Manitoba’s provincial government released its Made-in-Manitoba Climate and Green Plan October 27.
The plan sets out an approach to carbon pricing with a level price of $25 per tonne beginning during 2018. The amount is half the amount mandated by the federal government and it will give Manitoba the second-lowest carbon price in Canada by 2022, said Sustainable Development Minister Rochelle Squires.
Cumulative emissions are projected to drop by more than one megatonne over the next five years – 80,000 tonnes more than with the federal carbon tax. Additional greenhouse-gas reduction actions set out in the plan will reduce emissions by more than double the federal carbon tax alone, the province said. The made-in-Manitoba price will not rise, Squires said, adding a full review of the carbon pricing plan will take place in 2022.
The plan confirms exemptions for agricultural emissions. The carbon levy will also not be applied to marked fuels used by farmers for their farming operations. Agricultural operations will also be able to contribute to carbon sequestration and offset trading systems to be established in Manitoba and other provinces.
Large industrial emitters will be able to reduce their emissions while having their competitiveness concerns addressed through an output based pricing system of performance standards, offsets and credit trading.
Canadian Press cited an anonymous source who said the province would be refusing to follow federal government demands to raise the tax to $50 a tonne by 2022.