End B.C.'s carbon tax

Re. Carole Kormendy's letter Support's carbon tax (Castanet, Nov. 17)

In a recent letter, Carole Kormendy prompted the benefits of the B.C. carbon tax saying, “We grumble from time to time but never an outcry to abolish it until now, as we know a price on pollution will change behaviour and our carbon footprint as we continue to fight climate change".

But then she went on to claim if we end the carbon tax in B.C. the provincial government will lose out on $3.4 billion in revenue.

Thank you for admitting something most British Columbians already knew, the carbon tax has nothing to do with reducing our carbon output and has everything to do with generating more revenue for the government coffers.

If the tax was removed the biggest impact most British Columbians would see would lower prices at the gas pumps (seven cents per litre), which would then reduce overall costs of transporting goods and services and reduce costs on almost everything we buy given almost everything is trucked into the Okanagan Valley, including gasoline.

Look at the couple letters written in recently regarding peoples gas bills. Removing the carbon tax would reduce everyone's gas bills.

Most “left-leaning” people don’t realize whatever rebates are given out do not offset the increase in costs the carbon tax adds to literally everything. Not to mention adding to inflation.

And all of it is for nothing.

According to a recent Vancouver Sun article, as of 2020, the latest year for which figures are available, B.C. had only reduced greenhouse-gas emissions by one per cent from its baseline year of 2007.

That’s well short of its goal of reducing emissions 40% by 2030, 60 per cent by 2040 and 80 per cent by 2050.

And, even though we are in a housing crisis, the provincial government thinks increasing the costs of building homes is good.

"In the manufacturing sector, the cement and concrete products sub-sector will see the highest cost increase of all industries from the carbon tax at 15.6%. Other energy-intensive industries, such as aluminum manufacturing, and chemicals, pesticides, and fertilizers, will see their costs increase by between 5% and 7%. The paper products industry will witness a cost increase of 4.7%. Food manufacturing costs will increase by 3.4% under the $170 per tonne carbon tax and all of it from a country that outputs a total 1.5% of global GHG’s, the article stated.

"In 2020, Canada ranked as the 11th largest GHG emitting country/region. Canada's share of global emissions decreased from 1.8% in 2005 to 1.5% in 2020.

Like that of other economically developed countries, Canada’s share is anticipated to continue to decline due to the expected rapid increase in emissions from economically developing and emerging countries,

particularly China (+78.2% from 2005 to 2020), India (+62.8%), Brazil (+18.6%), and Indonesia (+37.3%)"

Jorden Friesen, West Kelowna