Tribune
WEEKEND Friday August 2, 2013
bcclassified.com
VOL. 24 NO. 32
REACHING 10,675 HOMES WEEKLY
Firefighters make salvation army donation
Watch for Arty the Artwalker this week as Art Walk gets underway Aug. 6.........................Page A11
USB Home and Travel Charger 1 amp USB charging with night glow and LED indicator lights.
Save 30%
12
$
57 each
reg. 17.99 $
Flyer in effect until August 10, 2013
250A S. 6TH AVE. (off Mackenzie) Williams Lake
250-392-4232 INSERTS Save On Foods M&M Meats Canadian Tire London Drugs Loblaws Safeway *Home Hardware *Walmart
*Source by Circuit City *Staples *The Brick *Shoppers Drug Mart *Laketown Furnishings *Sears *Designated areas only
For the fourth year in a row the Williams Lake Fire Department collected 75 boxes of non-perishable food for the Salvation Army as part of its Christmas in July food drive. Seen left to right, York Clarkson; Captain Randy Kadonega, corps officer with the Salvation Army; John Hack of the Williams Lake Rotary Club; Doug Wilson and Mike Wilson of the Salvation Army; and Rob Warnock, chief training officer and assistant chief of the Williams Lake Fire Department. Tara Sprickerhoff photo
Clark pitches carbon tax to premiers Tom Fletcher Black Press Premier Christy Clark is pitching B.C.’s carbon tax to her fellow premiers, bolstered by a study that shows it is reducing fossil fuel use compared to other provinces. As premiers gathered Thursday July 25 in Niagara-on-theLake, Ont. for a Council of the Federation meeting, B.C. Environment Minister Mary Polak said B.C. needs other provinces and U.S. states to get on board before moving further on carbon pricing. Introduced in 2008, B.C.’s car-
bon tax now adds about seven cents to the cost of a litre of gasoline, with comparable taxes on coal, fuel oil, propane and other fuels. Legislation requires that carbon tax revenue be offset by reductions in business and personal income tax, so it encourages fuel efficiency. The B.C. Liberal Party campaigned in the May election to freeze the rate for five years. Polak said results so far show it is reducing per-capita fuel consumption without depressing the overall economy, but the province has gone as far as it can on its own.
The study by University of Ottawa law professor Stewart Elgie found that per-capita use of fossil fuels has declined, while it has increased in the rest of Canada. “B.C.’s carbon tax shift is only four years old, so it is too early to draw firm conclusions, but its greenhouse gas reductions are trending in the same direction as those seen in European countries with more than 15 years of data,” the study says. “Indeed B.C.’s reductions to date appear to be even greater, consistent with the fact that its carbon tax rate is now higher and more comprehensive than most European countries.”
Maybe this is the year for a
Change!
Tour our retirement community today. Call Laurette to schedule a personal visit 250.305.3318 lvike@retirementconcepts.com
1455 Western Avenue williamslakeseniorsvillage.com
NDP environment critic Spencer Chandra Herbert agreed that the carbon tax is working, but said the five-year freeze indicates the government has lost its leadership position. The NDP is calling for the tax to be extended to emissions from industrial processing such as cement making, which is currently subject to tax only on natural gas or other fuel used. Polak said some industries are already at a disadvantage because B.C. is going it alone. Other jurisdictions need to put a price on carbon emissions before B.C. can expand the tax or raise the rate further, she said.