Provinces must give Ottawa carbon price plans by September

Environment Minister Catherine McKenna informed provinces this week she expects them to provide details of their carbon pricing plans no later than Sept. 1, 2018.

In a letter issued this week, McKenna says any province that doesn’t meet the federal carbon price benchmark will have the federal program imposed upon it starting Jan. 1, 2019.

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That means the federal government’s carbon price will start at $20 per tonne in 2019, rather than the originally planned $10 per tonne in 2018.

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McKenna has also asked any province that wants to rely on the federal carbon pricing plan to inform her by March 30.

At $20 per tonne, the added cost to the average Canadian household is expected to range from a low of $241 a year in British Columbia to a high of $448 a year in Nova Scotia.

Four provinces already appear to meet the federal benchmark, and four more have outlined proposed plans but every provincial plan will be reviewed by Ottawa to determine if it’s acceptable.