On May 8, 2017, the 2017 CAMPUT panel "Decarbonizing
Canada's Energy Future – Pricing Carbon" addressed
the federal and provincial patchwork of carbon pricing in Canada
and its impact on citizens' pocketbooks and the economy. Panel
moderator Joseph Doucet (Dean, School of Business, University of
Alberta) highlighted the key issue in the move toward
decarbonization – pricing has a role, but what is the right
price?
Panelist Jack Mintz (President's Fellow, School of Public
Policy, University of Calgary) highlighted the need to consider
both explicit carbon pricing (i.e. carbon taxes and cap and trade)
as well as implicit pricing arising from subsidies, additional
taxes and exemptions for certain sectors. With implicit pricing
factored in, the non-uniform nature of Canadian various carbon
pricing regimes emerges. Dr. Mintz argued that the effective cost
of carbon should be clearly communicated to the public, noting that
when governments hide the true price of a policy,
