Monthly Archives: January 2019

New research puts a stake into the heart of the “Bridge to Nowhere” argument against BC LNG

Posted on January 28, 2019 by Blair

As someone who has followed the BC LNG debate pretty closely, I can’t count the number of times I have heard the expression “natural gas is a bridge to nowhere“. This expression derives from an infamous article by Cornell Biologist … Continue reading →

Posted in Canadian Politics, Uncategorized | 6 Comments

Environmental Absolutists are going BANANAs and it will hurt, not help, the environment

Posted on January 24, 2019 by Blair

Anyone who follows the energy beat knows that the latest chant from the environmental absolutist world is “No new fossil fuel infrastructure” (NNFFI). The slogan has been attributed by most sources to Bill McKibben of 350.org. Around here you hear … Continue reading →

Posted in Fossil Fuel Free Future, Pipelines, Risk, Uncategorized | 6 Comments

Sorry folks, but the plural of anecdote is data

Posted on January 21, 2019 by Blair

One of the reasons I started writing this blog was for science outreach. I like to discuss how we do science. Tonight I am going to go back to my roots and discuss an oft-misunderstood concept in science. The role … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 8 Comments

On Wil Horter’s Gish Gallop about Alberta heavy oil and the Trans Mountain

Posted on January 14, 2019 by Blair

On December 26th, 2018 the National Observer published an article Discount Frenzy: The dirt on discount oil by Wil Horter, the former Executive Director of the Dogwood Initiative. In December 28th, I prepared a reply called Fact-checking the National Observer … Continue reading →

Posted in Pipelines, Trans Mountain, Uncategorized | 2 Comments

Why a Pragmatic Environmentalist supports BC LNG – doing the climate math

Posted on January 10, 2019 by Blair

As a pragmatic environmentalist , I am often asked how I could support the BC LNG export industry? I prepared a Twitter thread on the topic but have since been asked to show my work. This blog post builds on … Continue reading →

Posted in Canadian Politics, Climate Change, Climate Change Politics, Uncategorized | 16 Comments

Follow-up on: Academics getting it wrong on Environmental Assessments – a case study

Posted on January 7, 2019 by Blair

My previous post Academics getting it wrong about the role of private sector consultants in BC’s Environmental Assessment processes was started in November and sat in my “drafts” folder for over a month. The reason I finished it during my break … Continue reading →

Posted in Canadian Politics, Uncategorized | 1 Comment

Academics getting it wrong about the role of private sector consultants in BC’s Environmental Assessment processes

Posted on January 3, 2019 by Blair

On November 19th a group of “scientists based in British Columbia” produced an open letter to Premier John Horgan, and several of his cabinet colleagues, about improving British Columbia’s Environmental Assessment (EA) process. The letter, was from the Earth to … Continue reading →

Posted in Canadian Politics, Environmentalism and Ecomodernism, General Politics, Risk Communication, Uncategorized | 2 Comments

A primer on environmental liability under BC’s Environmental Management Act.

Posted on January 2, 2019 by Blair

Warning Wonky post ahead: Every now and then I feel the urge to write a post that clarifies a topic I encounter in my professional life. This is one such post. I hope it will serve to explain, in simple … Continue reading →

Posted in Canadian Politics, Uncategorized | 4 Comments