Today I joined Premier John Horgan, Minister George Heyman and Minister Michelle Mungall in Vancouver to announce British Columbia’s new CleanBC economic plan aimed at positioning BC as a leader in the 21^st century, low carbon economy.

This announcement was very important to me as it represented the culmination of several years work. As anyone who watched the documentary Running on Climate will know, I originally ran for office in 2013 with the BC Green Party as a point of principle — I could not stand by and watch Gordon Campbell’s legacy of leadership in the low carbon economy be dismantled by the Christy Clark government.

Today’s announcement repositions BC on the path to realize a 40% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, relative to 2007 levels, by 2030.  What’s especially exciting about today’s announcement is that it re-emphasizes the reality that reducing greenhouse gas emissions will lead to economic opportunity and prosperity for BC.

Below I reproduce the speaking notes I was planning to follow (although I went off script) along with the accompanying press release, and my overall reaction to the plan (in video).

Speaking Notes

• Over the last 150 years, Earth has made a transition from the past, when climate affected the evolution of human societies, to the present, in which humans are affecting the evolution of climate and weather.
• What we are at risk of losing on this planet – what has already started to die off or slip away – is staggering.
• And today, as I speak to you, we are at a pivotal moment in human history: Our generation is responsible for deciding what path the future climate will take.
• We will either be complicit in allowing climate change to despoil our world – or we can fight for a different outcome for our children.
• As Sir David Attenborough said Monday in Poland at the UN Climate talks, “If we don’t take action, the collapse of our civilizations and the extinction of much of the natural world is on the horizon.”
• As a climate scientist, I have spent my entire adult life consumed by this threat and the opportunities that will come with it.
• As a professor at the University of Victoria, my students would ask me, year after year, why so little progress was being made to combat climate change. In response I would encourage them to get involved with leaders who took global warming seriously or, if there were none, to consider running for office themselves.
• I tried to take my own advice.
• In 2007, I had the honour of being on the Climate Action Team that advised Premier Gordon Campbell.
• That work led to B.C. becoming the first jurisdiction in North America to put a price on carbon.
• B.C. stood as an example of how putting a price on carbon is perfectly compatible with prosperity.
• Our emissions dropped as our economy grew.
• And when I saw that leadership and progress being dismantled by the administration that followed, I put my name forward for public office.
• I knew I would not be able to look my kids in the face if I didn’t do everything I possibly could to fight for their future.
• That fight has not been easy.
• But I am very happy and proud to be here today, to be here to say that it has been worth it.
• By tackling climate change, with carefully designed policies, B.C.’s economy can grow in new ways.
• CleanBC offers a pathway for B.C. to be on the cutting edge of the low-carbon economy.
• This plan is a vital first step towards keeping B.C.’s climate commitments.
• Climate change is daunting and overwhelming, yes, but within every challenge lies opportunity.
• We worked hard to ensure that CleanBC is not just a climate plan – it is an economic vision.
• It is not just the Ministry of Environment’s responsibility – it is an all. of. government approach.
• B.C. has all the strategic advantages needed to seize low-carbon economic opportunities and this plan will ensure we maximize our full potential.
• I have long believed that our children and grandchildren will ask us one of two questions when they look back at the beginning of this century.
• It will either be: “How could you let this happen?”
• Or, if we choose a different path, they will ask: “How did you solve this problem when so many said you couldn’t?”
• To be a climate scientist one must be an optimist. Frankly, I’ve found it helps you survive politics too.
• I am convinced my children will one day ask me the second question. And when they do I will answer:
• “We prevailed because we worked together. We saw the threat and we knew we had to deal with it.”
• I am greatly encouraged by the spirit of hope and collaboration in which this plan was written and thank the government, in particular Minister Heyman, for their efforts in this regard.
• There is much work still to be done, but today I feel we are one step closer to that brighter future.
• Thank you again, to everyone who has helped us get here.
• Please join me in welcoming Minister Heyman.

Media Release

Weaver: B.C. climate plan offers pathway to low-carbon economy
For immediate release
December 5, 2018

VICTORIA, B.C. – Andrew Weaver, leader of the B.C. Green Party, says the CleanBC plan released today offers a pathway for B.C. to be on the cutting edge of the low-carbon economy. Weaver says the plan is a vital first step towards keeping B.C.’s climate commitments and looks forward to building on this progress in the months ahead.

“This plan offers a pathway for B.C. to have a thriving low-carbon economy,” said Weaver.

“Climate change is the most significant challenge facing humanity. Each megatonne of carbon we take out of the equation will bring us closer to limiting global warming, in turn limiting the economic damage, social upheaval and human suffering threatened by climate change. British Columbians should be proud that this plan can make a difference.

