Climate change fight good for the North

The region's mining, forestry sectors stand to benefit, professor says

Northern Ontario might not have had a lot of attention in the recent federal election, but it is set to benefit from some of the policies put forward by the Liberal and New Democratic parties.

David Robinson, an associate professor in economics at Laurentian University, told the North Bay Canadian Club Wednesday that while this region did not play a big role in the platforms of the parties, promises for things like transit and housing will play a big role here.

“There is going to be more money for both of those,” which will translate into investment dollars and jobs in northeastern Ontario, while the abundance of natural resources – especially lumber – will pay big dividends.

“This isn’t a matter of federal policy, but two resources – mining and forestry – will benefit,” Robinson says.

One Liberal policy, shared by the NDP, is for net-zero emissions in all vehicles by 2050, and for that “metals are desperately needed for electrification.”

That, Robinson said, will be a boon for the mining industry, especially with the promise of the Ring of Fire in northwestern Ontario.

And “one of the best ways of cutting carbon emissions” is the use of mass timber construction, which uses large prefabricated wood members for wall, floor and roof construction.

“We have a lot of wood and a lot of low-quality wood” in the North, Robinson says.

Toronto, he points out, is the fastest-growing urban construction region in North America, and it only makes sense that much of the fabrication of mass timber and cross-laminated timber takes place in Northern Ontario.

“It has to happen in the North, otherwise the jobs will go down south, and the cost of land and labour there is expensive.”

By putting the fabrication facilities in the North, Robinson said, more jobs and people can be attracted to the region.

Robinson also took aim at politicians who deride the carbon tax, saying their predictions that it will cost jobs and money are wrong.

“Most of what they are saying is deceptive,” he said. “They are not giving people the correct information.”

The federal government implemented a nationwide carbon price, beginning at $20 per metric ton of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions this year and rising to $50 per ton.

As of 2019, more than 70 jurisdictions, representing about 20 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions, have put a price on carbon. The federal Conservative party and the Ontario government criticize the plan, saying it doesn’t work.

Economists William Nordhaus and Paul Romer were awarded the Nobel Prize in Economics for their work on the economics of climate change in 2018.

Nordhaus’s work dealt specifically with the issue of carbon taxes.

“He stuck his figures in the model and it worked,” Robinson says.

He said the Liberal plan “doesn’t kill jobs. It doesn’t cost consumers” because of rebates available from the federal government.

A family of four, Robinson says, will be $67 better off this year under the plan.

“I’m happy,” he says.