The mayors of Canmore and Banff have put their support behind the provincial government’s Climate Leadership Plan and legislation introduced this week in the Legislature to enact it.
Bill 20 was announced on Tuesday (May 24) by Minister of Environment Shannon Phillips in Edmonton as the Climate Leadership Implementation Act.
The proposed law implements key elements of the Climate Leadership Plan unveiled earlier this year that creates a carbon levy and rebate for Albertans.
“Our plan to reduce carbon pollution will diversify the economy, create jobs, protect the health of Albertans and erase any doubt about Alberta’s environmental record,” Phillips said. “It’s the right thing to do today and for future generations. Climate change denial is wrong for our economy and it’s wrong for Alberta’s future.”
Three Alberta mayors were included in the announcement of the legislation in support of the plan, including Banff Mayor Karen Sorensen and Canmore Mayor John Borrowman.
“The Town of Banff is a national park community, and the protection of a healthy environment is of paramount importance to us,” Sorensen said. “We applaud the direction toward climate leadership taken by the Province, which will help us sustain our tourism economy and provide a better future for all Albertans.”
Borrowman noted the leadership plan to address climate change by the provincial government is in line with Canmore’s own goals and actions set out in its Environmental Sustainability Plan approved in 2010. He said it is Canmore’s goal to be a municipal leader in the province when it comes to addressing issues of sustainability and reducing its carbon footprint.
“I am pleased to add my support for Minister Phillips and the government of Alberta in implementing the Climate Leadership Plan, which recognizes that all Albertans must take responsibility for protecting our environment,” he said. “I am proud to see Alberta taking on this environmental leadership role nationally and internationally.”
Edmonton Mayor Don Iveson provided his support, along with industry and environmental stakeholders like the Alberta Teacher’s Association, AltaLink, BluEarth Renewables, the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment, Cenovus, GE Canada and Suncor.
If passed, the legislation would set into law Alberta’s carbon tax and carbon levy rebate, ensure revenue from the tax is invested into actions that address climate change and establish a new provincial agency – Energy Efficiency Alberta.
The $20 per tonne carbon tax will take effect Jan. 1, 2017 and revenues from it are to be reinvested to reduce carbon pollution and provide rebates to Albertans. It is estimated by the government that 66 per cent of households will receive a full or partial rebate.
Energy Efficiency Alberta, meanwhile, will be set up as a body to develop and deliver provincial-scale energy efficiency and small-scale renewable programs and services.
Bill 20 also puts into effect a change to the Corporate Tax Act to lower small business taxes from three to two per cent.
