Canada’s greenhouse gas emissions increased slightly in 2019, report says, Globe and Mail 2021 April 13
When the Globe reports an opinion poll, it provides an estimate of the statistical accuracy of the numbers. The Government of Canada does not provide any estimate of statistical accuracy when it publishes annual emissions of greenhouse gases. These are derived from reports by 119 industries, made by those industries, and two categories of household expenditures. The potential for error in this system that depends on unverified reporting is high.
The difference between two very large numbers means strictly nothing in the absence of an estimate of the variance. Minister Wilkinson cannot provide any indication of the significance of annual changes.
Furthermore, Mr. Wilkinson has no evidence to support his contention that carbon taxes have made a difference. The poster child of the BC carbon tax, despite an abundance of rhetoric, has not led to a reduction of consumption of gasoline in BC. It has increased erratically for a decade, on average about one percent a year. The graphic tells the story in BC.
Minister Wilkinson does not know what he is talking about.
John Hollins
Gloucester
(I taught statistics of measurement as part of Physics 101 at Carleton University.)
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