By Alice McFarlane

Farm groups disappointed but not surprised by ruling on carbon tax

Mar 25, 2021 | 2:04 PM

The federal carbon tax will stay in place much to the disappointment of prairie farm groups.

Agricultural Producers Association of Saskatchewan (APAS) responded farmers are worried how the additional cost will affect their operations.

APAS president Todd Lewis said producers have been very concerned about the impact of the federal carbon tax on their sustainability.

“We don’t set the prices for our products and can’t pass those extra costs along the value chain, so it comes right out of our pockets,” Lewis said.

APAS estimated the cost of producing an acre of wheat will increase by $12.50 by the time the carbon tax is fully implemented in 2030. These cost increases will include trucking, rail freight, and grain drying.

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The appeal against the tax came from Saskatchewan, Alberta, and Ontario. The federal government can go ahead with its plan to increase the price of carbon to $170 per tonne by 2030.

“APAS decided to get involved as an intervenor in the Saskatchewan Court of Appeal case because agriculture and environment are shared federal/provincial areas of jurisdiction,” Lewis said. “Policymaking in those areas work best when it’s developed by both levels of government and reflects the best interests of those sectors.”

Western Canadian Wheat Growers president Gunter Jochum said the federal government’s plans to reduce greenhouse gases through taxation is ill conceived.

“They are placing a huge financial burden on family farms,” Jochum said. “With the ongoing increases in the carbon tax moving to $170/tonne by 2030, I am concerned that many family farms will be taxed so high that the next generation will leave the industry.”

Jochum said research shows Western Canadian grain farmers are already net-zero emitters. No/low-till seeding, equipment improvements such as the use of GPS and drones, seed varieties and highly productive inputs have resulted in increased carbon sequestering and storage as well as increased production.

Saskatchewan Association of Rural Municipalities president Ray Orb shared the disappointment with the ruling. He said the carbon tax is having an impact on the whole province.

“It’s hurting the rural municipalities and the farmers and ranchers within those municipalities. It’s putting us at a competitive disadvantage, with not only the rest of the country but the rest of the world and it’s really disheartening news,” Orb said.

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alice.mcfarlane@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @farmnewsNOW