Please accept the following…

Please accept the following as my official comments on Bill 4, Cap and Trade Cancellation Act, 2018, posted for consultation as ERO 013-3738.

In the Cap and Trade Cancellation Act, 2018,the Ontario government has committed to establishing targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions in Ontario, and a climate change plan to achieve these targets.

I urge you to support Ontario’s current science-based pollution reduction targets. Those targets set the province on track to be nearly carbon neutral by mid-century, which is what is required if we hope to limit global warming to 1.5. degrees, as agreed to by 195 countries in Paris.

As stated in an IPCC report, even an increase in 1 degree could make a life a death difference in the next few decades for people and ecosystems globally. Ontarians are already facing the growing impacts of extreme weather: flooded basements, forest fires, and health impacts from polluted air and extreme heat. Backing away from Ontario’s pollution reduction targets will threaten future generations’ ability to enjoy a safe climate.

The Government of Ontario is responsible for the long-term well-being of its citizens and climate change threatens our safety. Thus, as a voter, I am upset about the fact that the cap and trade program is being cancelled. This is a strong lack of foresight that only focuses on the short-term. Carbon pricing means we pay a little more now to prevent the billions of dollars of damage that come with climate change; consequently, this cancellation is not a move “for the people”. Revenues from Ontario’s cap and trade program went towards school refurbishment and home-energy rebates. The Ford government cancelled such programs though there remains money in the fund collected to go towards these initiatives. Again, these actions are not “for the people.”

As a concerned Ontarian voter, I want to be proud of the actions of the Ontario government. Though I have lived abroad most of my life, my family is in Ontario and what the Ontario government does matters to me. I am disappointed as I look at actions to mitigate climate change in other countries and regions and then back at what Ontario has done. Our government should be one that its citizens and others look up to, not turn away from.