Climate Initiative, in which British Columbia is a key participant, and about Kyoto flexibility mechanisms.

British Columbia’s new enabling legislation (the Greenhouse Gas Reduction (Cap and Trade) Act) is expected to implement British Columbia’s commitment to a “cap and trade” system to be established through Western Climate Initiative processes. Businesses that emit greenhouse gases and businesses with opportunities to reduce emissions or capitalize on allowance or offset trading opportunities will need to understand the detailed regulations that will implement the new legislation.

The Province of Alberta has introduced legislation to address greenhouse gas emissions. Since July 2007, industrial facilities that emit more than 100,000 tonnes of greenhouse gases a year have been subject to mandatory reporting requirements and specific emissions intensity reductions. The legislation provides a number of options for industry, which give affected sectors the flexibility to meet their mandatory reductions.

Members of the group practice commercial law and combine experience in commercial and transaction matters with knowledge of this emerging area of legal practice. They also have significant experience with the developing markets for renewable energy credits (RECs), renewable energy and green attributes of renewable generation.