In most countries, the electricity sector is a major source of
carbon emissions, at least to the extent its major fuel sources are
fossil fuels. Canada and the United States make an interesting and
instructive contrast, given the abundance of hydropower in Canada
and the vastly less significant role that fossil fuels,
particularly coal, play in Canada's electricity sector.
In the United States, the electricity sector is the primary
source of carbon emissions, accounting for roughly 33% of all
annual emissions. In Canada, the electricity sector accounts for
just over 10% of all carbon emissions, lagging well behind the oil
and gas and transportation sectors in particular. The following
table sets out the carbon emissions in Canada by sector, measured
in millions of tons (Mt), as at the base year (2005) and the target
year (2020) for measuring carbon emissions under the Copenhagen
Accord.
