Toronto Star

Only action can cut carbon footprint

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Re Canada returns to climate leadership in Paris, Opinion Dec. 5 What we need is a carbon tax to subsidize renewable energy. Being able to see more solar power and wind turbine units in Canada will show that we are serious about climate change.

Unfortunat­ely the only solution that climate change conference­s can come up with is to penalize countries that have a large carbon footprint. What is the penalty? It is to send money to poorer nations. In reality that amounts to a sin tax that will not reduce global warming. By sending money to poorer countries, we get to clear our conscience. But that will not reduce global warming.

To clean up air quality, the first step is to have a carbon import tax charged to any exporting nation that has poor air quality. The best examples are India and China. They really need to clean up their air-quality issues. If we tax them, they will need to make changes or they will find out that they cannot export products to the developed nations. Their solution will be to convert to more eco-friendly power. Once that is done, importing nations can reduce their import tax.

The second step is to have developed nations adopt a carbon tax to build more renewable energy units and another to supply poorer nations with renewable energy units. Clearing our conscience will not reduce our carbon imprint. Action will. Bruce Nicholls, Mississaug­a Re Correcting the record on carbon pricing, Opinion Dec. 6 Rather than “correcting the record,” Joseph Heath writes an unknowingl­y brilliant column that highlights a major concern with carbon pricing: that it disproport­ionately affects the poor — or as Heath refers to them, “those on the margins.”

As he so correctly points out, “average Canadians” won’t alter their habits with the small uptick in prices. But then he adds, those on the margins will.

Just how might they accomplish that? Those workers who don’t have access to public transit will pay more for gas. Food will cost more as the increased cost of transporta­tion is rolled into the prices. Heating costs will rise. Products and services that directly or indirectly depend on fossil fuels will all cost more.

Indeed, it’s the poor who will feel the brunt of carbon pricing. Brilliant. Don Mustill, Markham Re Unshackled, Dec. 5 On the occasion of the COP21 climate conference in Paris, how ironic that Matt Fudge’s world-trotting, hedonistic lifestyle is featured. What is the lifetime carbon cost of this one man’s adventures, which he calls “a lifestyle”? Duncan MacKenzie, Guelph, Ont.

 ?? GREG PERRY/PERRYINK ??
GREG PERRY/PERRYINK

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