Trudeau says 120 countries are ready to agree to '30 by 30' framework at COP15
As negotiations officially began at the COP15 UN nature talks in Montreal Wednesday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said almost two-thirds of the countries at the table have already agreed to protect 30 per cent of the world's land and water by the end of the decade.
But he said the negotiations with some of the five biggest countries in the world, including Russia and China, pose a diplomatic and political challenge.
"International relations are complicated," said Trudeau during an interview with reporters on the sidelines of the COP15 negotiations.
"But like I said yesterday, if we can't come together and say, 'yeah, we should probably protect nature' then what can we come together on?"
COP15 is the negotiations of all 196 parties to the UN convention on biodiversity that was first drafted in 1992. The convention is to nature, including habitats and all wild species, what the climate change convention is to global warming.
The discussions in Montreal -- which have been delayed two years because of COVID-19 -- are meant to draft a new biodiversity plan that would halt and restore natural habitats and wild species that have been damaged or are in decline mainly due to human activities.
The UN assessed in 2019 that one-quarter of animal and plant species in the world are at risk of extinction by 2100. It also said three-quarters of land-based ecosystems and two-thirds of marine environments had been "significantly" changed by human actions, including agricultural and industrial expansions, consumption patterns and population growth.
When it comes to protecting nature, size matters. The five biggest countries by land mass -- Russia, Canada, China, the United States and Brazil -- are home to more than half the world's forested lands. Russia alone has one-fifth of it.
Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault made the point that 30 per cent of Canada's land mass is equivalent to the entirety of every country in the European Union.
Losing forests, wetlands, grasslands, and damage to coastlines and pollution in marine areas, all negatively affect the harmony of biodiversity humans depend on for everything from clean air and water to food security and a safe climate.
At the moment, Canada is the only one of the five clearly on board the 30-by-30 goal. The U.S. isn't even a signatory to the biodiversity convention so isn't officially at the table.
Brazil just elected a new government to be led by president-elect Luiz Inacio "Lula" da Silva. While Lula, as he is known, has clearly promised to restore protections for the Amazon rainforest that were lost under his predecessor, his government doesn't get sworn in until January. It still faces a divided country over the balance between economic development and protecting the environment.
China is officially hosting the event, though it was decided in June to move the meeting to Montreal from China because of the latter's ongoing pandemic restrictions.
As president of COP15, China helps set the agenda and oversees the negotiations. But Trudeau said Canada agreed to host the meeting on short notice, with the caveat that while China would remain the official host, the meeting would be held on Canada's terms, including allowing protests and divergent opinions.
But beyond protest, Trudeau said Canada wanted to push the negotiations to go further than China was.
"We didn't want to just sort of slide by and have it sort of a China level of ambition or a global check mark. We wanted to really make sure that it matched Canada's level of ambition for nature and biodiversity," he said.
When other countries asked Canada to please take on the hosting duties, Guilbeault said only if they supported and helped push others to back the "30 by 30" target.
China has indicated it is looking to protect 30 per cent of its own land by 2030, but it's less clear how intent it is to push the rest of the world to agree. Its decision, for example, not to invite world leaders to help ramp up the pressure at this meeting, is seen possibly as a sign China may be trying to downplay the whole thing.
The other wild card is Russia. Trudeau said Canada has had some constructive discussions with Russia on protecting the Arctic but that was before Russia invaded Ukraine.
"To be honest, how well that is holding at this particular moment, given what they've done in violation of the UN Charter of so much, and just the general negativity they're having remains to be seen," he said.
Russia tried to block some negotiations that were proceeding to include gender equity in the framework, though they seemed to be unsuccessful. The gender language was the only one that entered the final talks today without brackets around it. Brackets indicate there isn't yet agreement of all parties to the wording.
"They are showing that they're just a disruptive force,' said Trudeau.
"But it's a UN conference. Everyone gets to show up and everyone gets to share their opinions. We just have to make sure they don't get to push the kind of chaos that is their modus operandi right now."
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 7, 2022.
IN DEPTH
Budget 2024 prioritizes housing while taxing highest earners, deficit projected at $39.8B
In an effort to level the playing field for young people, in the 2024 federal budget, the government is targeting Canada's highest earners with new taxes in order to help offset billions in new spending to enhance the country's housing supply and social supports.
'One of the greatest': Former prime minister Brian Mulroney commemorated at state funeral
Prominent Canadians, political leaders, and family members remembered former prime minister and Progressive Conservative titan Brian Mulroney as an ambitious and compassionate nation-builder at his state funeral on Saturday.
'Democracy requires constant vigilance' Trudeau testifies at inquiry into foreign election interference in Canada
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau testified Wednesday before the national public inquiry into foreign interference in Canada's electoral processes, following a day of testimony from top cabinet ministers about allegations of meddling in the 2019 and 2021 federal elections. Recap all the prime minister had to say.
As Poilievre sides with Smith on trans restrictions, former Conservative candidate says he's 'playing with fire'
Siding with Alberta Premier Danielle Smith on her proposed restrictions on transgender youth, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre confirmed Wednesday that he is against trans and non-binary minors using puberty blockers.
Supports for passengers, farmers, artists: 7 bills from MPs and Senators to watch in 2024
When parliamentarians return to Ottawa in a few weeks to kick off the 2024 sitting, there are a few bills from MPs and senators that will be worth keeping an eye on, from a 'gutted' proposal to offer a carbon tax break to farmers, to an initiative aimed at improving Canada's DNA data bank.
