If Canadian provinces fail to effectively regulate carbon emissions national government will impose a carbon price, according to Environment Minister Catherine McKenna
Canada's Liberal government will move to impose a national carbon price if the country's provinces fail to take adequate steps to regulate greenhouse gas emissions, Environment Minister Catherine McKenna has said.
Speaking yesterday on national politics TV show Question Period, McKenna said the new emissions regime will be implemented next month and will act as a "backstop" for provinces that do not regulate their own emissions effectively.
From October the national government will require provinces to adopt a carbon tax or cap-and-trade system. States that fail to set a carbon price in line with a minimum threshold will have the national carbon price imposed, McKenna said.
"It's mandatory that everyone will have to have a price on carbon," she said. "If provinces don't do that, the federal government will provide a backstop."
The plans build on an agreement in March brokered by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, which saw the provinces accept a compromise deal that agreed in principle to a price on carbon emissions but did not set out detail on how this would be applied.
Four of Canada's largest provinces - British Columbia, Alberta, Ontario or Quebec - currently either have a carbon taxation or cap-and-trade system or plan to introduce one in the near future. However, the national government's insistence all of the country's 10 provinces must have a carbon price is likely to met with resistance in some areas of the country.
Provinces such as Saskatchewan and Nova Scotia argue a federal approach to emissions regulation will hurt local industries and consumers, and say they should be left to implement their own climate change plans.
But McKenna insisted the introduction of carbon pricing has the backing of major Canadian businesses. "We know as part of our climate change plan to meet our international target that we need to have a price on carbon - and actually it's the best way to reduce emissions and foster innovation," she said. "In fact, 30 companies have signed on board to our carbon pricing leadership coalition - major energy companies and big banks are all saying we need to police it."
"Everyone knows that this is the way you need to go, including companies that operate in Saskatchewan." she added.
As part of the Paris Agreement Canada promised to cut its greenhouse gas emissions to 30 per cent below 2005 levels by 2030. However, official figures suggest this target is out of reach without radical new measures to curb emissions.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is expected to compile a new emissions reduction plan this autumn ahead of the COP22 summit in Morocco in November, but his government remains tight lipped over whether it will reconsider its emissions reduction target.
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