By The Canadian Press

B.C. leader says province would go it alone on coal ban if feds don’t act

Apr 28, 2017 | 12:31 PM

BURNABY, B.C. — British Columbia’s Liberal leader says she would take steps to ban thermal coal shipments through the province if the federal government doesn’t act during a fight over softwood lumber tariffs imposed by the United States.

On the election campaign trail, Christy Clark says Ottawa has not yet responded to a letter she sent Prime Minister Justin Trudeau asking for a stop to American thermal coal passing through B.C. ports.

Clark says she expects Ottawa will act to keep “filthy” U.S. coal from reaching China in accordance with its climate-change agenda.

She says that otherwise, the province would go it alone and take measures such as imposing a heavy tax on coal shipments in an effort to stop them.

Clark made the comments in the midst of a softwood lumber dispute sparked when the United States imposed an average tariff of 20 per cent on Canadian softwood lumber, impacting jobs in forestry-dependent B.C.

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