Notley says carbon-tax plan won't hurt majority of Albertans

Premier Rachel Notley insists the province's carbon-tax plan will not be painful for the majority of Albertans.  

Speaking during a teleconference call from Ottawa on Tuesday, Notley said the issue centres around households not recycling to their fullest capacity.

"Those households who don't enjoy the benefit of recycling are going to be ones that are high users of carbon, who have the capacity to reduce their use and therefore reduce the amount of tax that they pay," said Notley, who on Monday unveiled Alberta's carbon-reduction plan at a first ministers conference in Ottawa, where it was "well accepted."

"To be clear, when we talk about the average cost per household, what we're talking about is an average, and it depends on how much carbon each household uses, which is very, very income-dependent."

Notley said all carbon-tax revenue will be redirected into the economy until there is a tangible recovery, and will not be used to cut provincial debt.

Alberta will invest significant revenue in diversification, aiming to move Alberta toward "a more renewable energy-based" economy.

Coal plant phase-out will be on set schedule

Phasing out the province's 18 coal plants, Notley added, will be done in a timely, stay-on-schedule manner. The completion date has been set for 2030, when it's expected natural gas and wind power will provide two-thirds of Alberta's electricity.

Wildrose Leader Brian Jean attacked the tax strategy Monday, saying the coal plant phase-out would hurt communities, creating uncertainty as to who would bear the costs. He is calling for a more gradual phase-out.

"To accelerate six additional (coal-fired) plants simply means that our economy is going to take a further hit," he said.

The plan also calls for a tax on carbon and a cap on oilsands emissions. It would make gasoline and heating oil more expensive. The government plans to use some of the extra money to offer assistance to those who can't afford the higher costs.

Carbon cash will create "rebates for low- and middle-income families," Notley said.

"There will be rebates for small business; there will be certain efforts made to work with particularly vulnerable industries.

Many Albertans will experience 'not that much pain'

"In some cases, as I've said before, low- and middle-income Albertans will experience not that much pain, quite honestly. And in some cases, if they act immediately in anticipation of the tax that will be phased in January of 2017, they could actually experience gain as soon as we start sending out the rebate, if they manage to find ways to reduce their emissions between now and January 1."

By 2030 the average Alberta household will face extra costs of $900.

Jean said the carbon tax, on average, would raise the cost of gasoline by $365 each year, while annual heating costs will go up by $230. He added the extra costs, higher taxes and minimum-wage hikes being brought in by the government would hurt the economy even more.

As for the first ministers meeting Monday, Notley said there was a new sense of optimism in Ottawa.

"I think it was a good signal of a more collaborative relationship between the federal government and each of the first ministers across the country," she said.

Next week Notley travels to Paris for the global climate change conference where, she said, Canada's message will be clear.

"(The federal government's) approach in Paris will be one that shows that Canada is back and willing to do its part, and presents Canada as a jurisdiction that is doing its fair share on climate change," she said. "But at the same retains the flexibility to continue on with the principle of each province engaging in its own efforts to meet these objectives."