Canada has made ambitious commitments to cut its emissions of methane, a greenhouse gas that contributes to even more rapid warming than carbon dioxide. The oil and gas sector is the largest source of these emissions in Canada, and as such it will play an important role in meeting the country’s methane commitments. Early in the COVID‑19 pandemic, the Government of Canada announced a program, the Emissions Reduction Fund, that was intended to help the sector cut methane emissions. In the fall of 2021, the Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development released an audit of the Onshore Program of the Emissions Reduction Fund that identified some shortcomings in the program’s design.

The House of Commons Standing Committee on Natural Resources conducted a study following on the commissioner’s audit and identified additional steps that the Government of Canada can take to strengthen programs that seek to reduce methane emissions. Specifically, this report recommends that the federal government release more information about the Onshore Program of the Emissions Reduction Fund, phase out programs for the oil and gas sector that subsidize compliance with existing or pending regulations, and work with industry and other levels of government to improve the monitoring of emissions in the oil and gas sector.