Deregulation of Canada Post would hurt the environment

The federal government is conducting a review of our public post office called the Canada Post Corporation Strategic Review (CPCSR). The CPCSR is considering deregulation of our universal public postal system. This is the fourth in a series of five bulletins on good reasons to oppose deregulation of Canada Post.

Deregulation would hurt the environment. If the letter market is deregulated and opened to competition, letter companies would vie for business in the same environmentally unsound way as parcel-courier companies. Several competing parcel-courier businesses operate simultaneously in most urban and suburban areas. It is not uncommon to see two or three delivery trucks on the same street on the same day. This system of delivery maximizes fossil fuel consumption, traffic and pollution.

Put another way, if the letter market is opened to competition, the same number of letters would be delivered to the same number of homes and businesses, but these letters would be delivered by more vehicles. This would be damaging from an environmental perspective.

Introducing competition into the letter market would also put financial pressure on Canada Post. This would make it more difficult for the government to insist that our post office operate in a more environmentally-friendly manner or as a role model and leader in good environmental practices. Just as the space program was used to stimulate high-tech industries, the postal service could be used to develop and test environmental practices that could be extended to other industries.

What can you do?

Speak up. Say no to deregulation. If you haven’t signed a Hey Harper – Hands off my post office postcard yet, ask your steward or a local union representative for one.