Thoughts on BC Politics and More

Flavio Volpe, head of the Automotive Parts Manufacturers' Association, believes the recent electric vehicle targets set out by Canada's environment minister also carried this pointed message to Canada's domestic auto industry: "Let them eat cake." Volpe says he has come to this conclusion because he believes those goals, which include a national target of 100 per cent zero-emission vehicle sales by 2035, cannot be met. He accused the government of not caring whether those cars are domestically built or come from China, regardless of the impact it may have ... CLICK HERE for the full story

... Transportation throughout North America and most of the world produces more than 16 per cent of all carbon emissions. The number rises to 28 per cent in Canada and 29 per cent in the United States. Therefore, EVs would give the world’s fight against carbon emissions an early victory, while promoting the development of renewable electric energy and upgrading of all electric grids. The federal government has mandated that all new vehicles sold in Canada should be EVs by 2035 and is supporting clean electricity via its Clean Energy Regulations ... CLICK HERE for the full story

Cost of the people who come to visit Debbie Nightingale's Ontario farm are lured in by a chance to get up close and personal with her herd of friendly goats. But some visit for more practical reasons: to charge their electric vehicles. "We have people who come on a regular basis because they know we have these," Nightingale said, gesturing to the two-port EV-charging station she installed last year with the help of a federal tourism recovery grant ... CLICK HERE for the full story

Ottawa has unveiled new regulations for all electric vehicles (EVs) in Canada. At a press conference on Tuesday, Environment and Climate Change Minister Steven Guilbeault announced new standards that he says will provide more affordable EVs and more charging stations. The federal government had previously announced that all vehicles sold in the country must emit zero emissions by 2035. Tuesday’s announcement clarified the schedule for the regulations, who is affected by them, and how the carmakers can comply ... CLICK HERE for the full story

The electric car will not whisk us towards an ever growing yet greener future. If governments were truly serious about reducing emissions, I have argued, they would celebrate walking and subsidize bicycles instead of $70,000 vehicles for the rich. They would improve public transportation and make our cities walkable again. And, bottom line, they would help us imagine a livable economy that uses less energy of every source, not more ... CLICK HERE for the full opinion piece    

Ashamed to admit it, I somehow missed the news about the global competition to be the first jurisdiction to enshrine in law the requirement to only sell electric vehicles. I didn’t realize there was this planetary race. But there you have it, and we have a winner: The BC NDP government. Its energy, mines and (have to love this title) low carbon innovation minister bragged last week B.C. will be “first in the world” to convert a policy into a law, set a schedule for vehicle sales over the next dozen years, and penalize dealers who dare to sell new gas-guzzlers in 2035 ... CLICK HERE for the full commentary  

  Even if no new government climate policies are introduced before 2030, global demand for fossil fuels will still peak before the end of the decade, a new report by the International Energy Agency states. The report released Tuesday says the worldwide rollout of key technologies such as renewable power, electric vehicles and heat pumps is happening so quickly that demand for coal, oil and natural gas is set to peak within the next 10 years. The IEA says this means that no new major oil and gas extraction projects are needed anywhere around the globe, nor any new coal mines, mine extensions or unabated coal plants ... CLICK HERE for the rest of the story

It is deeply concerning that the Minister would suggest a five-year timeline for recovering this investment when the actual timeline is much longer In May of this year, I mentioned the announcement from the Trudeau Liberal Government that Volkswagen would receive "up to $13 billion in subsidies over the next decade" to ensure that the automaker builds its electric-vehicle battery plant in southern Ontario. I also referred to the report by the business analyst firm Statista, which stated that Volkswagen's operating profit in the 2022 fiscal year had increased by approximately 14.78 % from the previous year, reaching around 22.1 billion Euros. Shortly after news of the Volkswagen deal became public, Stellantis-LG Energy Solutions (LGES), another electric vehicle battery manufacturer, demanded similar treatment. Like Volkswagen, LGES had obtained a subsidy deal of up to  $15 billion  between the Federal and Ontario provincial governments. At the time, our fe...

The government is encouraging Canadians to switch to EVs and heat pumps to fight climate change. But many CBC News readers have asked: won’t electrifying everything break the grid and drive up energy costs? Here’s what electricity operators and those researching the transition say.  Will it break the grid?   Reports from the International Energy Agency and the Canadian Climate Institute in 2022 found Canada would need to double or triple its electrical grid capacity by 2050 to reach its net-zero goal. It would also need more battery storage and be nimble enough to adjust to peaks in demand from electric vehicles and home heating systems. Otherwise, risks could range from not meeting our climate goals to power outages and other reliability issues ... CLICK HERE to read the full story

I’m not sure about the math on this, but still trying to figure out how our BC NDP government is making it easier for BC residents to get into an electric vehicle??   Latest BC government news story states that: With BC residents being so eager to get behind the wheel of a clean energy vehicle (CEV), the government is releasing another $26.5 million and making changes to its popular CEVforBC rebate program to meet ongoing demand . “ With federal and provincial rebates now in place, switching to an electric vehicle is more affordable than ever ,” said Michelle Mungall, Minister of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources. “ Part of our CleanBC plan, the CEVforBC program has been a resounding success. The changes we are making today will ensure it remains accessible and supports even more British Columbians in getting their first clean energy vehicle .” So how does that work, because it looks to me like Justin Trudeau’s feds ponied up with more mon...

Science is a plodding, evolving discipline that thrives on critical examination and questioning of discoveries and theories. The most arrogant and inane statement the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has ever uttered is that “the (climate) science is settled”. Science is never ‘settled’. It sits awaiting the next discovery and incremental improvement. The theory that variations in the minuscule amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere drives climate change is the equivalent of accepting that a vial of iodine can contaminate an entire lake. Electrical vehicles cannot exist without hydrocarbons used in lubricants, fashioning the framework and cladding, glass, batteries, computer controls, and on endlessly. Then there is the problem of recycling the whole mess at the end of its life cycle. Technology for solar and wind power is still in infancy; that is the beauty of science. The underlying science is incrementally improving and moving towards an elusive goal ...