“Thoughtful, determined and focused.”That’s how Liberal Energy and Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson described China’s climate policies at a press conference in Nova Scotia on Wednesday.“It is not a fluke of chance that China is now the number one developer and deployer of renewable energy technologies, the number one manufacturer and deployer of electric vehicle technologies and that it controls much of the critical minerals value chains around the world,” he said before doling out $300 million in clean energy research grants. “That is the product of a thoughtful economic strategy.”.The irony is that China is hands down the largest emitter of of carbon dioxide in the world — notwithstanding all the other toxic pollutants it spews into the air and water making those aforementioned EVs.According to the Global Carbon Project, China emitted about 11.4 billion tonnes of greenhouse gas in 2022, about 58% of it from coal power. China is also one of the world’s largest oil importers, which it relies on for transportation while dumping cheap EVs in North America and the EU.By contrast, Canada emitted 685 million tonnes of GHG in 2022, or barely 1.5% of the world’s total..That simple fact didn’t stop Wilkinson from extolling the virtues of China’s communist system that massively subsidizes inefficient wind and solar power and dumps it on Western nations.That also didn’t stop him from repeating the Liberal government line that Canada — Alberta — must continue to reduce oil and gas production to reduce emissions. Without directly referencing Alberta Premier Danielle Smith and Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre, he said certain political leaders have yet to grasp the ‘severity’ of the problem.“We must first accept the scientific reality of climate change, and we must then ensure that this informs and shapes Canada's economic strategy. Without intending to be overly partisan, I would say that this recognition is not one that is yet shared by all… political leaders in Canada.”.And he crassly pointed to last week’s near destruction of the town of Jasper as a validation of his government’s climate policies.“Climate change is altering our world's natural environment in a myriad of harmful ways. Last year's wildfire season was instructive in this regard,” he started. “And just last week, I think the images that we saw coming out of Jasper were horrified and devastating. Events like these are showing us what the future will look like if we fail to tackle the threat of climate change. That is obviously a future that we must work to avoid.”
“Thoughtful, determined and focused.”That’s how Liberal Energy and Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson described China’s climate policies at a press conference in Nova Scotia on Wednesday.“It is not a fluke of chance that China is now the number one developer and deployer of renewable energy technologies, the number one manufacturer and deployer of electric vehicle technologies and that it controls much of the critical minerals value chains around the world,” he said before doling out $300 million in clean energy research grants. “That is the product of a thoughtful economic strategy.”.The irony is that China is hands down the largest emitter of of carbon dioxide in the world — notwithstanding all the other toxic pollutants it spews into the air and water making those aforementioned EVs.According to the Global Carbon Project, China emitted about 11.4 billion tonnes of greenhouse gas in 2022, about 58% of it from coal power. China is also one of the world’s largest oil importers, which it relies on for transportation while dumping cheap EVs in North America and the EU.By contrast, Canada emitted 685 million tonnes of GHG in 2022, or barely 1.5% of the world’s total..That simple fact didn’t stop Wilkinson from extolling the virtues of China’s communist system that massively subsidizes inefficient wind and solar power and dumps it on Western nations.That also didn’t stop him from repeating the Liberal government line that Canada — Alberta — must continue to reduce oil and gas production to reduce emissions. Without directly referencing Alberta Premier Danielle Smith and Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre, he said certain political leaders have yet to grasp the ‘severity’ of the problem.“We must first accept the scientific reality of climate change, and we must then ensure that this informs and shapes Canada's economic strategy. Without intending to be overly partisan, I would say that this recognition is not one that is yet shared by all… political leaders in Canada.”.And he crassly pointed to last week’s near destruction of the town of Jasper as a validation of his government’s climate policies.“Climate change is altering our world's natural environment in a myriad of harmful ways. Last year's wildfire season was instructive in this regard,” he started. “And just last week, I think the images that we saw coming out of Jasper were horrified and devastating. Events like these are showing us what the future will look like if we fail to tackle the threat of climate change. That is obviously a future that we must work to avoid.”
