news

July 3, 2009

B.C.'s carbon tax jumps on first anniversary, Canada Day

VICTORIA - Scott Robertson was filling up his girlfriend's Toyota Corolla when he realized he'd saved himself some money buying gasoline on Tuesday, the day before British Columbia's controversial carbon tax marked its first anniversary with a hike in price.

Unlike Robertson, most British Columbians celebrated Canada Day by paying a little more at the pumps.

The tax increased 50% per cent on the national holiday, adding a little over a penny to the price of a litre of gas. The tax was introduced last July 1, originally adding 2.4 cents per litre on gas and other fossil fuels.

Robertson, 30, said the carbon tax, which amounts to an extra 3.5 cents per litre as of Wednesday, changed his driving habits and made him more environmentally aware.

"It made me healthier because I was almost forced to walk,'' he said. "It kind of happened that way.''

The B.C. government introduced Canada's first escalating carbon tax on fossil fuels, including gasoline, as part of its commitment to cut greenhouse gas emissions by one-third by 2020.

"I always thought about pollution, and it always was a concern for me,'' said Robertson. "Being here on Vancouver Island, it's such a smaller area than say the Interior of British Columbia, you're definitely way more conscious about what you're leaving for a footprint.''

He said he is not upset the carbon tax adds more to the price of fuel.

"If I have to go somewhere downtown or something like that, I walk," said Robertson.

British Columbians consistently pay among the highest fuel prices in Canada. The average price for a litre of gasoline in Victoria is currently $1.06.9.

Last Canada Day, it was at near record highs of about $1.50.9 per litre.

B.C. Finance Minister Colin Hansen said the tax, which will rise again next Canada Day, puts a price on carbon emissions in an attempt to force British Columbians to change their ways to fight climate change.

The increase brings the tax to $15 per tonne of carbon dioxide emissions. The B.C. target is $30 per tonne.

The tax was an issue during the recent B.C. election campaign and in the last federal campaign, after then-Liberal leader Stephane Dion proposed a similar carbon tariff nationally.

Hansen said the B.C. carbon tax is good for the environment and taxpayers.

"We are still convinced it is the right approach, especially when you consider that every dollar that we collect on carbon tax flows back to British Columbians in the way of tax reductions,'' he said.

"All of the dollars we receive on carbon tax, we have ensured that there are reductions in personal income tax, small business tax rates and other corporate tax rates to equal and actually exceed the amount of money we collect on carbon tax.''

Hansen said the government has forecast to collect $546 million in carbon tax revenues this year.

The Opposition New Democrats, who promised to dump the carbon tax if elected last May, now say they will turn their focus to environmental issues that include, but go beyond the carbon tax.

"This government, in its February budget and it's anticipated September budget, are not making systematic investments in a green jobs economy, including public transit funding and green infrastructure,'' said New Democrat environment critic Rob Fleming.

Recent polls have found that while Canadians support fighting global warming, they're split when it comes to paying a carbon tax to battle climate change.