Dear Editor:
RE: ‘Fear-mongering,’ Aug. 31.
A carbon tax will change the climate, by changing behaviour. Consider these examples below:
Increased tobacco taxation has been recognized as one of the most effective population-based strategies for decreasing smoking and its adverse health consequences.
Between 1990 and 2006 Sweden cut its carbon emissions by 9%, while enjoying economic growth of 44% in fixed prices. The main reason for that success, say experts, was the introduction of a carbon tax in 1991. Carbon emissions would have been 20% higher without the carbon tax,” said the Swedish environment minister, Andreas Carlgren. It was the major reason that steered society towards climate-friendly solutions by making polluting more expensive.
To cut greenhouse gas emissions, the Swedish government brought in its basket of sticks and carrots in 1990, including a carbon tax that steadily raised the price of heating oil. Now 95% of homes in Sweden are heated (and cooled) by heat pumps, as people switched away from costly oil burners to cheaper electricity.
Canada introduced its own carbon tax in 2019 and will keep ramping it up yearly until 2030, which will cause the price of fossil fuels to rise relative to electricity. And remember, in Ontario, every three months you get a rebate on the tax you pay deposited to your bank account, to help transition away from fossil fuels.
Increased taxation does change behaviour, which is the whole point of the carbon tax.
Gord Cumming,
Georgetown