Energy policies take a very long time and great effort. It takes just as long to undo mistakes, as Ontario residents are now discovering with the Hydro One/wind turbine scandal. Carbon taxes will not lower pollution emissions. Canadians have come to the conclusion that carbon taxes are nothing more than a green hustle.
The climate has been changing since the creation of our planet. To use that to justify a new tax is beyond understanding. The unfair carbon tax grab is set to increase by 500%. Canadians living on the west coast had a taste of how much carbon taxes will take out of their pockets when the price of gas rose to $1.62 per litre. How long will it be before Canadians are paying European prices for gas, $4 a litre or more? This radical, extremist policy of the government must stop. Carbon taxes will not reduce global carbon emissions. They only make matters worse.
There are many things we can do to improve the environment. A made-in-Canada environmental policy, by Canadians and for Canadians, would be an honest start for the government. Carbon taxes are wrong for the Canadian experience. We live in a cold country, which by its very nature is energy intensive. Carbon taxes are not revenue neutral. No money will be returned to taxpayers. Carbon taxes are not going to save the planet.
Adopting carbon taxes in Canada raises global carbon emissions by offshoring economic activity from relatively environmentally friendly places like Canada to places with lax environmental laws.
Data from the World Bank reveals that China and other developing countries produce far more carbon per dollar of economic output, at purchasing power parity, than do western nations, and China shows no signs of decreasing its emissions anytime soon. China is currently building hundreds of new coal-fired plants, which will ensure its CO2 emissions continue to rise for decades to come. Taken together, these facts mean that every factory pushed out of Canada because of a carbon tax will actually increase global emissions dramatically, and this will continue to be the case for decades to come.
What should we do?
It is time to stop and put things in perspective. We should begin with the assertion that carbon dioxide is not a harmful chemical in the traditional sense of the word. It is actually essential for all life on earth, for plants to live. The obsession with carbon emissions is allowing many real polluters to fly under the radar. I can understand why the Liberals want to deflect the question when we ask, ‘What is the cost of their carbon tax?’ There is no reason for them to be hiding the carbon tax cost to families other than that they do not want Canadians to know what is really going on.
Why not take real action against pollution, like stopping the dumping of untreated sewage into the St. Lawrence and the Ottawa River? These are real environmental problems that are not getting attention, because carbon dioxide is so ardently being demonized.