Canada launches national vehicle scrapping program

Archiv – John Baird, Canada’s Environmental Minister, has joined with the Clean Air Foundation to introduce a ’National Vehicle Scrappage Program’. The goal of the program is to offer incentives to people who retire their 1995 or older model vehicles. The program will be fully operating by January 2009 and the the incentives include: public transit passes; bicycles; a rebate on the purchase of a new car;; membership in a car-sharing program; or Can$ 300 incash.Canada | John Baird, Canada’s Environmental Minister, has joined with the Clean Air Foundation to introduce a ’National Vehicle Scrappage Program’. The goal of the program is to offer incentives to people who retire their 1995 or older model vehicles. The program will be fully operating by January 2009 and the the incentives include: public transit passes; bicycles; a rebate on the purchase of a new car;; membership in a car-sharing program; or Can$ 300 incash.
’We know Canadians want to do their part to help clean up the air we breathe and our Government shares their desire,’ said Baird. ’That’s why we are launching a national program to get Canadian’s smog-causing gas-guzzlers off the road. This investment, combined with our Turning the Corner plan to cut air pollution from industry by up to 50%, is what Canadians want and what we are delivering.’
The Government is providing Can$ 92 million over four years to implement the program, which will be delivered by the Clean Air Foundation – a national not-for-profit organization that runs the award-winning Car Heaven program.
’We are thrilled to be leading this program,’ said Ersilia Serafini, executive Director of the Clean Air Foundation. ’Car Heaven is a leading program in Canada and we look forward to working with additional local programs to build on their experience and to enhance this network nationally even more.’
As part of the Government’s commitment to environmental standards, the program will include a National Car Recycling Code of Practice. This code, currently being developed with the Automotive Recyclers of Canada, will raise the standard of environmental care for vehicle recycling and apply to all participating recyclers.
The Automotive Recyclers of Canada (ARC) and its provincial associations have partnered with the Clean Air Foundation over the years to help deliver vehicle scrapping programs. ’We look forward to helping take this to a national scale through our network of local auto dismantlers and recyclers,’ said Steve Fletcher, Managing Director of ARC. ’Ensuring that the vehicles are properly and permanently retired is the expertise we bring to the national program.’
This initiative is part of the Government’s Turning the Corner action plan, which includes a commitment to reduce emissions from transportation sources and cut smog-forming industrial air pollution in half by 2015.