Prof. Michael Trebilcock authors CD Howe report: “Ontario’s Green Energy Experience: Sobering Lessons for Sustainable Climate Change Policies”

Dramatic electrical price increases and modest environmental benefits: these form part of the conclusions to a CD Howe report released today and authored by University Professor Michael Trebilcock, law and economics scholar at the Faculty of Law.

In his report, “Ontario’s Green Energy Experience: Sobering Lessons for Sustainable Climate Change Policies,” Trebilcock writes: “These policies have had a dramatic impact on electricity costs in the province, but they have generated very limited environmental benefits and have had a negligible to negative effect on economic growth and employment.”

Trebilcock also writes that a revenue and technology neutral carbon tax (or cap and trade equivalent) would provide a much more cost-effective alternative to large subsidies to technologies or users. He goes on to suggest subsidies should be restricted to supporting research and development on novel abatement solutions.

Trebilcock highlights rising costs—18 cents per kilowatt hour for the on-peak price in November 2016, up from 9.3 cents per kilowatt hour in November 2009—which represents a compound annual increase of 9.9 percent.

In addition, he notes that while the Ontario government claims its green energy policies have created more than 30,000 jobs, this number does not distinguish between temporary and permanent jobs, between low-paid service jobs and higher-paid skilled jobs, nor does it include jobs lost through higher electricity prices.

Read more online here.