“Within every challenge lies opportunity. This is why we worked hard to ensure that CleanBC puts a vision for B.C.’s economy at its centre. B.C. has all the strategic advantages needed to seize low-carbon economic opportunities and this plan will ensure we maximize our full potential. I am greatly encouraged by the spirit of hope and collaboration in which this plan was written and thank the government, in particular Minister Heyman, for their efforts in this regard.

“This has been a year of hard choices for our Caucus. The decision of the government to go ahead with LNG was a low point. I will always argue that the development of new large fossil fuel infrastructure is inconsistent with our commitments under the Paris Agreement. But this plan, and the preliminary work we have done on how we will achieve the remaining reductions, give me confidence that our targets may be within reach and that they are certainly worth fighting for. I am pleased that the plan will be backed up with funding in the next budget, and that the government has agreed to enact an accountability framework to hold the current and future governments to account.

“Climate change will test every modern leader and history will judge each of us by our actions. We must come together around our shared desire to secure a bright future for our children and grandchildren and advance every available solution to limit global warming. This will require us to sit at the table with people from across the political spectrum and stay at the table even when we don’t always get exactly what we want. The scale of this challenge calls on us to ask not what is the least we can do, but what is the most we can achieve.

“This plan is a commendable start and I am proud of the work we have done to get it to this point, but we need to keep pushing forward. The time for decisive action is now and we will keep fighting for better.”

-30-

Media contact
Jillian Oliver, Press Secretary
+1 250-882-6187 | jillian.oliver@leg.bc.ca

Video of Overall Reaction

Today during Question Period I rose to ask both the Minister of Energy, Mines & Petroleum Resources and the Minister of Forests, Lands, Natural Resource Operations & Rural Development what the greatest climate change-related risks and opportunities their ministry faces, and how they are prepared to deal with both.

With the upcoming release of the economic vision embodied in the clean growth strategy, it’s critical that every Minister is up to speed on how it will affect their Ministry.

As you will see from the exchange, I was not very impressed with the response I received from the Minister of Energy, Mines & Petroleum Resources. I felt that the response from the Minister of Forests, Lands, Natural Resource Operations & Rural Development was quite good.

Below I reproduce the text and video of the exchange with the Ministers.

Video of Exchange

Question

A. Weaver: In the span of just a few centuries, earth has transitioned from a past when climate affected the evolution of human societies to the present, in which humans are affecting the evolution of the climate system.

Today we are at a pivotal moment in human history. Our generation will be responsible for deciding the path we take and the future climate will take along with us. As elected officials, we’ll either be complicit in allowing climate change to despoil our world or we can lead the way and choose a different path.

Our provincial emissions have risen in four out of the last five years. Every minister has a responsibility to ensure that tackling this issue is within their mandate, as mitigating the impacts of climate change requires an all-of-government approach.

Accounting for 7.2 million tonnes annually, mining and upstream oil and gas production are the biggest contributors. My question to Minister of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources is this. What are the greatest climate change–related risks and opportunities facing your ministry and how are you prepared to deal with them?

Answer

I appreciate that for the member this is a very, very important issue that he’s very passionate about and the work that he’s done with this government to address climate change and our climate action plan.

For this ministry, in particular, we have been looking at what we can be doing as a new government to reduce our impact on climate change. The list is quite long. But I know that question period is the opposition’s time, so I won’t try to list everything. I’ll give the member a few examples of some of the things that we’re doing.

A couple of weeks ago I was at UBC talking with architect students about our new program called the better buildings B.C. program, where we’re looking for innovative ideas in terms of how we can reduce our emissions in our buildings throughout the province.

But the member brought up, specifically, mining and oil and gas. One of the things that this government did was we eliminated PST on electricity for businesses. That includes the mining sector. That includes the oil and gas sector. If they can electrify and move away from oil and gas — diesel, for example — to generate the power that they need to do their operations, we’re reducing our greenhouse gas emissions quite significantly. Those are the types of opportunities that we’re looking at.

As the member will note, I also just introduced legislation to reduce our methane emissions as well. There’s lots that we are doing, and I look forward to being able to brief the member fully at another time

Supplementary Question

A. Weaver: I must say, given the scale of the challenge as well as the scale of the opportunity, going and meeting a few people to discuss some ideas is hardly taking advantage of this opportunity and meeting the challenge. I remain quite disappointed in that response, so let me try again.

The B.C. fires of the past two summers were no surprise to the climate science community. Back in 2004, my colleagues and I published a paper in Geophysical Research Letters, pointing out that we could already detect and attribute increasing areas burnt in Canadian forest fires to human activity and, in particular, global warming.

