Alberta to Oppose Ottawa's Plan Mandating Electric Vehicles by 2035

Alberta Premier Urges Ottawa to Halt ‘Dangerous’ Carbon Tax Rise in Parliamentary Committee Hearing

March 28, 2024 TruthUSA

Addressing a parliamentary committee, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith urged the federal government to halt the scheduled April 1 carbon tax increase, labeling it as a “reckless” policy that is causing a crisis in Canadian unity.

“Both Albertans and all Canadians require sensible compassion and responsible governance to prevail. Thus, I implore you today to listen to the voices of Canadians nationwide and suspend the carbon tax increase on April 1,” Ms. Smith stated in her opening statements to the Committee on Government Operations and Estimates on March 28.

“This is not just reckless; it’s immoral and inhumane, and the additional pressure will devastate numerous lives, futures, and aspirations.”

Ms. Smith was the third premier to oppose the carbon tax in front of the committee this week, following New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs and Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe. Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston was also called to testify.

The premiers had originally requested to appear before the Finance Committee, but the Liberal chair refused to recall MPs to hear them. As a result, the chair of the Government Operations committee, Conservative MP Kelly McCauley, agreed to host a session for the premiers to present their testimonies.

On April 1, the federal carbon tax is set to increase from $65 per tonne of greenhouse gas emissions to $80 per tonne, with a projected rise to $170 per tonne by 2030. Premiers from seven provinces recently penned a letter to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau urging an end to the tax, and Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre has introduced various motions to eliminate the tax.

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Ms. Smith highlighted that Alberta industries are actively adopting new technologies and making investments to reduce emissions, while the federal carbon tax is merely escalating costs. Parliamentary Budget Officer Yves Jiroux has warned that the carbon tax will lead to decreased employment rates and reduced investment returns, along with adversely impacting specific economic sectors.

The Alberta premier also urged the federal government to extend the current three-year carbon tax exemption to cover all forms of home heating, not just the home heating oil exemption introduced in October 2023, which predominantly benefited Atlantic Canadians.

“If you intend to implement the carbon tax, it must be applied uniformly across all provinces and all fuel types. If you’re unwilling to enforce it that way, then a nationwide relief must be granted to ensure equitable treatment for everyone,” Ms. Smith emphasized.

“I believe it’s fostering a national unity crisis.”

Arsons in Alberta

During Ms. Smith’s committee appearance, Liberal MP Irek Kusmierczyk inquired about the significant number of wildfires in Alberta in 2023, which charred 2.2 million hectares of land and caused 299 days of wildfire smoke engulfing the city of Edmonton. He queried, “Can you confirm if these wildfires and smoke days were caused by climate change?”

Ms. Smith disclosed that 60% of the fires were ignited by human activities, and Alberta’s government was launching a public awareness campaign to address the matter.

Mr. Kusmierczyk highlighted that based on the province’s data, a mere 0.1% of the 2.2 million acres burned in Alberta in 2023 was due to human actions. He sought information on the province’s initiatives to combat climate change, but the time elapsed before Ms. Smith could respond.

According to the Alberta RCMP, thirteen arson-related charges have been filed following investigations by the RCMP Forestry Crimes Unit and Alberta RCMP. The RCMP indicated that two significant investigations from 2023 are under review by the Crown.

In June 2023, Ms. Smith announced that her government would introduce external arson investigators to probe a series of wildfires with unknown origins, expressing concerns about potential arsonists.

Some experts have attributed recent wildfires to poor forest management practices. In a prior interview, Matthew Wielicki, a former assistant professor in the Department of Geological Sciences at the University of Alabama, highlighted that fire suppression strategies in Canada and the United States unintentionally led to the accumulation of flammable underbrush in forests.

“In dry years, this becomes tinder. When a fire ignites, it spreads rapidly and burns intensely, causing more destruction than natural fires would. Consequently, we’ve witnessed fires that wipe out entire forests, whereas typically, only the underbrush would burn, leaving the trees unscathed,” he explained.

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