The Environmental Performance Index (EPI), a tool that was developed to measure the environmental performance of a country's policies, has ranked Canada 46th out of the 163 countries measured.
The major environmental factor that pushed Canada further down the list was its ranking for greenhouse gas emissions per capita: 151st, beaten by all industrialized nations except Australia. This GHG ranking was based on data that was collected for the years 2007 and 2008 without even accounting for 2009!
A few other disappointing rankings revealed by the EPI were:
- 125th (out 127 countries) on fisheries conservation; beaten by Australia, New Zealand and Iceland. The US also scored better than Canada - mainly due to its federal regulations for sustainable fisheries.
- 80th on preserving biodiversity and habitat;
- 140th in preserving the vitality of ecosystems;
- 146th in sulphur dioxide emissions;
- 147th in nitrous oxide emissions.
It seems Canada will have to saddle up to start revitalizing its reputation as an environmental leader!
