We did it! Thanks to years of movement pressure, the provincial government is finally reviewing the gas royalty regime in British Columbia.
BC’s absurd system currently lets 14 out of 15 of the province’s top fracking companies receive more in drilling credits than they pay in taxes and royalties. This is our chance to cut off the largest fossil fuel subsidy in the province.
However, the question is what kind of framework Premier John Horgan and the NDP decide to replace it with. While the province listed the royalty review in its CleanBC climate plan as an opportunity to reduce emissions, there is a real danger it could do the opposite.
If BC ends these subsidies but sets its royalty rates at rock-bottom prices or uses them to cover fracking companies’ costs it could result in more gas production, not less. Over 180 of you have already written to the reviewers since I alerted you last week.
Will you join us via Zoom Nov. 23 at 6:30 p.m. to learn how you can help? We’ll hear from three expert speakers to learn how the province’s royalty system impacts the environment and how you can help:
Tom Green | David Suzuki Foundation
Vanessa Corkal | International Institute for Sustainable Development
Ben Parfitt | Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives
