Opinion: Sask. carbon tax pause violates law, defies climate plan

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We write to express strong opposition to the government of Saskatchewan’s decision to cancel industrial carbon pollution pricing effective April 1.

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The cancellation of the Output-Based Performance Standards (OBPS) Program on industrial greenhouse gas pollution in Saskatchewan leaves a gaping hole in Saskatchewan’s climate change plan (Prairie Resilience).

It also brazenly violates federal law, and undermines Canada’s commitment to the rest of the world to reduce nation-wide greenhouse gas pollution 40 per cent by 2030.

Large emitter pollution pricing systems across Canada, like the OBPS program in Saskatchewan, are projected to be responsible for more than one quarter of Canada’s greenhouse gas emission reduction over the next five years. The OBPS program creates incentives to cut emissions while keeping costs low for businesses.

Under the Output-Based Performance Standards Program, big emitters only pay for greenhouse gas emissions that go above a certain threshold. Thus, industrial carbon pricing imposes smaller costs on business, but creates attractive incentives for cutting pollution.

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The minimum national standards set by the federal government play an important role, bringing Canada’s many industrial carbon pricing systems into alignment. The government of Saskatchewan is clearly attempting to undermine this national effort by removing its OBPS program.

As it does so, Saskatchewan’s government is also forgoing a critically important revenue source, thus driving our province into deeper debt.

Cancelling industrial carbon pricing in Saskatchewan will create uncertainty for business and for investors who were planning clean technology investments.

It could also undermine Saskatchewan exports to trading partners such as the European Union, which is bringing in carbon border adjustment tariffs that will disadvantage high-emission jurisdictions.

The abandonment of industrial carbon pollution pricing is not the only unwise step the Saskatchewan government has taken in recent weeks to undermine good climate change policy.

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In January, Premier Moe’s government signalled its plans to keep Saskatchewan’s conventional coal-fired power plants running well past 2030, in violation of federal law. Coal is the most polluting of all fossil fuels. Alberta completed the phase-out of coal-fired power stations last year.

Ontario finished the job a decade ago. Saskatchewan is the only province refusing to comply with the 2030 deadline.

In February the Saskatchewan government backtracked on its commitment to make new buildings more energy efficient. It has reverted back to the very lowest standard in Canada’s energy efficiency performance tiers for low-rise residential buildings.

Saskatchewan’s move will increase greenhouse gas emissions in the residential home sector and increase operating costs for homeowners in the future.

In taking the regressive steps discussed above, Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe and his government are ignoring the realities of climate change and its growing impacts on our shared environment. In recent years, Saskatchewan has faced record droughts and record forest fires.

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Extreme weather events are on the rise across Canada and around the world with devastating human consequences. Climate change will cause a global food and water crisis of unprecedented proportions if it is not urgently addressed.

Sadly, Premier Moe’s government is ignoring all these distress signals, whether local or global. Saskatchewan already had one of the very highest per capita greenhouse gas pollution levels in the world.

With the policy changes of the last three months, Premier Moe is making Saskatchewan’s reputation on matters of the environment worse than ever.

We call on the government of Saskatchewan to reverse course and reinstate the OBPS program with a carbon price on industry that maintains alignment with other provinces.

We also call on the provincial government to move forward with improved energy efficiency standards on new buildings and to comply with federal law by phasing out all conventional coal-fired power stations in this province by 2030.

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Peter Prebble and Glenn Wright are both members of the board of directors of the Saskatchewan Environmental Society.

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