The (Public) Cost of Pollution: Ontario's fossil fuel subsidies

Ontario provides nearly CAD 700 million annually in public subsidies for fossil fuel consumption, with the largest portions consisting of tax exemptions for aviation, rail, and agricultural fuels, as well as direct spending on natural gas expansion. The report argues these subsidies represent foregone revenue and encourage pollution, recommending a transparent self-review, a phase-out action plan, and strict guidelines for any new subsidies to facilitate a transition to a clean economy.

• Ontario provides nearly CAD 700 million in public subsidies for fossil fuel consumption annually, which the report states encourages their use and contributes to climate change pollution.
• The largest fossil fuel subsidies in Ontario for 2018/19 include CAD 320 million in tax exemptions for aviation and rail industry fuels, CAD 225 million in tax exemptions for coloured fuel used in agriculture, and at least CAD 100 million in direct spending on natural gas expansion from Budget 2018.
• The report recommends that Ontario undertake a transparent self-review of subsidies, develop a phase-out action plan, establish strict guidelines to prevent new subsidies unless they are essential and consistent with a low-carbon economy, and engage with the Government of Canada regarding the G20 peer review of fossil fuel subsidies.

APA

Gass,, V. C. (2019). The (Public) Cost of Pollution: Ontario's fossil fuel subsidies. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/publications/public-cost-pollution

Chicago

Gass,, Vanessa Corkal,Philip. The (Public) Cost of Pollution: Ontario's fossil fuel subsidies. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2019. https://www.iisd.org/publications/public-cost-pollution.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Gass, |first1=Vanessa Corkal,Philip |title=The (Public) Cost of Pollution: Ontario's fossil fuel subsidies |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=30 July 2019 |url=https://www.iisd.org/publications/public-cost-pollution |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{gass2019public, author = {Gass,, Vanessa Corkal,Philip}, title = {{The (Public) Cost of Pollution: Ontario's fossil fuel subsidies}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2019}, month = jul, url = {https://www.iisd.org/publications/public-cost-pollution}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }