With the summer holiday season coming to an end, and after hearing no end of COVID-related horror stories (delays, cancelled flights, staff shortages, passport issues) from friends and family who decided to travel by air to destinations afar for the first time in several years, I thought I would spend some time exploring climate solutions in the aviation sector.

As I noted in my recent presentation to the BC Aviation Council May Conference 2022, Transportation in the aviation sector affects our climate through two main ways. The first, and most obvious, is via the emissions of greenhouse gases associated with the combustion of jet fuel. In 2020, international (not including domestic) aviation was the 10^th biggest total emitter of carbon (171.15 Megatonnes) world wide (behind China, USA, India, Russia, Japan, International Shipping, Germany, Iran and South Korea). In total, aviation accounts for about 2.5% of global emissions of carbon dioxide.

The second main way that aviation affects the climate system is through the creation of contrails. Contrails occur when moisture in jet exhaust condenses in the high altitude cold ambient environment to create lines of thin cirrus clouds, comprising ice crystals, whose net effect is to warm the Earth further. While innovation in flight path planning is ongoing in an effort to reduce contrail formation, off the shelf solutions to replace jet fuel appeared elusive, until recently.

On August 6 and 7, 2022 I attended the Abbotsford Air Show to learn about innovation in the aviation industry and the use of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), sometimes known as biojet fuel. I was quite excited by what I discovered as it appears that Canada is uniquely positioned to be an international leader in this area.

It was evident to me that the aviation industry is deeply concerned about their greenhouse gas emissions and that they are investing heavily in carbon-neutral technology pathways. While we can expect to see the increasing use of electric engines, hydrogen fuel cell technology and even potentially hydrogen combustion from onboard cryogenic storage tanks, these will likely only be available for commuter, regional and short haul flights (<120 minute with < 150 passengers) over the next decade or two. Unfortunately, such short-haul flights only account for about 27% of global carbon dioxide emissions from the aviation sector whereas medium and long haul flights account for the remaining 73%. And so, if we want to reduce emissions from the aviation sector over the next few decades, widespread adoption of SAF made from renewable organic waste will be required.

A number of companies, including Neste, Lanzajet and World Energy have either been recently established or are already heavily invested in producing SAF using renewable ethanol from waste (such as cooking oil) as an initial focus. Of course, establishing sustainable supply chains for organic waste that don’t involve food stocks (e.g. Canola) or limited supplies of cooking oil will be needed if SAF is to scale up globally. Other companies (e.g., Licella, Ensyn, Steeper Energy etc.) are also heavily invested in exploring the potential of non-food source related waste (e.g. from forestry, municipal waste, sewage, waste plastic etc.) as feed stock for renewable fuels.

And herein comes the potential opportunity for British Columbia and Canada.

First, the University of British Columbia’s Department of Wood Science is already considered an international leader in biofuel research and hosts the British Columbia Sustainable Marine, Aviation, Rail and Trucking (BC-SMART) consortium. British Columbia and Canada are well positioned to capitalize on investments in research and innovation in this sector.

Second, British Columbia has no shortage of wood or other organic waste that could potentially sustain domestic supply chains for biofuel production.

Third, wood waste, such as slash piles left behind after logging activities have concluded, are often either burnt in situ, left to decompose, or eventually act as a fuel source for wild fires. Removing this waste and converting it to biofuel has significant environmental co-benefits.

Fourth, wood waste is distributed throughout British Columbia, and in particular rural BC. Capitalizing on the opportunities afforded by the harvesting of wood (or other organic) waste would provide distributed economic opportunities for indigenous and non-indigenous communities across our province.

In 2018 I wrote extensively about the challenges and opportunities associated with greenhouse gas reductions in British Columbia. In particular, I noted that embedded in the confidence and supply agreement that I signed with the BC NDP in 2017 was the following commitments:

Climate Action

1. 1. Implement an increase of the carbon tax by $5 per tonne per year, beginning April 1, 2018 and expand the tax to fugitive emissions and to slash-pile burning;
   2. Deliver rebate cheques to ensure a majority of British Columbians are better off financially than under the current carbon tax formula;
   3.  Implement a climate action strategy to meet our targets.

While British Columbia is on track to dramatically reduce its greenhouse gas emissions in the years ahead associated with our Clean BC climate plan, one of the policy commitments we didn’t deliver on was an expansion of the carbon pricing to slash pile burning. This is important since if a price is attached to slash emissions, an incentive is created to avoid this potential liability and so forestry (and other) companies would be given an economic reason to extract slash from forest operations. Such a price could be set directly (on emissions) or indirectly (via regulation) as was done for fugitive emissions in the oil and gas sector.

So in summary, it strikes me that the sustainable fuel sector for long haul transportation represents an incredible opportunity for innovation that British Columbia and Canada can capitalize on. The economic, environmental and social benefits of investments in this area appear to be far-reaching.

