BC gov’t rejects auditor general’s carbon-tax plan findings
Posted March 27, 2013 3:53 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VICTORIA (NEWS1130) – Auditor general John Doyle calls the BC government’s carbon offset program a sham.
But the government and operators of the program are firing back, accusing Doyle of ignoring evidence and lacking the proper expertise to examine the system.
In a report released today, Doyle says the government spent $6 million on projects to offset the effects of air pollution, but the projects would have gone ahead anyway so the offsets were not credible, and as a result the government can’t claim it has achieved carbon neutrality.
Environment Minister Terry Lake insists the province is the first carbon-neutral government in North America, and its offset system is based on international standards. “We fundamentally reject the auditor general’s conclusion that government has not met it’s objective of achieving a carbon neutral public sector.”
Jordan Bateman with The Canadian Taxpayers Federation is baffled that the environment minister flat out rejected the report’s conclusion. “It’s never good to argue with the referees, you never win that battle. The auditor general is the independent voice of the people, it keeps the legislature to account, it keeps the ministers to account.”
Bateman says Lake should take the report more seriously. “This is taxpayer money. There’s a trust here that’s been broken. We’re basically sending this money to the biggest company as possible in return for some nebulous, if any, environment returns.”
He’s calling for the NDP to come up with a plan to scrap the Pacific Carbon Trust.
The Pacific Carbon Trust — which manages the offset system — challenged Doyle’s findings, saying the two projects he reviewed had already been audited by two independent auditing firms and passed with flying colours. The Trust says Doyle’s office lacked the expertise to pass judgement on the program.
For his part, Doyle says his office was subjected an unprecedented and orchestrated campaign of delay and interference, led by the carbon trust and the interests behind carbon offsets.
