A bill to exempt propane and natural gas from the carbon price when used for grain drying and barn heating was nearing the end of its winding road through the Senate after an Oct. 5 meeting. Thursday morning the Senate’s committee on agriculture and forestry heard final witnesses speak on Bill C-234, which would amend […] Read more
Carbon exemption bill nearing close of Senate deliberations
Farm groups hoped to see Bill C-234 made law in time for harvest
The Big Divide: Are carbon credits a good idea or waste of time?
No one’s against carbon sequestration but the best way to reward good stewardship is a tricky question
Reading Time: 4 minutes Should farmers be paid for the amount of carbon stored in their fields? Or for the practices that put the carbon there? That depends on who you ask. The head of the country’s largest bank recently backed the former, saying a “carbon soil market could be worth as much as $4 billion. But right now, […] Read more
Carbon price exemption for farm gas clears Commons
Bill C-234 next headed to Senate
Legislative amendments that would exempt farmers’ eligible purchases of natural gas and propane from federal carbon pricing are now en route to Canada’s Senate. Bill C-234, a private member’s bill sponsored by Ben Lobb, the Conservative MP for the southern Ontario riding of Huron-Bruce, passed third reading for adoption in the House of Commons on […] Read more
New farm fuel carbon tax rule to return to Commons
Further carbon pricing exemptions clear ag committee, with sunset clause added
A bill that would exempt more farm fuels from Canada’s federal carbon pricing scheme has cleared the Commons’ ag committee and returned to the House of Commons to seek a third and final vote. C-234, a private member’s bill sponsored by southwestern Ontario Conservative MP Ben Lobb, appeared before the Commons’ standing committee on agriculture […] Read more
Approach carbon markets with an open mind, says proponent
Farmers need to consider what the developing carbon market could do for their business
Reading Time: 3 minutes Glacier FarmMedia – Despite all the uncertainties, carbon markets are an opportunity for farmers and should be seen as a business opportunity, says the head of the Alberta-based non-profit Biological Carbon Canada. “Carbon represents a brand new market,” Graham Gilchrist said at a recent virtual event hosted by an Ontario input supplier and grain dealer. […] Read more
Clean ag tech adoption fund open for applications
Intake open and ongoing for Agricultural Clean Technology Program
A federal program farmers can use to invest in “cleaner” on-farm equipment — including money specifically for more efficient grain dryers — is now taking applications. Federal Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau on Wednesday announced the $165.7 million Agricultural Clean Technology Program is “now open to applicants.” First launched in 2018 and earmarked for expansion under […] Read more
Federal budget to offer direct payments to farmers for carbon pricing
Other new 'green growth' funding also on deck
The federal government’s 2021 budget offers up new spending to support farmers combatting climate change through targeted investments — and, in some cases, direct payments. Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland released the budget Monday, showing the majority of new spending will take place over three years and be largely focused on “green growth.” “Budget 2021 announces […] Read more
Top court upholds federal carbon pricing policy
Farm groups, fearing unsustainable costs, press for next steps
Calgary/Ottawa | Reuters — Canada’s Supreme Court ruled in favour of the federal government’s carbon pricing policy on Thursday, upholding a central pillar of Prime Minister Justin’s Trudeau’s climate plan and infuriating some provinces that opposed it. The country’s top court said climate change is a threat to Canada as a whole and upheld the […] Read more
No credit expected for farmers’ past work in new carbon market
Work on protocols for specific projects to begin this spring, department says
Draft regulations for Canada’s new carbon market show Canadian farmers won’t receive credit for removing any greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) from the atmosphere prior to 2017. Federal Environment Minister Jonathan Wilkinson on Friday announced the offset market, to be known as the Federal Greenhouse Gas Offset System. A 60-day public consultation period on draft regulations […] Read more
Carbon pricing not having ‘significant impact’ on grain drying, Bibeau says
Conservatives, ag groups dispute government's numbers
Ottawa — Grain drying costs an average of $210 to $819 per farm in carbon taxes, according to federal Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau. Her department used data provided by grower groups – including Manitoba’s Keystone Agricultural Producers (KAP) and the Agricultural Producers Association of Saskatchewan (APAS) – to arrive at the figures. The federal estimate […] Read more
Cyber-Savvy Farmer
