Canada’s Carbon Tax Has Survived a Legal Challenge — But It’s Still No Help In the Fight Against Climate Change
A challenge to Canada’s carbon tax has failed, clearing the way for Justin Trudeau to press ahead with the policy. But carbon pricing is the brainchild of the fossil fuel industry — a green fig leaf put forward as an alternative to the ecological transformation we need.
Canada continues to be a laggard in addressing its greenhouse gas emissions, with per capita emissions roughly on par with those of the United States. (@etaplus / Unsplash)
Canada’s Supreme Court has ruled that the federal Liberal government’s carbon pricing scheme is constitutional. Justin Trudeau’s government introduced the price on carbon emissions in the fall of 2018, against opposition from several conservative-led provinces. Now it’s survived the challenge in the courts.
The scheme may be legal, but that doesn’t mean that it’s effective. While advocates of the policy celebrate and its detractors spin the loss, a vital question still remains: Is Canada’s carbon pricing scheme actually a climate victory?
Canada continues to be a laggard in addressing its greenhouse gas emissions, with per capita emissions roughly on par with those of the United States. For all its rhetorical commitment to the Paris Agreement, the country is not on track to meet its own climate targets, and has shown little substantial change in its emissions over the last twenty years.
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