The Buzz
CARBON TAX INCREASE, ROYALTY REVIEW MOVING AHEAD The Government of Alberta hopes that an increased carbon tax on heavy emissions and a new carbon policy will help polish Alberta’s image as a climate leader. Alberta is doubling its carbon tax over the next two years — the first change to the levy since it was introduced eight years ago. On January 1, 2016, the tax on heavy emitters will increase to $20 from $15 per tonne. In 2017, it will rise again, to $30 per tonne. By 2017, the province will also increase the percentage of required emission reductions from 12 per cent per unit of production to 20 per cent. The government is also working on a review of the energy royalty framework. An expert panel has been selected to complete the review by the end of the year, but the province has promised there will be no changes to the rates until the end of 2016. -Jacqueline Louie
CHANGES ON TAP Alberta is doubling its carbon tax over the next two years and has begun a review of the province’s energy royalty framework. The review will be complete by the end of the year, but in the meantime the government has promised no changes to royalty rates until the end of 2016.
line. Linking Churchill Square to the NAIT campus, the Metro line is finally transporting commuters, but at slower speeds than normal. Since opening September 6, LRT drivers have relied on line-of-sight operation, which means trains only travel at speeds up to 25 kilometres an hour. It’s an interim solution until the kinks are worked out of a new signaling system. This compromise was reached in late summer after a dispute between the City of Edmonton and the project’s signaling contractor. A report released by a third-party auditor in August found communication management problems between the city
downtown core, and into the far south- east to the South Health Campus. Construction on the public transit project is expected to start in 2017 and wrap up by 2024, nearly doubling the size of the city’s CTrain network. There are still some challenges to overcome, though, including determining the final alignment of the 50-kilometre track and buying land along the route. -Jacqueline Louie
A LOT OF GREEN FOR CALGARY’S GREEN LINE LRT
Green stands for go. At least that’s what the City of Calgary is hoping, with a recent announcement by the federal government of $1.5 billion in funding for the Green Line LRT. Ottawa is contributing one-third of the project’s $4.6-billion cost. If approved, the line will run from Calgary's northern edge down Centre Street, through the
INTERIM SOLUTION FOR EDMONTON’S METRO LINE
After a lengthy delay, it’s half-steam ahead for Edmonton’s newest LRT
10 | PEG FALL 2015
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