Editorial | Where’s the Liberal plan for emission-free vehicles? – TheSpec.com

Is the sun finally rising on the age of emission-free vehicles in Canada or are we merely staring at another false dawn?

Its difficult to know after the Trudeau Liberals recently declared that by 2035 every single new car, every new SUV and every new light-duty truck sold in the country would have to be electric.

That mandatory target shaved five, full years off the federal governments previous deadline that would have ended the sale of new gasoline- and diesel-powered passenger vehicles in 2040.

The fact that Transport Minister Omar Alghabra called the transition a must delighted environmentalists. It signalled the Liberals commitment to fighting climate change in a summer where the killer heat wave out West has convinced even many previous skeptics that strong, concerted action on this front is needed. And the transition to zero-emission vehicles is, indeed, a necessary change that if accomplished would go a long way to reducing the Canadian carbon emissions that contribute to global warming.

But considering this is also a summer when rumours of a fall federal election are also swirling in the overheated air, its worth asking whether were seeing a viable, thought-out action plan or just a convenient talking point in the next Liberal election manifesto.

We pose the question because the Liberals have set a supposedly firm deadline for when a major change in how Canadians get around must begin. But they have yet to announce what matters even more how theyll actually make this happen.

Consider just two of many unresolved issues: the electricity supply and the recharging infrastructure that will be needed to power the burgeoning future fleet of emission-free passenger vehicles.

Obviously, the source of the electricity that powers these vehicles should be clean or theres no point in mandating their use. But the government acknowledges that more than 19 per cent of the electricity produced in Canada currently comes from natural gas, oil and, yes, even coal. Phasing out the burning of fossil fuels by internal combustion engines will accomplish far less in cutting emissions if the same fossil fuels produce the electricity driving the supposedly zero-emission passenger vehicle fleet.

In addition, the Liberals need to give Canadians an idea of how much more electricity will be needed and where it will come from. Clearly, our electricity demands will also rise even more as hotter temperatures spur the use of more air conditioning. Just a few days ago, the Alberta government asked residents not to recharge their electric vehicles because air conditioners were using so much energy.

A 2019 Ernst &Young report estimated that if 30 per cent of Canadas vehicle stock in 2030 consisted of electric vehicles compared to just three per cent two years ago there could be an 11 per cent spike in electricity demand nationwide. So are there blueprints for new generating stations? Will any of them be nuclear?

And wheres the plan to bring online the recharging stations that will be needed in residences and workplaces, as well as service depots? While the federal government has so far invested $376 million into electric vehicle recharging infrastructure, the total investment needs to be about $10.5 billion as we move toward 100 per cent zero-emission passenger vehicle sales. Thats according to the Electric Autonomy Canada, an independent news platform reporting on Canadas transition to electric vehicles.

As we eagerly await more information from this government, were reminded of the old saying that people shouldnt put the cart before the horse, thereby doing things in the wrong order. In our brave new and rapidly warming 21st-century world, perhaps our government shouldnt put the electric car ahead of the electricity supply.

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Editorial | Where's the Liberal plan for emission-free vehicles? - TheSpec.com