Every few years, some Canadian environmentalists campaign vigorously
for a national energy plan in the mistaken belief that it is not only achievable,
but will reduce carbon pollution. Since this pursuit deflects their focus from Canada’s
ineffective climate policies, it is a welcome gift to carbon polluters and
their political operatives. And, amazingly, decades of failure have failed to
dampen enthusiasm for this Holy Grail quest.
Friday 26 July 2013
Wednesday 24 July 2013
BC’s carbon tax after 5 years
In 5 years, debates about BC’s carbon tax have generated much
heat and little light, but Stewart Elgie and Jessica McClay of the University
of Ottawa have just released a good effort to rectify this situation. Comparing fuel consumption (gasoline, diesel, propane, fuel oil, etc.) in BC
with the rest of Canada, before and after the imposition of the carbon tax,
they detect a significant change. Prior to 2008, BC’s petroleum fuel use
changed in lock-step with the rest of Canada. But afterwards it fell 17.4% per
capita in BC while rising 1.5% in the rest of the country. They also noted that
BC’s economy performed as well or better than other provincial economies, a partial
response to the much-touted argument that BC’s economy would suffer terribly
because of the tax. (Stephen Harper repeatedly claims that carbon taxes destroy
economies, with zero evidence in support – which some people would call lying.)
Tuesday 16 July 2013
"The necessity of coal expansion" and other delusions
In my July 16, 2013 op-ed in the Vancouver Sun I counter
arguments for rapid expansion of coal exports from North America by showing how
these are based on self-serving arguments that ignore the resulting increase in
carbon pollution – which scientists show we must do everything to
decrease, not increase. Today, without regulations here and abroad requiring
carbon capture and storage, expansion of fossil fuel infrastructure can only
mean increasing carbon pollution and hence global warming. But it need not be
so. Our only chance is if we refuse to expand coal mines and coal exports
unless coal purchasers are not increasing carbon pollution. In the case of using
coal to produce steel, we have the technologies today to capture and
permanently store about 90% of the CO2 emitted from steel mills, and a range of
industry, government and independent estimates suggest that this would
gradually increase the cost of steel production by 10% over twenty years. Instead, those who
would benefit by rapidly increasing carbon pollution offer countless rationales
for starting this new coal mine, expanding that coal port, etc.
In upcoming blogs and op-eds I will be writing more on what
I call the “This particular fossil fuel development is necessary” delusion – a
chapter in my draft manuscript, which currently has the working title “Deluding
Ourselves.”
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