Northerners on oil or propane fear 'hidden tax' with cap and trade

Northerners who heat with oil or propane are bracing for how cap and trade fees will affect their bills.

Each individual fuel supplier is charged by the government based on their own individual footprint.

But while some companies are including a cap and trade linewhen they bill their customers, others are not.

Jean Lane of Sudbury was surprised to see her propane costs jump by 9 cents per litre since cap and trade came in Jan. 1.

"It's not a happy situation for the consumer," says Lane, who lives on the shores of Ramsey Lake.

"We need to be able to plan. They've forgotten that there is only one taxpayer. And it does all filter down to us."

Many oil and propane companies in northern Ontario refused to speak with CBC.

But Mike Moore, who runs Jim Moore Petroleum out of North Bay, says cap and trade is a "hidden tax" and he doesn't know how much suppliers are charging him.

By his calculations, propane is going up by about 3 cents a litre, while oil is up 5.5 cents per litre.

He says he is seeing a lot of people switching to propane, while many are trying to get off of oil.

"Most people on oil, want to stay on oil, like the heat, want to deal with a local company," says Moore, who delivers fuel oil to about 2,500 homes in the North Bay and Sudbury areas.

"If they're switching it's either because they feel they don't have any other choice, or they're just getting bad information."

Moore says for those who feel they have no choice, it's often due to new restrictions on oil tanks. The Technical Standards and Safety Authority brought in new regulations last year requiring tanks to be doubled walled and new requirements for the pipes running between the tank and furnace.

Many insurance companies are also clamping down on oil tanks, following an apparent rise in spills and leaks in recent years.

Moore says he's offered financing packages to customers to try to keep them on oil, but with cap and trade coming in as well, he suspects the oil exodus will continue.

"Moving forward, if the government decides they don't want us to use oil, I'm not sure what they want us to do," he says.

Ontario Energy Minister Glenn Thibeaultsays it would be great to get people off expensive fossil fuels like heating oil, but says there are often not many other options available in rural and northern areas.

He says part of the government's plan is to expand pipelines into parts of the province currently not served by natural gas.