The British Columbia Greenhouse Gas Reduction (Cap and Trade) Act ("Bill 18") passed First Reading on April 3, 2008. Bill 18 aims to cap greenhouse gas ("GHG") emissions from regulated operations and establish a government-monitored system that will allow regulated operations to purchase and trade credits, referred to as "compliance units", for compliance purposes.
Bill 18 allows for both the issuance of compliance units and the recognition of compliance units issued by other systems. Regulators in British Columbia will issue two types of compliance units: allowance units, which are subject to a prescribed cap on the number that may be issued under Bill 18 for a compliance period; and emission reduction units, issued for qualified emissions reduction projects that reduce, avoid or remove GHG emissions emitted into the atmosphere. 'Regulated operations' and 'reporting operations' will be required to submit compliance reports, which may be subject to audits. Bill 18 incorporates administrative penalty and offence provisions. It also contains nearly seven pages of regulation-making powers, with regulations to be developed prescribing what operations will be regulated under Bill 18, what the GHG emissions cap will be, and what penalties will apply to companies not in compliance with Bill 18.
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