Nova Scotia is one of the Canadian provinces that still depends on coal for a significant portion of their electrical power. That being said, the current NDP government is taking significant steps to shift to renewable forms of energy. In 2007, they passed a law establishing a hard cap on emissions of greenhouse gases and mercury from power stations. Since then, they have set targets for the proportion of their total energy to come from renewable sources. They are considering significant investments in tidal power capacity.

Given the inaction of Canada’s federal government, climate change action on other levels is especially important – whether that means provinces, municipalities, or regional groupings. Hopefully, other provinces will expand and deepen the kind of forward-thinking we’ve seen from places like British Columbia, Ontario, and Quebec, rather than the cluelessness and backwardness that keep coming out of Alberta.