It’s been a tough
year for those who believe in carbon pricing. In June, Doug Ford’s PCs
stormed to victory on a platform that included a pledge to toss out the
Ontario government’s cap-and-trade system and replace it with, well,
something. In November, the otherwise eco-conscious residents of
Washington rejected a third attempt at introducing a carbon tax. And
now, in Alberta, a government that staked much of its reputation on a
climate plan built around an economy-wide carbon price has been defeated
by a party that made its disdain for carbon pricing a key part of its
platform. At the rate things are going, the federal Liberals might need
to be more worried about their carbon pricing policy going into
October’s election than anything to do with Jody Wilson-Raybould.