For opponents of a carbon tax, Toronto — and more specifically, the nearly 7,000 square km of fast-growing suburbs that surround the city — offers plenty of ammunition.
I grew up in Toronto, and returned last month to visit family. These days, that means lots of driving: Surging housing costs have pushed the city's population growth into what is known as the Greater Toronto Area, which stretches about 80 km west, east and north across what used to be farmland and forest.
If you're a homeowner, or aspire to be one, the sprawl is a boon. The median price in November for a house in Orangeville, a 80-km drive northwest of Toronto, was $395,000 — a little more than half the $698,000 cost of the median house within the city boundaries.