Roscommon/Crawford Chapter
Climate Change News
The biggest news on the climate change front just now is in two
parts:
1. Our newly unfolding plan from
President Joe Biden about climate change remedies
2. The Canadian government’s revised
climate plan released this past December.
The Canada news takes a bit of explaining: In 2018, the
Canadian government decided to implement a price on pollution by requiring cash
payments to the government from fossil fuel companies according to the type and
amount of the fossil fuel to be supplied to consumers. Sound familiar? Here is
the language from Canada.
“A price on carbon pollution is an essential part of
Canada’s plan to fight climate change and grow the economy. It is one of the
most efficient ways to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and stimulate
investments in clean innovation. It creates incentives for individuals,
households, and businesses to choose cleaner options.”
However, it is a little more complicated since the Canadian
requirement is implemented not by the federal government, but instead by each
of its provincial governing entities so long as they meet the baseline federal
standards that have been formulated. Note that provincial requirements need not
be identical. In the far north requirements have been relaxed, for example, for
aviation fuel in cases where airplane travel is the only feasible means for
local travel. Their system of allowing local controls with flexibility for
unique circumstances seems like a good approach to prevent inordinate hardships
on those who use fuels under extraordinary circumstances.
This past December, Canada made a few key changes to its carbon pricing policy and the changes are
largely those that Citizens’ Climate Lobby groups in Canada have advocated for.
Under the latest provisions Canada will now: Extend their national carbon price
through to 2030, rising at $15 per ton after 2022, Give the proceeds to
Canadian households on a quarterly basis, rather than annually, starting as
early as 2022. Citizens Climate Lobby groups across Canada are celebrating
their revisions to the Canada plan that are closely aligned with the proposals
now being put forth in the US in House Bill 764.
In other good news, because of the pandemic, emissions from global
car sales experienced an unprecedented drop in 2020, affecting all vehicle types,
except for one – SUVs. The reason: Sales of
fuel-hungry sport utility vehicles grew to a record 42% of the global car
market in 2020. Since SUV’s are typically larger and heavier, their fuel
economy is poorer, leading to more carbon emissions per mile than other
vehicles.
The cure for this and
the change that the Biden plan calls for is expanded use of electric
cars. In fact, electric car sales last year exceeded
expectations. Backed by existing policy support and additional
stimulus measures, the International Energy Agency’s (IEA) preliminary estimate
is that electric car sales worldwide climbed to over 3 million and reached a
market share of over 4%, making 2020 a record-breaking year for electric
mobility. This is equivalent to a growth of over 40% in global sales from the
2.1 million electric cars sold in 2019 and marks a return to the double-digit
growth rates observed in the period 2010-2018.
The New York Times
weighed in on this news and noted that electric vehicles may offer more value
than most people think when they first see the relatively high purchase price
for electric vehicles. Electric cars have lower maintenance costs because
battery powered electric engines have fewer moving parts that can break (compared
with gas-powered engines) and they don’t require oil changes. Electric vehicles
also use regenerative braking, which reduces wear and tear and improves overall
efficiency of the vehicle.
Our new President Joe Biden
announced the ambitious plan of replacing the entire fleet of autos owned by
the federal government with electric vehicles as his administration takes steps
to embrace clean energy. He also pledged that these new electric vehicles will
be made in the U.S., increasing domestic job growth.
The federal government owns some 645,000 vehicles total,
according to a 2019 General Services Administration with 225,000 of those
belonging to the U.S. Postal Service and 170,000 belonging to military
agencies. Currently, only 4,475 are electric vehicles.
In a recent announcement, GM says they are planning for
production of electric vehicles (EV’s) that will displace 100% of their current
product line up. They say that by 2035, 100% of their product line-up will focus
on electric vehicles. Their technical people report this will be accomplished
by new battery designs that are manufactured in-house in cooperation with a
supplier. The new batteries will be built around a core of manganese, cobalt
and nickel. Recent developments have proven that the amount of the high-cost
cobalt used in the new battery will be reduced by 20% with the addition of
lower cost aluminum. They also report that their new battery provides 50% more
energy capacity in a smaller space than current batteries, and it will offer an
expected range of 460 miles per charge for some of their planned vehicles.
Ford seems a bit less enthusiastic about the future of
electric vehicles than does GM. Their message on the internet seems to treat
electric vehicles as an add-on their existing line as they advertise that “Ford hybrid and electric vehicles feature advanced
fuel-saving technology. Whether they’re operating in
electric mode, gas mode or a combination of both, these vehicles optimize
efficiency and simplicity. The plug-in hybrid vehicles can be recharged in
under three hours using a 240-volt outlet. And now, there’s an all-electric SUV
in the family—meet the Mustang Mach-E”
And on a final note, in my section called ‘Talk about mixed
messages,’ you should know that on 29 Jan, Michigan’s
Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) approved permits sought
by Canada’s Enbridge Corp. in seeking to build an oil pipeline tunnel to
replace Line 5 under the Straits of Mackinac. EGLE took this unprecedented
action shortly after our Governor Whitmer announced that she had decided not to
approve the permits needed. In one more instance of irony, President
Biden just cancelled a similar project for oil delivery, the Keystone Pipeline.
EGLE’s recent decision seems to be a case of the right hand not knowing what
the left is doing…
So, what else is new?
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