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Saskatchewan environment minister says province will never allow a carbon tax

Sask's Moe to feds: see you in court over carbon tax

OTTAWA — Saskatchewan Environment Minister Scott Moe says his province will do whatever it takes to keep Ottawa from forcing it to implement a carbon tax.  

Moe's federal counterpart, Catherine McKenna, says she's "optimistic" both Saskatchewan and Manitoba will eventually join the Pan-Canadian Framework on Clean Growth and Climate Change.

However, it's been five months since the other 11 provinces and territories signed on, and Saskatchewan has made it clear it will never agree to a mandatory price on carbon.

Moe says Saskatchewan has plans to meet its emissions reductions targets using clean technology and innovation, but it will take Ottawa to court before allowing a carbon price.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau angered many provinces last year when he said all provinces needed to have at least a $10 a tonne price on carbon by 2018 or Ottawa would do it for them. Most of them eventually came on board the plan at a first ministers' meeting in Ottawa in early December.

The federal government has not yet provided specifics on how it would impose the price on carbon on provinces which don't abide by the 2018 deadline to have a price on carbon of at least $10 a tonne.

The Canadian Press