It’s going to be that much harder to get climate solutions done when no good deed goes unpunished.
That’s the harsh reality that Environment and Climate Minister Steven Guilbeault slammed up against on Monday when he had the temerity to utter a set of basic, provable facts.
That electrifying car travel is one tool in the toolbox but not a one-stop solution to get transportation emissions under control.
That highway expansions only fuel more traffic, congestion, and climate pollution, ultimately producing demands for the next new road or extra lane.
And that local urban planning is “hyper important” to the national effort to get energy and emissions under control.
The reaction was as fast, furious, and fact-free as you would expect, with opposition leader Pierre Poilievre preposterously claiming Wednesday that Guilbeault was “launching a war on cars”. Lost in the political theatre and sacrificial sound bites was something a lot bigger than the original remarks and Guilbeault’s hasty efforts to walk them back.
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