From efficiency to effectiveness: can Canada meet its emission reduction goals through carbon pricing?

Carbon pricing may be the most efficient path to reducing GHG emissions. But if the ultimate goal of climate policy is to reduce the greatest total volume of emissions given real-world political constraints, then it is time for a more serious conversation about effectiveness.

The oil sands in Fort McMurray, Alta. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has given the international community just over a decade to radically transform the global economy to limit the worst effects of climate change. Looking ahead, the most effective policies for reducing emissions on a meaningful scale will be those that directly target the production and consumption of fossil fuels, especially in the oil, gas and transportation sectors which together account for the majority of Canadian emissions, writes Hadrian Mertins-Kirkwood.The Hill Times photograph by Andrew Meade

Opinion

BY HADRIAN MERTINS-KIRKWOOD

March 11, 2019

OTTAWA—Often lost in the carbon pricing debate is the distinction between efficiency and effectiveness. Most economists agree that putting a price on greenhouse gas emissions is the most efficient way to reduce the pollution driving climate change. Implementing a carbon tax or a cap-and-...

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