Read - David Suzuki Foundation

Spurring Clean Energy Solutions & Innovation with BC’s Carbon TaxAn important foundation of any effective strategy to reduce greenhouse gas emissions isputting a price on carbon dioxide emissions through a carbon tax and/or cap-and-tradeprogram.Question 1: Will you strengthen the B.C. carbon tax and build on the province’s shifttowards affordable clean energy solutions for household and businesses by continuingthe annual increase of at least $5 per tonne of carbon dioxide emissions per yearbeyond 2012?Please answer ‘Yes’ or ‘No’Comments: BC is the only province in Canada that has seen emissions rise in the lastreporting year, according to Statistics Canada, and it is very doubtful that the BC Liberalsclimate plan will achieve the 2012 interim reduction target of 6%. New Democrats arecommitted to realizing emission reductions. The carbon tax can and should be a usefulpricing tool to shift BC to a low-carbon future.Question 2: Do you support changing the B.C. carbon tax so that a proportion ofrevenues from the carbon tax can directly finance solutions, including greeninfrastructure like public transit, home energy-efficiency retrofits and renewable energy?Please answer ‘Yes’ or ‘No’Comments: New Democrats are committed to realizing emission reductions. To achievethis, we will roll back the recent corporate tax reductions that were linked to the carbontax, and use these revenues for concrete solutions including expanded transit, greeninfrastructure (such as community energy systems) and innovative partnerships withindustry in all regions of BC.We will also put increased emphasis upon energy conservation programmes andefficiency standards. This will include an “energy conservation megaproject” to retrofitpublic and private buildings across BC to cut energy use, energy bills and energy-relatedemissions.Question 3: Do you support improving the fairness of the B.C. carbon tax by increasingthe low-income tax credit in step with annual increases on the price on carbonemissions?Please answer ‘Yes’ or ‘No’Point Grey Bi-Election Questionnaire:BC’s climate change leadership2