Opinion
opinion Don Martin: Gusher of Liberal spending won't put out the fire in this dumpster
A Hail Mary rehash of the greatest hits from the Trudeau government’s three-week travelling pony-show, the 2024 federal budget takes aim at reversing the party’s popularity plunge in the under-40 set, writes political columnist Don Martin. But will it work before the next election?
opinion Don Martin: The doctor Trudeau dumped has a prescription for better health care
Political columnist Don Martin sat down with former federal health minister Jane Philpott, who's on a crusade to help fix Canada's broken health care system, and who declined to take any shots at the prime minister who dumped her from caucus.
opinion Don Martin: Trudeau's seeking shelter from the housing storm he helped create
While Justin Trudeau's recent housing announcements are generally drawing praise from experts, political columnist Don Martin argues there shouldn’t be any standing ovations for a prime minister who helped caused the problem in the first place.
opinion Don Martin: Poilievre has the field to himself as he races across the country to big crowds
It came to pass on Thursday evening that the confidentially predictable failure of the Official Opposition non-confidence motion went down with 204 Liberal, BQ and NDP nays to 116 Conservative yeas. But forcing Canada into a federal election campaign was never the point.
opinion Don Martin: How a beer break may have doomed the carbon tax hike
When the Liberal government chopped a planned beer excise tax hike to two per cent from 4.5 per cent and froze future increases until after the next election, says political columnist Don Martin, it almost guaranteed a similar carbon tax move in the offing.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
DEVELOPING Man sets self on fire outside New York court where Trump trial underway
A man set himself on fire on Friday outside the New York courthouse where Donald Trump's historic hush-money trial was taking place as jury selection wrapped up, but officials said he did not appear to have been targeting Trump.
Mandisa, Grammy award-winning 'American Idol' alum, dead at 47
Soulful gospel artist Mandisa, a Grammy-winning singer who got her start as a contestant on 'American Idol' in 2006, has died, according to a statement on her verified social media. She was 47.
She set out to find a husband in a year. Then she matched with a guy on a dating app on the other side of the world
Scottish comedian Samantha Hannah was working on a comedy show about finding a husband when Toby Hunter came into her life. What happened next surprised them both.
'It could be catastrophic': Woman says natural supplement contained hidden painkiller drug
A Manitoba woman thought she found a miracle natural supplement, but said a hidden ingredient wreaked havoc on her health.
Young people 'tortured' if stolen vehicle operations fail, Montreal police tell MPs
One day after a Montreal police officer fired gunshots at a suspect in a stolen vehicle, senior officers were telling parliamentarians that organized crime groups are recruiting people as young as 15 in the city to steal cars so that they can be shipped overseas.
Vicious attack on a dog ends with charges for northern Ont. suspect
Police in Sault Ste. Marie charged a 22-year-old man with animal cruelty following an attack on a dog Thursday morning.
The Body Shop Canada explores sale as demand outpaces inventory: court filing
The Body Shop Canada is exploring a sale as it struggles to get its hands on enough inventory to keep up with "robust" sales after announcing it would file for creditor protection and close 33 stores.
Tropical fish stolen from Beachburg, Ont. restaurant found and returned
Ontario Provincial Police have landed a suspect following a fishy theft in Beachburg, Ont.
U.S. FAA launches investigation into unauthorized personnel in cockpit of Colorado Rockies flight to Toronto
The U.S.’s Federal Aviation Administration is investigating a video that appears to show unauthorized personnel in the cockpit of a charted Colorado Rockies flight to Toronto.
Local Spotlight
UBC football star turning heads in lead up to NFL draft
At 6'8" and 350 pounds, there is nothing typical about UBC offensive lineman Giovanni Manu, who was born in Tonga and went to high school in Pitt Meadows.
Cat found at Pearson airport 3 days after going missing
Kevin the cat has been reunited with his family after enduring a harrowing three-day ordeal while lost at Toronto Pearson International Airport earlier this week.
Molly on a mission: N.S. student collecting books about women in sport for school library
Molly Knight, a grade four student in Nova Scotia, noticed her school library did not have many books on female athletes, so she started her own book drive in hopes of changing that.
Where did the gold go? Crime expert weighs in on unfolding Pearson airport heist investigation
Almost 7,000 bars of pure gold were stolen from Pearson International Airport exactly one year ago during an elaborate heist, but so far only a tiny fraction of that stolen loot has been found.
Marmot in the city: New resident of North Vancouver's Lower Lonsdale a 'rock star rodent'
When Les Robertson was walking home from the gym in North Vancouver's Lower Lonsdale neighbourhood three weeks ago, he did a double take. Standing near a burrow it had dug in a vacant lot near East 1st Street and St. Georges Avenue was a yellow-bellied marmot.
Relocated seal returns to Greater Victoria after 'astonishing' 204-kilometre trek
A moulting seal who was relocated after drawing daily crowds of onlookers in Greater Victoria has made a surprise return, after what officials described as an 'astonishing' six-day journey.
Ottawa barber shop steps away from Parliament Hill marks 100 years in business
Just steps from Parliament Hill is a barber shop that for the last 100 years has catered to everyone from prime ministers to tourists.
'It was a special game': Edmonton pinball player celebrates high score and shout out from game designer
A high score on a Foo Fighters pinball machine has Edmonton player Dave Formenti on a high.
'How much time do we have?': 'Contamination' in Prairie groundwater identified
A compound used to treat sour gas that's been linked to fertility issues in cattle has been found throughout groundwater in the Prairies, according to a new study.