According to the B.C. Wildfire Service, this year was the worst on record. Over 1.35 million hectares were consumed by forest fires. The fires burned homes, endangered lives and released hundreds of megatonnes of CO₂. What’s happening in California is no surprise to the climate science community, yet it appears to be a surprise to politicians du jour.

We know that global warming will lead to an increased likelihood of summer drought. This, in turn, will lead to more extensive wildfires. We know that precipitation extremes will increase and that flooding events will be on the rise. This threatens human health, ecosystems and the economy.

While the members opposite are concerned about their survival as a political entity, I’m sitting here asking the minister about the political survival of all of our collective species. To the Minister of Forests, Lands, Natural Resource Operations and Rural Development, what are the greatest climate change-related risks and opportunities facing your ministry, and how are you prepared to deal with both?

Answer

Hon. D. Donaldson: As my colleague mentioned, climate change is a considerable risk for our province and planet, and we are committed to tackling it. The member and the Leader of the Third Party asks — and I appreciate — the question about opportunities and risks.

The risks are in forest systems and ecosystem resilience. Ensuring that into the future, we have forest ecosystems that are resilient to and can adapt to the climate change that we are seeing.

We are seeing it, certainly, in the forest fire situation. It’s had an impact there. Large forest fires that we saw in the past two seasons have had enormous impact on ecosystems. We’ve seen it even more recently in the level 4 drought conditions in the areas that I represent up in the northwest and unprecedented drought that has led to impacts on fisheries resources. You’ve seen the pictures of the riverbeds, extremely dry riverbeds — unprecedented.

We are working on mitigative measures. In June, we hosted the first wildfire and climate change conference. A couple of topics it focused on were creating resilient ecosystems to better adapt to climate change and mitigate wildfires and ensuring effective carbon management. Part of that is our forest carbon initiative. That’s a $290 million federal-provincial initiative that’s focusing on incremental reforestation and improving utilization of waste and reducing slash burning.

Finally, in regards to the question as far as opportunities, we also have long-term research trials, assisted migration and adaptation trials to identify seed sources most likely to best adapt to future climates. We’ve made important progress in 16 months, and we need to do more.

Today in the legislature I rose during Question Period to ask the Premier what his government is doing to encourage private investment in electric vehicle charging infrastructure and EV manufacturing in British Columbia.

Below I reproduce the video and text of our exchange.

Video of Exchange

Question

A. Weaver: We’ve talked about the last 16 years. We’ve talked about the 1990s. Let’s talk about the future now. In the second quarter of 2018, British Columbians bought 2,564 electric vehicles, more than three times the amount bought in the previous year. Across our province, dealerships can’t keep EVs on their lots. Backlogs and waiting lists vary from three months to a year, even up to 18 months, and the clean growth strategy to be released later this fall will bring in an aggressive ZEV standard to B.C.

Charging infrastructure remains a barrier for widespread EV adoption, and B.C. Hydro, which has installed a few fast-chargers recently, has done so by giving away the electricity for free. This has led to large lineups as locals get electricity for free while those who need it and those who want to pay for it have to wait in line, hoping to get a charge at some point down the road.

B.C. manufacturing companies like Electra Meccanica, Envirotech Electric Vehicles and Environex Inc. are looking to set up here in British Columbia — manufacturing facilities that want to grow our economy and meet global demand.

My question is to the Premier. What is his government doing to encourage private investment in electric vehicle charging infrastructure and EV manufacturing in B.C.?

Answer

Hon. J. Horgan: I thank the Leader of the Third Party for the question. It’s nice to have forward-looking questions on how we’re going to build a better, stronger British Columbia, how we’re going to meet our objectives with respect to climate action, and I appreciate the question.

First of all, British Columbia does lead the country in charging stations, some 1,500. And now you can travel from Golden…. The member from Golden can travel all the way to Tofino in his electric vehicle and not have to stop and charge. As the member quite rightly says, though, we do have some challenges.

That’s why the B.C. Utilities Commission has opened up a review on their own initiative to ensure that we find a way to get electricity into electric vehicles in a way that’s cost-effective, a way that’s fair to the travelling public and allows us to build even more capacity going forward.

Lastly, I would say, with respect to electric vehicle uptake in the economy, we had to increase…. The Minister of Finance found an additional $10 million to put into the clean energy vehicle program in September because it was already oversubscribed from February. That speaks to demand in the economy. That speaks to a responsive government that’s listening to people and putting in place programs and services that will help them and help all of us meet our climate change objectives.

