TORONTO - Ontario's environmental watchdog says the province "just might" meet its 2014 target for reducing its greenhouse gas emissions because it stopped generating electricity by burning coal.
However, environment commissioner Gord Miller says Ontario won't meet its 2020 target because the government has done "very little" beyond shutting the coal plants to reduce pollution that contributes to climate change.
Miller says the government has offered no explanation for cutting its original target to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from cars and trucks by almost 80 per cent.
He says Ontario has lost the ambition it once had to address climate change, and warns extreme weather events will continue to dominate the news and strain the capacity of the insurance industry worldwide.
Environment and Climate Change Minister Glen Murray says closing the five coal-fired power plants was equal to taking seven million vehicles off the province's roads when it comes to cutting greenhouse gases.
Miller says he's encouraged that Premier Kathleen Wynne broadened Murray's mandate to add "Climate Change" to his title, which the commissioner says implies a significant change in policy discussions.
