A new provincial climate change strategy from Alberta’s NDP government includes a carbon tax, a phasing out of coal-fired power plants and a legislating of emissions limits from oilsands – and Alberta residents will see their taxes going up as part of the plan.
An average Alberta household will likely see approximately an extra $470 in heating, electricity and transportation costs added to their bills by 2018, though “at least” 60 per cent of households will receive a rebate of those costs, according to Alberta Environment and Parks Minister Shannon Phillips. Gasoline is set to go up by five cents per litre starting in 2017.
Town of Cochrane officials are currently looking into how the tax will affect local residents.
“It is a relatively new tax and we haven’t had an opportunity to do a great deal of research on it yet. We will be working with other municipalities throughout Alberta to get a better understanding of what the potential impacts will be for the town,” said Drew Hyndman, senior manager of development services for the Town of Cochrane.
Town officials said at this point, they are unsure if the new tax will affect any current or future policies, but will be looking to other municipalities to see how their officials are addressing the issues.
“It is too early for us to comment whether we support or oppose the new carbon tax and it will certainly take some time to look into,” Hyndman commented.
“It is very early and I don’t think anybody has a complete understanding of the implications of this but with more information we will be able to better comment at a later date.”
The carbon tax, which is estimated to raise $3 billion per year, will cover approximately 78 to 90 per cent of provincial emissions – the highest in Canada. That revenue will be used to fund green infrastructure, renewable energy initiatives and other research and innovation projects.
The carbon price will take effect on Jan. 1, 2017, with an initial price of $20 per tonne. That will increase to $30 per tonne on Jan. 1, 2018.
Despite some Cochranites expressing concerns with the new carbon tax over social media, encouraging others who disagree with the tax to protest at local provincial buildings on Dec. 5 from 10 a.m.-2 p.m., there were no protests organized in Cochrane.
