energy – mackaycartoons

Thursday November 29, 2018

December 6, 2018 by Graeme MacKay

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Thursday November 29, 2018

A global shift toward electric vehicles is well underway, experts say

When General Motors cited plans to pivot toward electric and autonomous vehicle production as a key reason it had decided to mothball its Oshawa assembly plant, the company was talking about a future that many Canadians didn’t recognize.

August 4, 2017

But experts say the auto industry’s seismic shift away from the traditional internal combustion engine is already well underway.

“Pretty much every manufacturer’s making some decision and financial commitment to what the vehicle of the future is going to look like,” said David Adams, president and CEO of Global Automakers of Canada, an umbrella industry association that represents BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Nissan, Porsche, and Volkswagen.

“Our members, all of them look at … decarbonized transportation as what the future is going to be.”

In a news release Monday, GM said it would cease current operations in Oshawa, as well as four plants in the U.S., by the end of 2019. The company said the decision would save it $6 billion, and enable it to double investment in its electric and autonomous vehicle programs in the next two years.

July 17, 2009

According to Adams full automation of vehicles is likely still “decades away.”

But electric vehicles — either battery electric or plug-in hybrids — make up a small but rapidly growing share of the market. As of December, 1.4 per cent of all vehicles sold in Canada were electric, according to FleetCarma, a technology consultant firm, and there were just under 50,000 of the vehicles on Canada’s roads.

However, the number of electric vehicles sold last year increased 68 per cent compared to the year before. The 18,560 plug-in vehicles that drivers bought in 2017 represented a fivefold increase compared to sales in 2013.

The GM-made Chevrolet Volt, a plug-in hybrid, was the hottest seller in Canada last year, followed by the Chevrolet Bolt, a battery electric vehicle. GM announced this week it would discontinue the Volt as the company prioritizes battery electric vehicles. (Source: Toronto Star)

Wednesday June 11, 2018

July 10, 2018 by Graeme MacKay

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Wednesday June 11, 2018

Ontario PC government cancels $100-million school repair fund

Ontario’s new Tory government has cancelled a $100-million fund earmarked for school repairs this year, a cut that comes as a result of Doug Ford’s campaign promise to scrap the province’s cap-and-trade system.

School boards were notified on July 3 that the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund would be eliminated and that only work contracted on or before that date would be covered.

The memo, obtained by The Canadian Press, advises school boards to stop spending the cash that was allocated in April immediately.

“Please maintain detailed records of the contracts that have been signed as ministry staff will contact boards to collect information on the scope of the work underway,” the memo said.

Toronto District School Board chair Robin Pilkey said the move is disappointing because that board has a $4 billion repair backlog.

The TDSB had budgeted $300 million for upkeep this fiscal year, including the $25 million it was awarded specifically from this fund, and now faces difficult choices, Pilkey said.

“Losing $25 million is a big deal to us,” she said. “Our repair backlog is so large that every piece counts. We’ll have to make decisions in the next few weeks whether we don’t do those projects or we take the money out of … other funds and scrap something else.”

The board had planned to use the funding to repair windows, lighting and complete other mechanical work in its schools, she said.

It’s unlikely much of the money has been spent, however, because the board must hire contractors through the proper procurement process, which takes time, she said.

“It’s not like you get the money on May 1 and can spend it on May 15,” she said. “It takes a while to get the money flowing.”

The province has an approximate $15 billion repair backlog at its 4,900 publicly funded schools.

Stephen Seaborn, spokesman for the education advocacy group Campaign for Public Education, said the cut will hurt schools across Ontario.

“It’s bad,” he said. “It was done just like as if it was nothing. There was no discussion about what would be done about the budgets of the schools.”

Seaborn said the cancellation of cap and trade has clearly had unintended consequences and cutting funds for the renovation program is a prime example. (Source: CTV News)

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Wednesday April 11, 2018

April 10, 2018 by Graeme MacKay

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Wednesday April 11, 2018

Kinder’s Pipeline Pause Puts Pressure on Trudeau to Act, Somehow

Justin Trudeau has a lot riding on the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion. But the Canadian prime minister has few viable options to save it.

June 27, 2013

Kinder Morgan Inc. halted most work on the project Sunday, ramping up pressure on the federal government to somehow deter provincial opposition and protests from environmentalists before a May 31 deadline. Trudeau’s energy strategy is at stake, along with overall business confidence and the price of Canadian oil landlocked in neighboring Alberta.

His problem is that opposition from British Columbia has been mostly talk, leaving Trudeau essentially in a war of words that’s been enough for the Houston-based company to warn the uncertainty has become too great. Trudeau’s team backs the pipeline and flatly promises it will be built, though with the project already approved its options are few beyond trying to cajole the Pacific coast province.

