"But doesn't somebody have to take bold action?" It was merely months ago when CBC's Peter Mansbridge questioned Prime Minister Stephen Harper's federal climate action plan. Harper's response: Everybody has to take action. In other words, we'll continue sitting on the sidelines and wait for someone else to step up.
As a Coquitlam resident studying kinesiology at SFU who this time last year wouldn't have known B.C.'s carbon tax existed I've been exposed to the complexity surrounding our energy future as a result of spending a Semester in Dialogue discussing the issue with leading experts in policy making and renewable energy.
For more than six years, British Columbia has led the way by implementing a carbon tax on fossil fuel and related emissions, from gasoline to home-heating fuel. Now it's time for the rest of the nation to catch up. What B.C. did was to make its tax system smarter. We reduced taxes on things we want more of like jobs and business activity and shifted the tax over to something we want less of: carbon pollution.
B.C.'s carbon tax became an example of how a price can be put on carbon with minimal impact on the economy. Taxpayers come out on top because every dollar of revenue generated is given back to British Columbians through tax cuts and credits. Thanks to the carbon tax, the province reduced its consumption of fossil fuels by 16% since 2008 while the rest of the country's fuel use increased by 3% in the same time frame.
Prime Minister Harper has sought to scare Canadians into believing a national carbon tax would devastate the economy but the B.C. policy has proven this wrong and is both an environmental and economic success.
B.C.'s introduction to a carbon policy has been effective due to its simple design: If you burn fossil fuels, thereby causing carbon pollution, you pay the tax.
Still, B.C.'s carbon tax won't be enough to curb greenhouse gas emissions across the country, thus implying the need for a nation-wide strategy. A federal tax would provide consistency rather than each province implementing their own tax using different policies.
So how do we sell the idea of the carbon tax to all Canadians?
First, policies should be implemented at opportune moments: when gas prices are low, as we have seen with the recent plunge in oil prices.
Second, ensure the tax will be revenue-neutral B.C. has shown that linking the carbon tax to subsequent tax cuts has proven politically effective or at least any government revenue should contribute to Canada's green economy and improving transit systems.
Finally, an incremental approach to the tax will ensure its success: Set the initial price on carbon per tonne low and gradually increase it each year so the tax shock is lessened.
If carbon emissions levels don't drop, we will lose the battle to keep the global temperature rise below 2 C. By putting a national price on carbon, Canada can play a critical leadership role in dealing with climate disruption ahead of Paris's international climate conference this November.
Whether it's a political, environmental or economic issue, carbon pricing will likely be in the future of taxation. Is the land of the strong and free up for the challenge?
Eva Habib is a Coquitlam resident and an undergraduate student at Simon Fraser University currently participating in Semester in Dialogue, a full-time program designed to inspire students with a sense of civic responsibility and encourage their passion for improving society.
