An industry group in the Canadian oil sands sector said it was committed to playing a greater role in the effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

The Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers said that, since 1990, the sector has spent more than $1 billion on technologies needed to produce oil with a lower environmental footprint. With climate action moving to the forefront of the global conversation, the industry group said it was prepared to do more.

"We developed the technology to get the oil out of the sand – and we are just as committed to getting our carbon out of the air," CAPP President Tim McMillan said in a statement.

Countering a European directive that ranked Canadian oil as more carbon-intensive than rival grades, the Canadian government published a report in 2013 saying oil sands in some cases produce the same or fewer emissions than conventional crude oil from countries like Nigeria or Venezuela.

The government at the time said greenhouse gas emissions per barrel of oil production at home decreased 26 percent from 1990 to 2011. CAPP in its latest statement said greenhouse gas emissions are 30 percent lower per barrel than they were in 1990.

The provincial government in Alberta, meanwhile, said its environmental standards were "at least as high" as those for the oil industry in the United States. Now, Alberta aims to double a tax on carbon under the authority of Premier Rachel Notley, who is seen as an advocate for a low-carbon economy.

McMillan said the entire economy should get onboard with the effort to cut greenhouse gas emissions. With the Canadian energy sector already suffering from a depressed crude oil market, CAPP said new levies could add as much as $800 million to industry costs over the next two years.

"We will continue to work with the Alberta government to protect jobs and investment to keep the industry healthy for all Albertans," he said. "The competitiveness of our industry on the world stage is important to keeping Albertans working."

CAPP expects oil sands production to account for about 75 percent, or 4 million barrels per day, of total production by 2030.