Trudeau’s costly carbon tax just the tip of the iceberg
A report released by the Canadian Climate Institute last week was useful in explaining that the Trudeau government’s carbon tax is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the true costs to Canadians of reducing industrial greenhouse gas emissions linked to climate change.
In fact, the CCI says, the carbon tax (aka the federal fuel charge) aimed at consumers is a relatively minor part of this effort, accounting for a mere 8% to 14% of reducing emissions to the federal target of 40% below 2005 levels by 2030.
The largest contributor, the CCI predicts, will be the output-based pricing system, (aka the large emitter trading system) – aimed at big industries – intended to account for 20% to 48% of emission reductions in 2030.
That’s followed by the government’s oil and gas emissions cap (7% to 34%), methane regulations (1% to 21%), the fuel charge (8% to 14%), waste methane capture (7%), clean fuel regulations (0% to 4%), investment tax credits (2% to 3%) and electric vehicle standards (2% to 3%).
If it all works, the CCI predicts, Canada’s emissions (670 million tonnes in 2021, the latest available federal government data) will narrowly miss the government’s 2030 target of 440 million tonnes by 27 million tonnes.
Of course, that’s a big “if” considering that many government initiatives have been announced but not yet implemented, the Liberals may not be the government after October 2025 and they’ve already started watering down the tax by granting a three-year delay in imposing it on homeowners heating with oil, in an attempt to shore up their cratering public support, particularly in Atlantic Canada.
Basically, Trudeau’s climate plan is an enormous, complicated, economy-wide government program where all the moving parts have to work together simultaneously, presided over by the government that brought you ArriveCan.
The CCI, an independent think tank, receives financial support from Environment Canada and provides periodic updates on the Trudeau government’s climate change program, which it says is already significantly reducing emissions.
