Ecofiscal panel: When are subsidies win-win for the environment and the economy?

Via the Ecofiscal Commission:

On October 4th, the Ecofiscal Commission released its latest report, Course Correction: It’s Time to Rethink Canadian Biofuel Policies. The report finds that biofuel policies reduce GHG emissions but at a very high cost. It therefore recommends that the federal and provincial production subsidies for biofuels be terminated, as initially planned.

During this live event, the panelists discussed which subsidies can improve the environment in a cost-effective manner and which are either ineffective or too expensive to constitute good policy. Is it possible to design a subsidy that gets the balance right?

Moderator

Chris Ragan
Chair, Canada’s Ecofiscal Commission
McGill University, Department of Economics

Expert Panel

Amin Asadollahi
Climate Change Mitigation Lead – North America, International Institute for Sustainable Development

Martha Hall Findlay
President and CEO, Canada West Foundation

David Popp
Professor and Ph.D. Program Coordinator, Public Administration and International Affairs, Syracuse University