Thank you, Ziad.
As we've said, in the direct heating sequesters, we've had an extra 8.5 million tonnes of carbon per year. The last thing we heard from any federal officials on this carbon tax, and this was months ago, was that this was going to be considered business as usual and that we would not be credited for any of the carbon we have sequestered over the last 20 years, or anything into the future. It is the same within the livestock sector. There are efficiencies in the production of livestock that are reducing their carbon footprint.
We've done all of this already, but we're not going to be credited for it. That's a really hard pill to swallow because agriculture is part of the solution to the problem, as we do produce carbon. As Ray said, the cost for the average-sized farm from this tax would be about $10,000. The figures I've seen for this tax were $40 a tonne, and as the Prime Minister said, it will go to $50 a tonne by 2022. At $40 a tonne, the average-sized farm would see about a $10,000 hit directly out of our bottom line, because, as we said, we don't set our own prices. You said it directly too, that we need to be competitive. Those prices will not be reflecting that dollar figure.
Overall in Saskatchewan that's going to affect us to the tune of $300 million to $400 million per year, coming directly out of producers' pockets. That comes directly out of our investment in our farms and our efficiencies. Without recognition of the work we have done already in sequestering carbon and trying to do more, you're going to see a de-evolution of agriculture in Saskatchewan.