Time to get serious about energy transition

Opinion

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 09/04/2024 (549 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Premier Wab Kinew’s commitment to bring the working class along with his pitch to replace the federal carbon tax and rebate system with robust measures to reduce Manitoba’s dependence on fossil fuels is an idea worth consideration.

Kinew rightly acknowledges the frustration among Manitobans with the rising cost of living, including gas and diesel to fuel their vehicles and natural gas to heat homes.

The good news is that the alternatives — such as electric vehicles (EVs), heat pumps and improved public transit — are cost savers for Manitobans. But significantly reducing our carbon footprint will require new and aggressive decisions well beyond what the government has announced to date. And we have a lot of catching up to do, given the disinterest of the previous Tory administration.

Consider gasoline for instance. As an EV driver for the past four years, I’ve experienced the potential of electric vehicles first-hand. While the provincial government’s new rebates aim to encourage EV adoption, what drivers truly need is improved public charging infrastructure.

It will be disheartening for new EV owners when they realize there are no fast chargers between Winnipeg and Thompson, two for non-Tesla owners between Deacon’s Corner and Dryden, and limited options heading west.

The City of Winnipeg’s reluctance to embrace the widespread availability of slower but cheaper Level 2 charging infrastructure, as seen in other cities, exacerbates this issue.

Electric utilities like BC Hydro, Hydro One in Ontario, Quebec Hydro and New Brunswick Power all have impressive fast-charging networks. Manitoba Hydro has none.

Manitoba’s recent budget neglected the urgent need for an EV charging plan.

Transitioning away from natural gas will also necessitate working with developers and homebuilders to establish a sunset date for connecting new homes to natural gas.

A new “utility approach” to connect homes to heat pumps will also be required, essentially seeing Efficiency Manitoba engaging contractors and paying the upfront costs for affordable, turnkey installations and recouping those costs with monthly payments — the same way that electric, natural gas and water services are offered.

On this opportunity, the government has already announced its intention to move in that direction but with the ground source heat pump installation season upon us, details haven’t been announced.

Aki Energy, an award-winning First Nations social enterprise that has installed 750 ground source heat pumps on First Nations, has shown creating green jobs is a huge win.

But if the government wants to make a case that the carbon tax isn’t needed here, faster and bolder targets are needed. A coalition of 25 U.S. state governors has pledged to install more than 15-million heat pumps by 2030, dwarfing Manitoba’s commitment of 5,000 by 2026 on a per capita basis.

An aggressive plan to cut emissions from fossil fuels will also include Manitoba adopting and enforcing more stringent energy efficiency standards in building codes.

This will ensure that all new homes and buildings, and major renovations of existing ones, significantly reduce energy requirements and are heated and cooled with electric heat pumps.

A serious case to move off fossil fuels will also have to address the use of synthetic fertilizers and pesticides in farming, which heavily rely on natural gas to produce. Requiring shifts toward natural fertilizers and alternative farming practices should be a priority.

In terms of public transit, while Winnipeg Mayor Scott Gillingham aims to accelerate the implementation of the Winnipeg Transit Master Plan, the provincial budget lacks any meaningful support for this opportunity.

Additionally, the provincial government is currently committed to cost-sharing the purchase of diesel buses (alongside electric buses) by Winnipeg Transit. These buses will burn diesel fuel for 20 years.

To be fair, the NDP government, newly elected last fall, deserves time to develop a more effective and affordable plan to help Manitoba transition away from fossil fuels.

But for its assertion to be credible that Manitoba doesn’t need a federal carbon tax backstop, it must demonstrate it is serious in taking the necessary next steps.

Shaun Loney is a cofounder of both BUILD (ScotiaBank’s Green Business of the Year) and Aki Energy (Canada Clean50 “Exceptional Contributor to the Green Economy”). He ran for mayor of Winnipeg in 2022.