Coming back to the Abbotsford Air Show, one of the planes that I toured was the Boeing P-8A (pictured above). The P-8A is a military plane designed for long-range reconnaissance, surveillance, and submarine detection missions. And here is why this is important.

Canada is in the final stages of a procurement process:

“To equip the Canadian Armed Forces with a long-range manned Command, Control, Communications and Computers (C4) and Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) and Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) aircraft with extended capabilities to replace the CP-140 Aurora.”

The Boeing P-8A represents a solution that may meet the needs of this procurement. Why this is interesting is that the P-8A is already capable of operating on 50% SAF and Boeing has committed to meet a 100% SAF capability by 2030.

Touring the P-8A felt like I was exploring a repurposed Boeing 737 for good reason! The P-8A has a Boeing 737-800 body,  737-900  wings, a 737 cockpit and a 737 engine with a substantive increase in available electrical power. Fully 86% of the commercial components within the P-8A are common with Boeing’s 737 series, the world’s most prevalent passenger jetliner.

Figure: Four images taken inside the Boeing P-8A illustrating its galley and washroom similarities with the Boeing 737 passenger jetliner.

While I do not have the expertise to assess the military capabilities of the P-8A, I learned that 156 of them with over 450,000 logged flight hours, are in military use worldwide (in the US, India, UK, Norway, Germany, Australia, New Zealand and South Korea).

Figure: Four images taken inside the Boeing P-8A showing its military workstations and the sonobuoy storage/release systems

Figure: Two images of the underside of the Boeing P-8A wing indicating wing pylons that allow for the attachment of up to 3,000 lb weapons.

What excited me most about my tour of the Boeing P-8A at the Abbotsford Airshow is that I came away with a sense of optimism and hope for the future of the aviation industry. Imagine the potential for the Canadian military to show international leadership by investing in a sustainable replacement for its CP-140 Aurora fleet that would create a local market for sustainable air fuels produced from locally-sourced slash and other organic waste. While scaling up the use of SAF in the global aviation industry remains a challenge, Canada can do its part positioning itself as a early adopter and international leader in the area.

To bring closure to my 7 1/2 years as an MLA for Oak Bay-Gordon Head and 5 years as leader of the BC Green Party I felt it was important to add this video to my archived MLA website. Moving forward, I plan to continue my work on climate solutions on the local, provincial, national and international level.

This YouTube video was produced by Robert Alstead, the same person who created the documentary “Running on Climate”. That documentary provided an inside look into the 2013 election campaign set within a greater climate change narrative.

This YouTube video might be of  interest to some as it gives insight as to why I got into and out of politics. The book that I refer to in this video has the working title: “A Climate for Hope” and not “A Vehicle for Change”.

Today in the legislature I rose to pay tribute to a constituent, John Hillman, who, at the age of 101, recently completed his goal of walking 101 laps around the courtyard of his residence at the Carlton House in Oak Bay to raise funds for Save the Children Canada’s Emergency COVID Relief Fund.

Below I reproduce the text and video of my two minute tribute.

As an update, during the afternoon of July 29 I was able to visit John Hillman at Carlton House and present him with a number of presentation copies of the statement.

Video of Tribute

Text of Tribute

Credit: Molly Jane photography

It gives me great honour to rise today to pay tribute to a remarkable constituent — Mr. John Hillman.

At the age of 101, Mr. Hillman set a goal of raising $101,000 for Save the Children Canada’s Emergency COVID Relief Fund by completing 101 laps around the courtyard of his residence at the Carlton House in Oak Bay.

He was inspired by 100-year-old war veteran Tom Moore who raised over 55 million dollars for the UK’s National Health Service, by walking around his garden 100 times with a walker.

Mr. Hillman not only completed the 101 laps (plus a victory lap), but he easily surpassed his expectations by raising $166,551.

Credit: Molly Jane photography

Mr. Hillman was born in Newport, Wales in 1919. Like all young Welsh men at the time, he was an avid rugby player. In fact, Mr. Hillman’s father Jack represented Wales on their national team. John, on the other hand, went on to compete for Wales in fencing.

At the age 17, and with little prospect for local employment Mr. Hillman left Wales to join the Royal Air Force.

In 1939, he and his squadron were posted to France where Mr. Hillman served as a wireless operator.

As allied forces fled to Dunkirk ahead of the rapidly advancing Wehrmacht, John Hillman, and the other 59 members of his squadron were cut off and left behind.

They were told this:

“you lads stay behind, clean up, and make your way back as best you can”.

Their goal was to head south to board the English troop carrier, the HMT Lancastria.

Blessed with a stroke of good luck, Mr. Hillman arrived in the French port of Saint-Nazaire a day late so missed his opportunity to board the ship.

Tragically on June 17, 1940, just offshore from the port, the Lancastria was bombed and sank in just 20 minutes. Some 4000 men, women and children died in what remains the greatest loss of life in British maritime history.

