He said there are no plans to make another exemption for those who use natural gas to heir their homes. "But we live in a world where some people are challenged right now and we have to be able to course correct on some of those measures." "Of course as environment minister, my preference would be to not have to make those accommodations," he said. The government also increased the amount of funding homeowners switching from oil can receive for installing a heat pump, from $10,000 to $15,000.Įnvironment Minister Steven Guilbeault stressed lifting the tax is temporary, to give those struggling to pay their bills a chance to make the change to a greener form of home heating. The new incentives include an upfront payment of $250 for low- to median-income households, available to those who heat their homes with oil and sign up for a heat pump through a joint federal-provincial government program. In the long run, Beugin said shifting from oil heating to heat pumps is far more affordable, but the initial cost of getting one installed can be a barrier - though there are already a multitude of programs in place in Atlantic Canada and elsewhere to encourage people to make the shift. The federal carbon tax took effect in the Atlantic provinces in July, after Ottawa deemed the provincial alternatives insufficient, and has been the subject of scorn by the region's premiers.ĭuration 2:19 Featured VideoElectric and climate-friendly heat pumps are replacing oil tanks for home heating on the East Coast, likely thanks to provincial government incentives in New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and P.E.I. While the new exemption for home heating oil applies nationwide, the changes are meant to help Atlantic Canada in particular, where 30 per cent of homeowners still use oil to heat their homes. Those who use less fuel will pay less tax, but still get the same rebate as someone who burns a lot of fuel - leaving them financially ahead by comparison. (The remaining 10 per cent is directed toward businesses, farmers and Indigenous communities.) The price on carbon, designed to change people's behaviour to reduce the burning of fossil fuels, consists of a fuel charge collected by the federal government and a rebate made on a quarterly basis that returns 90 per cent of that revenue to Canadian households. Globally, burning fossil fuels like oil, gas and coal account for more than 75 per cent of the greenhouse gas emissions that are driving climate change, according to the United Nations. "It undermines the credibility of Canada's carbon pricing, which really tries to send a broad and robust pricing signal across the economy …to create the incentive to shift away from things that make emissions that produce emissions towards low carbon options like heat pumps," said Dale Beugin, executive vice-president of the Canadian Climate Institute. Will switching to a heat pump save you money? Here's how to find out.
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