Cost of carbon emissions nearly five times higher than previously thought: analysis

The economic cost of greenhouse gas emissions is nearly five times higher than previously thought, Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault said Wednesday.

The minister told attendees at a climate change conference in Ottawa that the government used updated scientific knowledge and economic models to revise the way it evaluates how much climate change is costing Canadians.

The new numbers have been in development for months but come after a recent report from the parliamentary budget officer on the economic costs of the carbon price. That report did not specifically equate the cost of the price on carbon to the costs of climate change itself.

"The updates to the social cost of carbon simply show that every tonne of greenhouse gas is costing the economy more," Guilbeault said at the Net Zero Leadership Summit.