The Intergovernmental Panel…

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released a report three days ago urging collective action on climate change. We are experiencing more and more frequent extreme events and the effects of our changing climate. From these effects and extreme events, there are serious public safety, health, environmental and economic concerns. The Co-chair of the IPCC working group has indicated “the next few years are probably the most important in our history.”

Ontarians can’t afford the numerous months it will take to come up with a new Ontario Climate Action plan, never mind using taxpayer money to fight the Federal Government against their Carbon Tax. The Federal Carbon Tax program was set up as a last-resort to ensure Provinces would take the initiative to create a carbon pricing plan that worked for their respective provinces.

The Cap and Trade program was not a tax and did not take any money from taxpayers; instead, the price on carbon from industry was used to provide incentives for the people of Ontario. This program encouraged innovation, brought investment to Ontario, established Ontario as a climate leader, encouraged behavioural changes to tackle Climate Change. If the Province chooses to go ahead and cancel this program, understand that it will (and has already) caused significant job and revenue losses. From reading the press releases, it is clear that the Province has solely chosen to cancel the program because it was part of a campaign promise to do so. Not because it makes sense fiscally; not because it makes sense environmentally, or morally but solely for the principle of the matter. The Environmental Commissioner of Ontario indicated that for every $1 of revenue from Cap and Trade was matched by a $4 investment by industry. I know many people who took advantage of the incentives from as small scale as replacing windows to purchasing electric vehicles; people who I never thought would have been interested in taking ‘environmental’ action towards climate change! My vehicle is near the end of its lifespan and I was planning on purchasing an electric vehicle- given the incentives and the rapidly electric vehicle infrastructure. Without the incentive, I will be unable to make this purchase.

If the Province is serious about taking action on Climate Change, the Province will find a way to use the existing Cap and Trade resources, initiatives, and policies to do so. However, given the sudden cancellation of the Cap and Trade Program, Ontario’s reputation in the business world is damaged and it will take significant time for it to recover and re-build trust across Canada and the world.

Climate change is not going away. We will only survive as a species if we can work together to collectively pool our resources, knowledge and action to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions and adapting to the changing environment. Choosing to cancel the Cap and Trade program, wasting time resources to come up with a new plan and to fight the Federal Carbon tax are all the complete opposite of the urgent action Ontario (and the world) needs to survive in our changing climate. With more extreme events- such as flooding- how will the Province respond to those who are feeling the disastrous effects of climate change- both in the Province and in other countries- with an answer that they are spending the next several months re-building the wheel?
Ontario needs a serious Climate Action plan with legally binding targets that can survive across the 4 year Provincial political terms. All of the details on the policy and action needed are detailed in the two reports released in the last few weeks- the Environmental Commissioner of Ontario’s Greenhouse Gas report and the IPCC report.

I urge the Province to reconsider the decision to cancel Cap and Trade and to take the serious, urgent action needed to address climate change. Ontario’s reputation, our health, our economy and our environment is on the line, and more importantly, the survival of us as a species. Let’s be on the right side of change.