Public Lecture: Industrial Carbon Pricing In A Challenging Environment: The South African Experience
Hosted by Climate Commons
Research has shown that industrial carbon pricing is one of the most effective policy tools for reducing carbon emissions. Nevertheless, carbon pricing in general is under attack in Canada, as both provincial and federal governments look for ways to reduce economic risk and uncertainty. After Prime Minister Carney’s post-election cancellation of the consumer carbon tax, the federal government and several provinces have indicated that they will re-think industrial carbon pricing with an eye towards making it more effective, while some provinces are looking at removing all forms of carbon pricing.
This lecture and panel discussion will examine the promises and pitfalls of industrial carbon pricing in South Africa, a middle-income developing country which has implemented a successful carbon pricing regime for industry. It will also consider how the lessons learned there might be applied to the Canadian context. The lecture will include a keynote presentation by Andrew Gilder, whose company, Climate Legal, has been instrumental in advising government on the evolution of South Africa’s industrial carbon pricing system. Andrew is visiting Canada in late October/early November and will be a keynote speaker at the International Bar Association in Toronto in November after he visits Ottawa.
Like Canada, South Africa’s industrial base is heavily carbon-intensive, with large mining and refining industries making up the bulk of emissions, together with widespread use of coal for generating electricity. Introduction of a carbon pricing system were motivated in part by the country’s trade links to the EU, where the possibility of a border adjustment tax is imminent. At the same time, South African industry is under strong economic pressures, meaning that an effective industrial carbon tax has to be flexible enough to include the use of offsets and other incentives to mitigate business costs. The presentation by Mr Gilder will examine the development of the South African industrial carbon tax and will also include references to the experiences of other African countries that have introduced carbon pricing regimes. With assistance from a panel of local experts, we will also examine possible parallels and lessons learned from the South African side as they may inform carbon pricing policies in Canada.
The seminar will include a keynote presentation by Mr Gilder, followed by a panel discussion involving experts from Ottawa, featuring Stewart Elgie of the Smart Prosperity Institute and Nicholas Rivers, Institute of the Environment at the University of Ottawa.
Date and Time: Friday, 31 October, at 3 pm
Location: Minto Centre 2000, Carleton University
Questions: Emma D’Amico: climatecommons@cunet.carleton.ca