Incentives for the Environment

Incentives that benifit the environment and resources are a great way to encourage people to become more environmentally sound; The Government of Canada offers multiple incentives to motivate the people of Ontario to reduce the over-consumption of natural resources. The problem is, is that few people actually know that incentives like this exist to help make Canada a more efficient and environmentally friendly nation. You can check out a complete list of incentives at, www.incentivesandrebates.ca, but here are a few that I picked out as particularly effective and interesting.

Government of Canada Transit Pass Tax Credit
http://www.incentivesandrebates.ca/gc_fi_search_display.asp?id=222&jurisdiction=10&actionArea=0&keyword=

This incentive offers individuals a non-refundable tax credit to cover the costs of monthly or longer use of public transit services like, subways, buses, street cars, and ferries. It offers a value of $150 per year for monthly transit pass users.

I think that this incentive is particularly effective because it would motivate people living in urban cities to use public transit, this would then reduce the number of vehicles on the street producing emissions and using fossil fuels just to drive around the city. By offering a non-refundable tax-credit, it will lower the amount of money that people have to pay on their taxes, which acts as a motivator to use available public transit.

Retail Sales Tax Rebate for Wind, Micro Hydro-Electric and Geothermal Energy Systems for Residential Premises
http://www.incentivesandrebates.ca/gc_fi_search_display.asp?id=82&jurisdiction=10&actionArea=6&keyword=

This incentive is offered to the owners of residential premises, including multi-residential buildings the ability to claim a refund of 8% Retail Sales Tax, when they have paid for new wind, geothermal energy systems, and micro hydro-electric energy systems on any expansions or upgrades to the existing systems that are installed on their premises. These systems either produce electrical or mechanical energy or absorb heat from a solar-heated ground.

I believe that this incentive is effective because it would be encouraging the residents of Ontario to invest in renewable sources of energy use don residential premises. This would cut down on the amount of fossil fuels being used and electricity being produced to power the homes of Ontario. By offering the ability for people to claim a rebate, they will feel that they are saving money on their purchase.

Vehicles Powered by Alternative Fuels — tax refund
http://www.incentivesandrebates.ca/gc_fi_search_display.asp?id=72&jurisdiction=10&actionArea=0&keyword=

Vehicles Powered bu Alternative Fuels-tax refund, is an offer for a refund of the 8% Retail Sales Tax an offer for people who have purchased or leased vehicles that operate or have been converted to operate on:
• exclusively on electrical energy
• as a hybrid electric vehicle
• exclusively on propane, natural gas, ethanol, methanol, or other manufactured gases
• as dual-powered vehicles (vehicles that use one of the alternative fuels mentioned above and that can also be powered by gasoline or diesel fuel).
This refund has limits of $750 for propane vehicles, $1000 for vehicles powered by any other alternative fuel, and $2000 for electric or hybrid electric vehicles. For converted vehicles, this refund will only apply if the conversion has been made within 180 days of the date form which the vehicle was purchased. For conversions that were made later, the refund only applies to the cost of the conversion kit and its installation. The refund is NOT available for vehicles that use a mixture of alternative fuel and gasoline or diesel fuel.

I think that this is a great incentive because it encourages people to use more environmentally friendly means of automotive transport. Being that having a vehicle today is so incredibly common, almost everyone has one, this would then lead to lots and lots of emissions. As fossil fuels are non-renewable, focusing on finding alternate ways to fuel transportation is becoming very prominent and this incentive is motivating people to do so with tax refunds for making their vehicles more safe.


This is an incentive that is not in place yet, but I still think it’ll be pretty cool.
Summer Savings 10/10
http://www.incentivesandrebates.ca/gc_fi_search_display.asp?id=249&jurisdiction=10&actionArea=0&keyword=

Summer Savings 10/10 is an incentive that has been announced but is not yet available to the residents of Ontario. It is hoping to motivate people to reduce their power use by 10% during a set period by offering them a 10% rebate on their electricity bill.

Given the soaring cost of energy bills, this incentive is a great idea. It will both motivate people to reduce the amount of energy consumed in a residence and also offer them a reduction in the amount of money that they have to pay for their electricity bills. It is another great incentive that will help Canada work towards the amount of energy used and wasted in residential housing.

:D