June 8, 2017

“The consequence of their indirection has created a problem of certainty for the proponent. That problem is real,” Natural Resources Minister Jim Carr said Monday in an interview at his Ottawa office. “We will look at every option available to the government of Canada — financial, regulatory, legal.”

Shares of Kinder Morgan Canada Ltd. fell 13 percent Monday, the biggest decline since its initial public offering last May.

While cross-border pipelines are under federal jurisdiction, provinces have asserted themselves in recent years, muddying the outlook and allowing new challenges to pop up. In this case, British Columbia’s New Democratic Party government — whose razor-thin command of the provincial legislature relies on support of Green Party lawmakers — has dug in its heels. (Source: Bloomberg)

Published in the Western Star, Corner Brook, Newfoundland

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Tuesday January 17, 2017

January 16, 2017 by Graeme MacKay

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Tuesday January 17, 2017

Wynne gets cold shoulder from Trudeau on hydro costs

Feeling more heat over hydro bills — and a cold shoulder on the touchy topic from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau — Premier Kathleen Wynne acknowledged her government has to do a better job curbing electricity costs.

October 29, 2015

Wynne was greeted Friday by protesters outside a luncheon speech in Oakville shortly after Trudeau was put on the defensive over hydro prices at a campaign-style stop in Peterborough.

“It is not enough,” the premier said of her Liberal government’s move to waive the 8 per cent provincial portion of the HST on electricity bills starting this month. ‎

While Wynne was taking responsibility for hydro rates that have skyrocketed in recent years and left many homeowners and businesses struggling, Trudeau, under fire for a Caribbean Christmas vacation on a “listening tour” of the country, made it clear electricity prices are Wynne’s cross to bear.

November 22, 2016

At a Peterborough town hall meeting, a weeping woman brandished her hydro bill for the prime minister, saying she earns “almost $50,000 a year and I am living in energy poverty.”

Trudeau, who has frequently campaigned with Wynne in a mutual support pact, praised the woman for speaking out publicly and tried to alleviate her concerns about the impact of looming carbon pricing on energy rates while insisting that “hydro bills are provincial.”

Speaking with reporters after that emotional encounter, the prime minister tried to dodge questions about Wynne’s electricity policies.

“As a Quebec-elected MP I have been trained to be very, very careful about weighing in on provincial areas of jurisdiction. It’s something that is important for positive working relationships with all provinces and I respect provincial rights and responsibilities to make determinations in their areas of jurisdiction,” said Trudeau.

Wynne took credit for the Liberal government’s upgrading of the electricity system since taking power in 2003 so “there are no more blackouts … no more smog days,” but admitted “the cost of the changes has burdened people.”

She told 440 people at an Oakville and Burlington Chamber of Commerce chicken lunch about a father of three who wrote to her at Christmas to say he had to scale back on presents for his kids. (Source: Hamilton Spectator)

Cartoon demeaned women and PM

Letter to the Editor, Hamilton Spectator, January 24, 2017 RE: Jan. 17 editorial cartoon

I feel Mr. MacKay crossed a line in his attempt at humour in this cartoon. His depiction of the prime minister rescuing the distraught woman during his cross country tour a lack of respect for this woman’s concern about her hydro bill and was demeaning both to her and Mr. Trudeau. Women do not need to be rescued by men nor do we deserve to be shown as weak and in need of this form of support from men.

Barb Howe, Hamilton

Thursday December 1, 2016

November 30, 2016 by Graeme MacKay

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Thursday December 1, 2016

Liberals face flood of outrage in B.C. after approval of Trans Mountain pipeline

The federal cabinet’s decision to approve Kinder Morgan Canada’s Trans Mountain pipeline expansion has prompted a flood of outrage and promises of protests, court challenges and civil disobedience in British Columbia.

October 13, 2016

Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson said he was “profoundly disappointed,” calling the decision a “big step backwards” for Canada’s environment and economy.

“I — along with the tens of thousands of residents, local First Nations, and other Metro Vancouver cities who told the federal government a resounding ‘no’ to this project — will keep speaking out against this pipeline expansion that doesn’t make sense for our economic or environmental future.”

September 26, 2015

The $6.8-billion project would triple the capacity of the Trans Mountain pipeline, from 300,000 to 890,000 barrels a day, and would add 980 kilometres of new pipe along the route from near Edmonton to Burnaby, B.C.

It would also increase the number of tankers leaving Vancouver-area waters seven-fold, from five to 34 per month, prompting fierce opposition from local mayors and First Nations who say any risk of a diluted-bitumen spill is unacceptable.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced the project would be approved with 157 conditions at a news conference Tuesday. He said he expects the decision to be “bitterly disputed” by a number of people across the country, but said the project is in Canada’s best interests. (Source: Toronto Star)