Thunder and lightning in Prince George.
Floods destroying Cache Creek. Drought in the State of Washington. An NDP government in Alberta. None of these are harbingers of the end of the world.
But big oil calling for a carbon tax? It's the end of the world as we know it!
Okay, not really. But it would seem to be a major step forward in changing our energy mix for big oil to finally step forward and call for a carbon tax. Except the oil companies in Alberta have been paying a carbon tax for a number of years.
It is applied at the wellhead.
As a consequence, it is the companies that carry the burden and not the consumer. Indeed, the way things are set up right now, oil shipped to foreign countries is taxed resulting in either higher prices or lower revenues.
So perhaps it is not surprising when Suncor CEO Steve Williams supports: "A very broadly-based tax where people realize what the prices are at the point of consumption. A realization by the consumer is very important, because if you want energy efficiency, if you want people to change their behaviours and affect the demand side, you have to get to those users."
Williams thinks that it makes sense to have a carbon tax applied broadly to consumers at the pumps or added to our utility bills.
Just not at the wellhead.
Oh well, at least it is a starting point for a conversation.
And the oil sands industry is beginning to think a carbon dioxide emission tax would make sense. It might seem a contradiction for an industry to seek a new tax on itself but the crude oil they are presently producing is seen by the rest of the world as very "dirty".
A tax might prevent other countries from banning oil sands crude. Indeed, such a levy might actual help producers access markets and provide more predictable costs for oil, helping our single largest export.
Further, a carbon tax across the whole economy and in every province would help to level the economic playing field both inside and outside of Canada.
The Conservatives remain out of step with industry and the vast majority of Canadian taxpayers on this issue.
They still think a carbon tax will kill the economy and hurt Canadian families despite evidence to the contrary from a number of jurisdictions, including British Columbia.
I am not a big fan of the carbon tax for other reasons, which I will get to, but it has definitely not "killed our economy".
Admittedly, no one can truly know whether or not it has hurt our economy because there is no way to go back in time and try the last few years over without a tax. But our economic growth is not out of sync with the rest of the country.
There are also people still trying to deny the facts by either twisting them, misunderstanding them, or contending that there is nothing we can do about climate change, so why bother?
For example, the 2014 Emissions Trends Report shows that even if the economy tanks and global energy prices continue to sag, Canada would still fail to meet our targets. Under the Copenhagen accord, we agreed to cut greenhouse gases by 17 per cent below 2005 levels by 2020.
As things stand, we will be closer to being only 1.7 per cent below 2005 levels by 2020, so why try?
There are many reasons and a carbon tax could be one solution.
Except not like British Columbia's where it is being used wrong. The government committed to a tax that is "revenue neutral". In government lingo, revenue neutral means they will take in money from one source and hand it back to someone else.
Indeed, it is a strange term since by definition all of our taxation is "revenue neutral"! The government should be spending our money to meet our needs.
Unfortunately, while the carbon tax is given back, the majority of t he money goes to corporations and small businesses in the form of tax breaks.
In other words, the $20 dollars you see on your gas bill is subsidizing corporations making profits.
I don't mind paying $240 per year in carbon taxes for heating my home. I object to paying to $240 in the coffers of corporations for no reason.
No. If we are going to have carbon taxes, a much smarter way to use the money would be to emulate California where funds are set aside to assist low income families to install solar panels on their homes.
We don't even have to go that far. How about just using the money to provide green energy alternatives on all provincial buildings and other structures?
Wouldn't that make more sense?
I think that is something we could all get behind - even big oil.
