I am strongly opposed to the…

I am strongly opposed to the cancellation of the Cap and Trade Act. This is of particular concern since this very week the Nobel Prize for Economics was awarded to William Nordhaus and Paul Romer, whose work has demonstrated that actions that put a price on pollution (require organizations that create carbon emissions to pay when they have exceeded the current allowable ceiling) are effective in reducing green house gas emissions. The beauty of plans, such as Cap and Trade, is that they encourage companies to voluntarily reduce the pollution they cause and the ceiling can gradually be lowered as targets are achieved, creating progress to towards necessary targets. Further, as was the case previously in our province, the money exacted from polluters can be redirected towards individual Ontarians to allow them to take actions to reduce their own environmental footprints by retrofitting their homes, using geothermal heating or driving electric cars. Unfortunately, the current premier has said that it was unfair for tax payers to subsidized rich people's electric cars. This was untrue on many levels. Very expensive electric cars were never eligible for incentives and the available incentives, paid for through the cap and trade program (i.e. not tax dollars), allowed ordinary people to afford electric vehicles. Additionally, the Nobel recipients demonstrated that countries that have variations on carbon pricing thrive economically, debunking another falsehood that Ontario's Cap and Trade Act would somehow drive business away. We MUST have legally binding emission reduction targets and strive for 100% clean energy by 2050. We are so fortunate that we can do this. We must not stop now!
As a grandparent, I am appalled that our government is not taking the need to address climate change seriously. Again, this very week, the UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has issued a report that states clearly that we must limit global warming even more rigorously than previously believed. Nothing is more important. We cannot have an 'economy' if we destroy the planet, or cause environmental disasters, such as droughts, floods, famine and disease to kill people in other countries. We must stop supporting carbon fuel extraction and new carbon fuel infrastructure. Fires and crop failures in our own country are further evidence that this is a crisis. Please, Government of Ontario, wake up and take this seriously! Our children and grandchildren have the right to a healthy and joyful future.