Joe Biden’s climate plan is a threat to democracy

For a policy that requires sacrifice, at least for the masses, the climate agenda lacks one critical element: public support. Even in ultra-green Europe, there is a growing resistance among politicians and the public towards extreme climate policies. In America, too, climate scepticism is growing. Given that Joe Biden rolled out new pollution standards for non-electric cars last week, this public shift should provide discomfort among the Democratic establishment.

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Anti-Ulez protesters hang ‘protected’ bat boxes on camera poles

Bat boxes have been attached to Ultra Low Emission Zone (Ulez) camera poles in what appears to be an attempt to frustrate efforts to enforce Sadiq Khan, the London Mayor’s clean air scheme.

The £10 animal boxes have been installed underneath number plate recognition cameras in Chessington and North Cheam, in south London.

Laminated signs underneath the boxes read: “Stop! This is a bat box. Bats have been observed to be using this bat box as a resting place.”

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Andrew Evans: Canada’s electrical grid cannot handle the coming demands

In 1905, Sir Adam Beck, (who created the precursor to Ontario Hydro), spoke in the Ontario Legislature about the “very great influence upon the commercial development of the Province [that] will be exercised by the furnishing of cheap power.”

In the time since, cheap power has been the backbone of the prosperity Canada achieved. Fed mostly from large hydroelectric dams, this cut-rate, abundant supply of electricity enabled mass electrification and quality of life soared. Today, we continue to reap the benefits and have a reliable, largely non-emitting grid that is the envy of the world.

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Scrap Biden’s Electric-Vehicle Rules

It is no business of the state to steer drivers from one automotive technology to another. But if the U.S. government should decide to do this, it should do so through Congress, not a regulatory agency. Where climate policy is involved, though, individual autonomy and popular consent have a way of being overridden. In April 2023, the EPA proposed a set of rules designed to ensure that, depending on which “compliance pathway” — a phrase redolent of a bureaucracy run amok — auto manufacturers took, electric vehicles (EVs) would account for as much as 67 percent of new light vehicle sales by 2032.

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Biden’s New Electric Vehicle Policy Will Drive US Auto Workers Out of Job

Progressive climate regulations could cost Biden votes in Rust Belt states come November.

Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm’s four-day publicity tour for electric vehicles was always intended to draw attention — and it did, just not the kind she’d hoped for. Granholm and her caravan acted as ambassadors for President Joe Biden’s support for green energy and clean cars. But it’s hard to spend four days on the road without showcasing the downsides of electric vehicles.

Outside of Augusta, Georgia, Granholm and her team bumped up against a common limitation: too few EV chargers. Ahead of her arrival, Granholm’s advance team realized that they would have to wait in line. One charger was broken, leaving only three that worked. 

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GREEN: Trudeau carbon tax hike will hurt future generations

Despite calls from seven of Canada’s premiers (including one premier from his own party) to scrap the upcoming carbon tax hike, and the threat of a non-confidence vote by the Opposition in Parliament, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has doubled down as he tries to convince Canadians this tax, which is set to rise from $65 per tonne of greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) to $80 per tonne on April 1, will really be good for them.

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Germany’s Murder of Europe

In a preparatory impact report, a copy of which has been obtained by the Financial Times before official release, the European Commission estimates that to achieve the target of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 90% by 2040 then 100% in 2050 — the main objective of the “European Green Deal” — Europe will need to invest €1.5 trillion a year from 2031 to 2050.

1.5 trillion euros a year. That is equivalent to 10% of the Europe Union’s entire GDP for 2022 — every year! Apart from a war effort, there is no objective of any kind that has ever required the diversion of 10% of a continent’s GDP by political decree.

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Crazy Old Crank Joe Biden unveils sweeping crackdown on petrol cars in push to go electric

Joe Biden has announced new rules that will see as many as half of all cars sold in America run on electricity by 2030.

The US President on Wednesday moved to adopt strict European-style tailpipe emission rules. The finalised regulations will require manufacturers to drastically cut the amount of carbon dioxide (CO2) emitted from cars and trucks from 2027 through to 2032.

The rules will trigger a seismic shift in the US, a country dominated by cars and one where the price of gas is used as a barometer for household finances.

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This is the end of the road for electric-vehicle subsidies

When the Alberta government announced its 2024 budget at the end of February, one item in particular raised eyebrows: a new registration fee of $200 on electric vehicles, beginning in January, 2025.

The justification was simple: EVs don’t pay fuel taxes when they are charged at home, which they often are. EVs are also, on average, heavier than their combustion engine counterparts, and thus, on average, more damaging to roads. Absent a clear usage metric by which to charge EV drivers for their share of road maintenance costs, an annual flat fee would be imposed.

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The world’s 100 worst polluted cities are in Asia — and 83 of them are in just one country

All but one of the 100 cities with the world’s worst air pollution last year were in Asia, according to a new report, with the climate crisis playing a pivotal role in bad air quality that is risking the health of billions of people worldwide.

The vast majority of these cities — 83 — were in India and all exceeded the World Health Organization’s air quality guidelines by more than 10 times, according to the report by IQAir, which tracks air quality worldwide.

The study looked specifically at fine particulate matter, or PM2.5, which is the tiniest pollutant but also the most dangerous. Only 9% of more than 7,800 cities analyzed globally recorded air quality that met WHO’s standard, which says average annual levels of PM2.5 should not exceed 5 micrograms per cubic meter.

Justin will have no choice but to raise the Carbon tax now!

h/t DS

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Stop the carbon price increase? Poilievre threatens non-confidence

A Conservative motion to “spike the hike” and stop the April 1 carbon price increase will face a vote in the House of Commons on Wednesday as the environment minister says, “We can’t put climate change on pause.”

Opposition Leader Pierre Poilievre introduced a motion earlier this week to stop the annual carbon price increase, which is set to rise to $80 per tonne on April 1 from the current $65 per tonne.

Performative but necessary I suppose.

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