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D’Avignon said the recommendations support the Clean BC plan released by Premier John Horgan in December 2018, with work on it having been underway since that plan’s release.
D’Avignon said B.C. produces products containing lower carbon components or are made using lower carbon energy. He said B.C. export energy and commodities are half the climate change-causing GHG intensity of the province’s global competitors.
But, he said, B.C. is the world’s only jurisdiction with a carbon tax but no protection from the government for emissions-intensive trade-exposed producers. What that means is industrial sector profit margins are significantly lower – anywhere from 11 per cent to 87 per cent - when compared to global competitors.
And that, D’Avignon said, is a deterrence to investment in B.C. and leads to jobs either leaving or not coming to B.C. in the first place.
“There is an opportunity for B.C. to become a verified, competitive low-carbon supplier of the energy, commodities and innovations the world needs and will consume in the years ahead,” D’Avignon said. “Acting on this plan means investment that creates high paying jobs for people and new innovations that benefit British Columbians and addresses the global climate challenge.”