Mr. Hillman subsequently made his way northwards to Brest, where he was able to escape to England on a Royal Navy destroyer.

It was in England that Mr. Hillman met and married his wife Irene. The couple have been married for 78 years, and when their daughter also married a Canadian, Mr. and Mrs. Hillman started to visit Canada.

Mr. Hillman eventually retired in Ottawa in 1988 from his career as an electrical engineer. After a brief return to the UK, Mr. and Mrs. Hillman moved back to Canada and settled in a house on Beach Drive in Oak Bay.

When asked why he undertook the fundraiser, John Hillman said “I owed Canada something”.

A truly humble man, Mr. Hillman has a wonderful sense of humour and brings joy to all who know him.

Credit: Molly Jane photography

As a lovely tribute to support  Mr. Hillman, his 9-year-old great-grandson did a parallel walk in Kingston, Ontario.

What did Mr. Hillman do when he attained his goal of 101 laps? “I had a cold beer” he commented. Now that was truly well deserved!

Please join me in celebrating the remarkable accomplishments of a Mr. John Hillman. Thank you.

Today the BC government announced a number of investments across the province to improve active transportation options for British Columbians. I’m very pleased that the University of Victoria, in partnership with the District of Oak Bay, received $316,380 toward Oak Bay’s University Drive Connection Pathway. As noted in our press release, reproduced below, this investment will ensure increased safety for those walking or biking to, from, and around the UVic campus. In addition, active transportation is a key element of the province’s CleanBC economic recovery plan.

Media Release

MLA Weaver response to B.C. government investment in pedestrian and cyclist infrastructure
For Immediate Release
June 24, 2020

Victoria, BC — Today’s announcement by the provincial government regarding investments in pedestrian and cyclist infrastructure on Vancouver Island comes as welcome news. Included in the investment is funding of $316,380 towards Oak Bay’s University Drive Connection Pathway, a bi-directional pathway which will vastly improve commuting and safety for cyclists and pedestrians in the riding of Oak Bay-Gordon Head. This active transportation infrastructure project is expected to be completed by March 2021.

“I’m delighted that the province is investing in active transportation on the University of Victoria campus in partnership with the District of Oak Bay”, commented Andrew Weaver, MLA for Oak Bay Gordon Head, “investing in active transportation is a key element of the province’s CleanBC economic recovery plan”.

“With nearly 22,000 students, this investment will ensure increased safety for those walking or biking to, from and around the campus.”

-30-

Media contact
Judy Fainstein
Executive Director
Legislative Office of Andrew Weaver, MLA
+1 250-744-7615 | Judy.Fainstein@leg.bc.ca

Today in the legislature I rose to pay tribute to a constituent Lorne Frame who has recently been selected to be a member of the Order of the Legion of Honor. Originally established in 1802 by Napolean Bonaparte, the Legion of Honour remains France’s highest decoration. Below I reproduce the text and video of my two minute tribute.

Video of Statement

Text of tribute

It is a profound honour for me to rise in the house today to pay tribute to Mr. Lorne Frame, a Canadian hero who resides in the riding of Oak Bay- Gordon Head.

In 1942 at the age of 18, Mr. Frame joined the Royal Canadian Air Force. After further training in Britain he became a pilot in the 419 Canadian Bomber Squadron where he flew Lancaster bombers.

At the age of 20 and on his 13^th mission his plane was attacked by German Night Fighters. His plane was shot down on the edge of the Fontainebleau Forest, south of Paris.

As he fought to control the descending plane, he ordered his crew to evacuate. He was the last person out of the plane.

After walking all night Mr. Frame found himself in the village of Barbizon. There he came into contact with an American woman by the name of Drue Tartière.

Mrs. Tartière spent the war years assisting the French Underground. As she spoke English, Mr. Frame was able to convince her that he was a member of the allied forces and not a German soldier.

Mrs. Tartière hid Mr. Frame in the back of her house where he was eventually joined by members of his crew. They stayed hidden for 7 weeks until Barbizon was liberated in August, 1944.

As befits a true hero, Mr. Frame minimizes his contributions and sacrifices. To this day he praises the women and men of the French Underground and in particular Drue Tartière.

He marvelled at their bravery. In assisting Mr. Frame and his compatriots, they risked their lives and the lives of their families and friends.

Drue Tartière documents Mr. Frame’s story, among others, in her book The House Near Paris that she published in 1947. I’ve ordered the book from AbeBooks and am eagerly awaiting its arrival so I can learn more about this remarkable story.

In recognition of his sacrifice and his service in helping liberate France from the Nazis, Mr. Frame has recently been selected to be a member of the Order of the Legion of Honor.

Originally established in 1802 by Napolean Bonaparte, the Legion of Honour remains France’s highest decoration.

We are privileged to have Mr. Frame with us today in the gallery. I would like this house to join me in congratulating him.