Barry Saxifrage

Vancouver

Reporter at National Observer

Reporting about climate change at https://t.co/puYQfyQcbW and https://t.co/MwLSNB1izv

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Articles

Canada blasted a tax and made pollution cheap again

3 weeks ago | nationalobserver.com | Barry Saxifrage

Canada's CO2 pollution fee is $80 per tonne. By axing it from this set of emissions, Canada made it $20 billion cheaper to buy these climate-polluting fuels each year - and $40 billion cheaper to buy them in 2030. Everyone loves lower fuel prices, right? But Canada didn't lower the price of all fuels - just the climate-polluting fuels. Undercutting climate solutions.
Jet fuel emissions soar to record heights, while solutions remain grounded

1 month ago | nationalobserver.com | Barry Saxifrage

Shooting up Let's start by looking at the dizzying rise in jet emissions. My first chart shows jet fuel burning since 1990. To illustrate the long-term trend, I've focused on the decade waypoints of 2005, 2015 and 2025. That soaring black line is the amount of fossil jet fuel burned each year. The CO2 emitted is listed below in brown text. The amount of "sustainable aviation fuel" (SAF) used is shown by blue frosting sitting on top of that fossil fuel line.
Meanwhile, atmospheric CO2 keeps accelerating upwards

1 month ago | nationalobserver.com | Barry Saxifrage

"The accumulation of CO2 in the atmosphere is irreversible on human timescales and will affect climate for millennia" -- World Meteorological Organization The primary driver of our planetary climate crisis -- carbon dioxide gas (CO2) -- continues to pile up in our atmosphere at an accelerating rate. And the last two years were record-busting huge. Take a look. This chart shows the latest data from the United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Agency (NOAA).
Canada is opening the floodgates on one of Earth’s greatest living reservoirs of CO2

1 month ago | treefrogcreative.ca | Barry Saxifrage |Kevin Mason |Robert McKellar |Kelly McCloskey

Canada is opening the floodgates on one of Earth’s greatest living reservoirs of CO2 By Barry Saxifrage The National Observer March 11, 2025 Category: Carbon, Climate & Bioenergy Region: Canada Canada’s managed forest is one of the largest living reservoirs of carbon on the planet.
Ford's $17.8 billion pre-election power play

2 months ago | nationalobserver.com | John Woodside |Barry Saxifrage

In the month leading up to yesterday's campaign kickoff, Ontario Progressive Conservative Party Leader Doug Ford’s government announced $17.8 billion in total funding for various energy projects. The cash is for the refurbishment of existing hydro and nuclear assets, a pumped hydro project, and a massive energy efficiency program.
We are releasing the monsters

2 months ago | nationalobserver.com | Barry Saxifrage |Chris Hatch

“It ain't rocket science — when it's hotter and drier, fires burn more easily and more explosively.” — John Vaillant, author of Fire WeatherBillions of tonnes of planet-heating gases emitted by humans from burning oil, methane gas and coal are unleashing monsters around the globe. And even the wealthiest state in the most powerful nation on the planet hasn’t been able to contain them.
The BC NDP is not the climate leader it is cracked up to be

Jan 2, 2025 | nationalobserver.com | Barry Saxifrage |Ross Belot

British Columbia’s New Democratic Party (BC NDP) was just re-elected in a campaign where they touted their climate leadership. Despite these reassuring words, Canadians concerned about climate change should pay close attention to what's happening. The province has turned into a climate laggard, with emissions stuck far above 1990 levels. And, perhaps shockingly, all the increase in climate pollution has happened while the BC NDP has been running the government.
‘This COP truly sucked’: advocates slam paltry UN climate finance deal

Nov 25, 2024 | nationalobserver.com | John Woodside |Barry Saxifrage

This year’s climate change negotiations didn’t amount to much — and even the talks’ biggest outcome has left some angry. Rich countries, including Canada, agreeing to provide at least US$300 billion to developing countries by 2035 for climate action is a “band-aid on a bullet wound,” according to advocates. Agreeing on a new finance target was the litmus test for success at COP29.
U.K. puts Canada to shame with bold 2035 climate target

Nov 25, 2024 | nationalobserver.com | Barry Saxifrage

The United Kingdom (U.K.) has just lowered their 2035 climate target to a staggering 81 per cent below their 1990 emissions. Canada will set our 2035 target in the next few days. Here’s a chart-filled look at where both nations are today and how close they are to their upcoming targets. Back in 1990 -- the international starting line for global climate action -- the U.K. was the world’s sixth largest economy.
Trump and the post-America world

Nov 19, 2024 | nationalobserver.com | Sandra Bartlett |Max Fawcett |Barry Saxifrage

Sandy Garossino and Vina Nadjibulla are back with the Mortal Giants podcast, and a new conversation about the fragility of power in the 21st century. After almost a century of post-war prosperity and unrivaled American power, we've entered a new era of growing uncertainty and realignment as many of the world's nations now seek to challenge that dominance. And that became even truer after the U.S. election that will return Donald Trump to the presidency in January, 2025.