Supplementary Question

A. Weaver: As the Premier mentioned, obviously there are nearly 1,500 EV charging stations in British Columbia. Almost all of them give away electricity for free. Some are private; most are not. The free model is rapidly becoming unsustainable as more and more British Columbians move towards EVs.

To sell someone electricity in this province, you must be registered as a public utility unless you get some very-difficult-to-get exemption. Oregon, California, Washington, Ontario, New York and a number of other U.S. states have already exempted EV charging from energy regulation. Resale of electricity is permitted, like a gas station, without prior approval, and prices are set by the market. Of course, safety, consumer protection and other considerations are indeed regulated.

My question, then, to the minister is this. The type of approach that encourages private investment in vehicle-charging infrastructure in British Columbia is exactly the direction we want to go. Will the Premier commit his government to updating B.C.’s regulatory environment for EV charging stations immediately after receiving the recommendations from the B.C. Utilities Commission report he referred to?

Answer

Hon. J. Horgan: Again, I thank the member for his interest and passion on this subject. I also want to say that we are utilizing the B.C. Utilities Commission, unlike the previous government that sidelined this very useful regulatory body. We’re using the B.C. Utilities Commission to determine the best way forward.

The member is quite correct. He’s looked into this diligently. We do have some challenges with respect to giving away energy in some places and overcharging in others. A regulatory framework that meets the needs of the travelling public and allows us to meet our climate objectives over time is the right way forward.

I look forward — as all members, I’m sure, do — to the Utilities Commission reporting back in the fall — or in the next number of weeks, I expect — on their proposals going forward.

But I also want to touch on another component of the question that the member asked and that is how can we incent and attract the development of, the creation of construction and the implementation of a program that has a clean, green, innovative tinge to it. That would be left to the member for Surrey-Whalley, the Minister of Jobs, Training and Technology, who appointed the first innovation commissioner in B.C.’s history so that we can have an economy that works for everybody and looks forward, not backward, like the people on the other side.

Today in the legislature I rose during Question Period to ask the Minister of Energy Mines and Petroleum Resources why we are giving untold billions in subsidies to an LNG industry instead of investing in the infrastructure that would create long-term, sustainable jobs in our existing mining industry.

Below I reproduce the video and text of our exchange.

Video of Exchange

Question

A. Weaver: This government has been touting an LNG industry investment decision that will create, at most, 950 long-term jobs, yet B.C.’s internationally regarded mining industry, an industry that literally built our province, already employs more than 16,600.

While LNG prices have been sagging, solar has become the fastest-growing source of new energy worldwide, and photovoltaic cells need copper, molybdenum, silver and other metals that we produce in B.C. Batteries need lithium and graphite, the former of which has incredible potential at extraction when combined with geothermal energy production.

The B.C. Mining Association highlighted the opportunity that this presents in a 2017 report. We have the workforce, the resources and innovation necessary to make B.C. a global hub for solar technology materials, yet we choose to invest in emissions-intensive sunset industries, with comparatively few long-term jobs.

My question is to the Minister of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources. Why are we giving untold billions in subsidies to an LNG industry instead of investing in the infrastructure that would create long-term, sustainable jobs in our existing mining industry?

Answer

Hon. M. Mungall: Thank you to the member for the question.

There is no doubt about it. Mining is a foundational economic sector in this province. It is critical to our overall economy. I’m so glad that the member sees the important value and that its future is involved in electric cars, like the one that the member drives, and is involved in renewable energy and all the potential that mining has in terms of our future and those opportunities.

I honestly can’t say why the B.C. Liberals chose not to do so much for this industry while they were in power. It was very unfortunate. Because of that 16 years of neglect, we have stepped in with our first order of business — to start the Mining Jobs Task Force — and we have done that. That task force includes representatives from First Nations, industry, labour, environmental organizations, local government and academia. They have come together. They are doing yeoman’s work to identify how we can ensure that British Columbia is one of the most competitive jurisdictions in the world for this foundational sector to our economy. I look forward to their report.

Supplementary Question

A. Weaver: We’ve got an incredible opportunity to define a new vision for industrial development in our province. But it will take careful planning and a commitment to our clean growth strategy. This requires government to become more proactive in signalling the type of investment it wants in our province.

In rural B.C., this starts with ensuring that we have in place the electrification infrastructure so that both existing and prospective mines have the ability to hook up to our provincial grid, providing opportunities to electrify their operations while contributing to the creation of the clean energy sector.

My question to the Minister of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources is this: what tangible steps is her ministry taking to ensure that the province has the infrastructure in place to ensure that all future industrial development in our province can have access to the required electrification for their operations?

