Agreement on GHG two provinces refuse to sign, the carbon tax will apply

Two provinces have refused to sign the agreement “frame” on the national strategy of fight against the greenhouse effect, but Justin Trudeau warned them: a price on carbon will be taxed them anyway, as expected.

Eleven of the 13 Canadian provinces and territories have signed the document that office plan to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG), shunned by Saskatchewan and Manitoba for different reasons. BC, who made prolong the suspense ended up giving its approval to the last minute, with some guarantees.

It is the will of the Trudeau government to impose a floor price on carbon from 2018 which created more tension. But Mr. Trudeau did not hesitate to confirm that Ottawa will move forward, despite the dissatisfaction of some.

“We need to protect the environment for our children, he noted. And the measures we announced to bring a price on carbon through the country, if there is no equivalent program generated by the provinces, continue to apply throughout the country. ”

Only Quebec Premier Philippe Couillard lacked the long table at the press conference of Mr. Trudeau and his counterparts in the provinces and territories, and Aboriginal leaders. He was held in Quebec City to the end of the parliamentary session and only arrived in Ottawa for dinner on the financing of health care.

The Premier of Saskatchewan placed a few seats Trudeau, has cracked the unit that he would have preferred to polish present, noting that the US president-elect Donald Trump, a proven climatosceptique, did not put implement such a plan against climate change.

“I simply say: do not be naive, as Canadians. This is not only our largest trading partner but also a competitor for investments, energy, etc. We need to be competitive and this is one of our concerns, “commented Brad Wall.

Mr. Trudeau retorted shot back: “I think all Canadians know that Canada’s climate policy will be set by Canadians, no matter who happens to be the president of the United States.”

The Premier of Manitoba, Brian Pallister, explained his refusal to sign by the growing health needs of his province, thus seeming make conditional support for the document to an increase in federal health transfers.

“I have an obligation, because it is the primary concern of my province to raise the issue. And I will continue to raise it, “said he said by way of justification.

Measures

One key measure of Justin Trudeau plan remains the carbon price announced in October, which will be imposed on the provinces that do not already have in place a pricing system. From 2018, the price per tonne of CO2 will be $ 10 minimum and $ 10 will increase annually to reach $ 50 in 2022.

To reduce the number of megatonnes of GHG emissions from the current threshold from 742 to 523 in 2030, Ottawa relies on a set of measures, which were already known to many.

According to a chart provided in the Framework Agreement, 89 megatonnes will be subtracted from the carbon footprint of the country thanks to the measures already announced, such as regulations on heavy vehicles and those of methane and provincial initiatives.

Another 86 megatonnes will be eliminated through initiatives contained in the Canadian framework, as the phasing out of coal, the adoption of a new building code, agreement on transportation electrification and implementation new standards.

This leaves 44 megatonnes that will be cut through “additional measures” in infrastructure and green technologies, which are not yet specified.

By day, the Premier of British Columbia, Christy Clark, has played spoilsport by stating that the cap and trade system in Quebec – and soon Ontario – was not equivalent to the carbon tax $ 30 currently in place in his province. She called the situation “inequitable” and suggested that it could even be detrimental to national unity. She finally rallied, a turnaround that Ms. Clark explained by saying she had been assured that the point would be made on the equivalence of the two systems in 2020.

Speaking after the joint press conference of his counterparts, Philippe Couillard seemed to find the rather artificial equivalence exercise. “There is no comparison between a tax and a fixation by the market. And that is recognized worldwide. I think it’s a bit a side path that will not lead to much. But if we do this study, great. It’ll be interesting to see the results of that, but it does not worry us. ”

Environmental groups welcomed the final document rather favorably, while stressing that much work remained to be done.

“The framework announced today pointing in the right direction, but it will not allow us to release quickly enough fossil fuel and avoid dangerous levels of warming, particularly if new pipelines from oil sands and other polluting facilities are built and polluting for decades, “reported Greenpeace in a statement.

Équiterre, there is inter alia that “the important thing will be to ensure implementation Å” quick and efficient work of this plan. “