I don't think your depiction of who holds the power in Canada is entirely accurate. The power you are speaking of is wielded more by suburbs. In Ontario that area is referred to as "the 905": the regions of Halton, Peel, York and Durham. When it comes to issues like car ownership, I suspect that many suburbanites want their SUVs as much as rural folks do.
I also don't think this legislation "shaft[s] the rural folk". Climate change is coming for all of us. On Tuesday we recorded the highest temperature ever in Canada, 47.9 C! Speaking optimistically, I would like to think that Canada is taking actions to protect all Canadians.
Unfortunately, the truth is that we need far more potent legislation than this. But there are many sacred cows in Canada when it comes to meaningful action on climate change — such as actual cows. If Canada were, for instance, to tax agricultural products like meat and dairy in such a way that their climate impact was no longer externalized, that would indeed be seen as "shafting the rural folk". But I don't see that happening any time soon.
I also don't think this legislation "shaft[s] the rural folk". Climate change is coming for all of us. On Tuesday we recorded the highest temperature ever in Canada, 47.9 C! Speaking optimistically, I would like to think that Canada is taking actions to protect all Canadians.
Unfortunately, the truth is that we need far more potent legislation than this. But there are many sacred cows in Canada when it comes to meaningful action on climate change — such as actual cows. If Canada were, for instance, to tax agricultural products like meat and dairy in such a way that their climate impact was no longer externalized, that would indeed be seen as "shafting the rural folk". But I don't see that happening any time soon.