Answer

Hon. M. Mungall: Absolutely. I agree, exactly, with what the member was saying — how important mining is to our economy in this province, and the opportunity to electrify our industries so that they are producing less and less greenhouse emissions is a huge opportunity and exactly where we need to be going.

It’s one of the reasons that we included mining in cutting PST on electricity. The mining sector is not having to pay PST on their electricity, incentivizing them further to adopt electricity for their operations.

It’s very important as we look at the energy package as a whole that we have the capacity, as well as the energy generation, so that we can meet future demand.

In question period today I asked the Minister of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources how she could possibly justify her government’s rhetoric concerning the magnitude of LNG Canada’s potential investment in BC. What I find particularly ironic is that for the last four years the B.C. NDP criticized the B.C. Liberals for using over-the-top exaggerations and hyperbolic language when referring to LNG. I was extraordinarily disappointed in the Minister’s responses to my questions.

Below I reproduce the video and text of our exchange.

Video of Exchange

Question

A. Weaver: Two weeks ago the province issued a press release heralding a $40 billion investment by LNG Canada. However, the government’s release provided no clarity about whether this investment was for the full plant, the full buildout, or just phase 1, consisting of two trains. In contrast, LNG Canada’s release, on the same day, clarified that the final investment decision was only for two trains but made no claim whatsoever about the size of the investment that’s represented.

To the Minister of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources, can the minister please clarify, for the record, whether the investment that government was celebrating in its press release constituted two or four trains, and if it is only for two, whether a separate FID process would play out for additional trains at a later date?

Answer

Hon. M. Mungall: I was very proud to be in attendance at the announcement two weeks ago. I think this historic event of a $40 billion investment in British Columbia and Canada is actually a very non-partisan event.

I was happy to see members from the other side who were also there, because British Columbians — whether in my riding or in that of the member from Aldergrove–Fort Langley, the member for Parksville-Qualicum or the member for Peace River North — are all going to be able to benefit from this, because $23 billion of revenue is going to be coming back to British Columbia to fund child care, to fund education, to fund post-secondary education and to be able to fund our climate goals.

Now, I know members of the B.C. Liberal Party have mischaracterized our position for many, many years. That was to their benefit to do so. It was to their benefit to do so, but let’s put partisan politics aside, if they can.

Interjections.

Mr. Speaker: Members.

Hon. M. Mungall: I know that’s hard for them, but if they could, we could acknowledge that that $40 billion investment, that historic investment for this country, for this province, is an FID — to answer the member’s question — for the entire project. That project, like I said, is going to be beneficial to British Columbians — 10,000 jobs during the construction phase, 950 jobs in northern British Columbia. First Nations are benefiting; local communities are benefiting. That is good for B.C.

Supplementary Question

A. Weaver: Well, thank you, Minister. That was a very simple question, and I can take it, from that answer, that the minister actually doesn’t know, which is quite shocking.

I’d like to dig a little deeper into the $40 billion investment rhetoric. The federal environmental assessment application shows low and high estimates of $25 billion and $40 billion for the project. However, according to this application, these estimates are for both phases of the LNG project for Kitimat. That’s four trains, not two trains.

When we turn to the provincial government’s own environmental assessment report, we find that the investment for phase 1 — that’s the two trains — is projected to be $13 billion to $21 billion, or half the number that the government highlighted in its press release.

Furthermore, it gets worse. In the assessment report of the B.C. government, it points out that for phase 1 costs, only about 20 percent of that will actually be spent in B.C. That would bring the number down to $2½ billion to $4.1 billion, a far cry from the $40 billion touted in the media.

To the Minister of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources, how do we reconcile the headlines in the government’s own press release with the environmental assessment reports that underpin the project, given that the minister has, I think, sort of clarified that the $40 billion is for four trains as opposed to two? It has to be, based on her own documents. Finally, after years of listening to the B.C. NDP criticize the B.C. Liberals for using over-the-top exaggerations and hyperbolic language when referring to LNG, does the minister not see the hypocrisy unfolding before us?

Answer

Hon. M. Mungall: As I said, this was a historic day two weeks ago. People all over British Columbia were celebrating it, particularly people in the north. The mayor of Kitimat, who is ecstatic to see the potential of 950 permanent jobs in his community, was there. The chief councillor for the Haisla Nation, Crystal Smith, was there. She saw how important this is for her community, as does the member from Kitimat.

He knows very well how important this is. He has spent many, many years working on this project and knows exactly the benefits that are going to be going to his community as well as throughout British Columbia, particularly in the north. This government was proud to be there two weeks ago and to be working with LNG Canada to get that FID.