OTTAWA — Clare Demerse, federal policy advisor at Clean Energy Canada, made the following comments in response to today’s federal carbon pricing discussion paper:
“This proposal is a big step forward on a key climate commitment, and the approach Ottawa has chosen is a promising one.
“Carbon pricing is a smart, effective and necessary clean growth policy. It’s one of the best tools we have for curbing carbon pollution and accelerating clean growth.
“It’s also the new normal. An overwhelming majority of Canadians live in jurisdictions that are already pricing carbon today, and a number of countries, such as China and EU nations, do the same. Ottawa’s proposal will help ensure that all of Canada is part of that club.”
For further analysis of today’s announcement, see “Five things to know about Ottawa’s new carbon pricing plan.”
KEY FACTS
- Nanos polling commissioned by Clean Energy Canada last fall found that most respondents support or somewhat support the idea of putting a price on carbon emissions (59%). A majority (62%) also support or somewhat support setting a minimum carbon price that applies in all of Canada’s provinces and territories.
- The world’s biggest carbon polluter, China, is planning to move from pilot projects to a national carbon price this year. Once China’s national system is up and running, the World Bank calculates that about half the world’s carbon pollution will be generated in jurisdictions that are pricing carbon, and about a quarter of the world’s carbon pollution will be directly subject to a carbon price.
- According to legal experts, Ottawa has full legal authority to price carbon.
- 86% of Canada’s population lives in jurisdictions that already price carbon today.
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