Tootfinder

On the new BC Ferries being built in China.
Do we all remember the last time the BC NDP went down the road of “building a shipbuilding industry to build ferries”?
It has its own Wiki, of course.
"In addition to major delays and cost overruns, the ferries never fully met their original specifications, and only operated briefly in a reduced capacity, before being auctioned off at a substantial loss by the subsequently elected BC Liberal Party government.”
No, I'm not thrilled that China, an authoritarian state, is going to be building these ferries. But no BC or Canadian firms bid on the contract. And right now, the expertise in ship building is in China and Europe (the Island and Salish class vessels were built in Europe).
I don't blame the NDP for not repeating the same mistake 30 years later.
And the ferries will still be refit and maintained for their full service life within BC.
#BCPoli #BCNDP #FastFerry #Shipbuilding.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fast_ferry_scandal

Here is the BC Federation of Labour's 10 year plan released before the election last year which includes a provincial rail strategy.
#BCpoli #CanPoli #CdnPoli #Rail #Transportation #Sustainability

Isn't it weird how when a Federal Crown Corporation - Marine Atlantic - buys a new ship... there is nary a mention that it was built in China (#BCPoli #BCFerries

🇺🇦 #NowPlaying on #BBC6Music's #TheMorningAfterMix
BC Camplight:
🎵 Angelo
#BCCamplight
https://bc-camplight.bandcamp.com/track/angelo
https://open.spotify.com/track/6c0HJFpgmlGrgiTDNeWfGx

The small Island Class vessels (2019-2021) were built in Romania by Dutch firm Damen Shipbuilding: #BCPoli #BCNDP #FastFerry #Shipbuilding

Spousal conflit of interest issues aside for a moment... I may actually vomit if Danielle Smith's Alberta government introduces a “15-year master plan for introducing passenger trains across the province.“ when I have been advocating for this in BC for decades to absolute crickets (if not active denial) from all political parties in power.
#BCpoli #CanPoli #CdnPoli #Rail #Transportation #Sustainability
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/alberta-premier-s-husband-invited-to-passenger-rail-meetings-as-province-mulls-expansion-plan-1.7583358

Spread the word Canada and #Fediverse citizens everywhere! One of Trump's power grabs is through social media and big tech. The best way to take that power away is to take away power from the likes of Meta, Google and Apple who have far too much control and far too little social responsibility.
The Fediverse is the antidote to some of this. Talk to your MLA, MP, Representative, local politicians, and media. Get them talking about the alternative to platforms run by multinational corporations and foreign entities
#Mastodon #BCPoli #BC
https://socialbc.ca/@chris/114835376077242544

🇺🇦 #NowPlaying on #BBC6Music's #LaurenLaverne
BC Camplight:
🎵 A Sober Conversation
#BCCamplight
#newRelease 🆕 single
https://bc-camplight.bandcamp.com/track/two-legged-dog
https://open.spotify.com/track/3cNg2Mjc9NW8a20cIvqklz

Related: The doctor @… interviewed has a podcast and Youtube channel called "Interesting MD”. He interviewed Minister Josie Osborne a few weeks ago about the doctor shortage and what BC is doing to help fix it.
#BCPoli #CdnPoli #CanPoli
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4qEcE9lK17w

#EndFossilFuels #ClimateAction
Fact: Taking a BC Ferry from Metro Vancouver to Vancouver Island is a High CO2 experience, though if it's a full ferry, it's not terrible (~5kgCO2/passenger)
By 2031, BC Ferries will have replaced 18 ferries (big and small!) in 15 years, and nearly all will be 100% electric-ready.
They just announced they're doing the big ships next.
"Built with diesel-battery hybrid propulsion systems and designed with the capability to operate on full electric power in future, the NMVs are expected to significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions, improve fuel efficiency, and lower underwater radiated noise to better protect marine life. With greater capacity than the vessels they replace, the NMVs will offer more space for vehicles and passengers and upgraded amenities, supporting a more reliable and comfortable travel experience.”
The age of fossil fuels is ending. Any politician or lobbyist who says otherwise is either not paying attention, or bought.
#BCPoli #CanPoli #CdnPoli #ClimateEmergency #SalishSea #BCFerries
https://www.bcferries.com/news-releases/bc-ferries-selects-shipyard-to-construct-four-new-major-vessels

Hey Vancouver Island folks... thinking back to when the E&N railway court decision was made that had the Sna-naw-as First Nation take back the land after the Provincial and Federal governments did not commit to restoring rail service:
.... do you remember any reporting at the time that indicated whether the province or federal governments were in discussions on the issue?
Inquiring minds....
#Rail #Canada #BC #Rail #EN #IslandCorridor

OOOHH!!!! 🚨
Just got an email from the BC Government! My FOI request that I submitted almost exactly two years ago in 2023 has finally completed!
Looks like there is ALOT of redacted/partial disclosures
I'm going to keep a lid on what this is all about other than to say, it's about trains and climate change! lol (which is convenient, given my earlier post this morning)
Time for some light reading!
(edit: Holy.... it's 1600 pages!!!)
#FOI #BCPoli #CanPoli #CdnPoli

What every citizen of BC should know about the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act is that at the end, it has a section that essentially argues that *any* and *all* government information *must* be disclosed if it is in the public interest.
“Division 4 -- Public Interest Paramount”
It has just one Section:
*Information must be disclosed if in the public interest*
25 (1)Whether or not a request for access is made, the head of a public body must, without delay, disclose to the public, to an affected group of people or to an applicant, information
(a)about a risk of significant harm to the environment or to the health or safety of the public or a group of people, or
(b)the disclosure of which is, for any other reason, clearly in the public interest.
(2)Subsection (1) applies despite any other provision of this Act.
———
#BCPoli #BCGov #IslandRail #FOIPPA #FOI

The last contracts barely went over the inflation rate over the term and didn't even make up the difference of inflation that had been lost over the previous 20 YEARS.
ie. It didn't even touch the cost of living since the pandemic.
And now the BC Government thinks it's going to go back to lower-than-inflation raises with 0.5% and 1%?
Not gonna fly. More people than ever are living paycheque to paycheque.
#BCPoli #Unions #Affordability #BCGEU #CUPE #Teachers #University #FPSE #BCTF
https://www.quesnelobserver.com/news/bc-offers-public-sector-unions-35-per-cent-over-2-years-8090664?utm_source=flipboard&utm_medium=activitypub

Super informative video from @… for health care professionals in the USA considering moving to Canada (specifically British Columbia).
The process has been sped up from 4-5 months to 3 weeks using the "HealthMatch" system in BC.
Lots of detail here for doctors specifically looking to make the move and probably informative for other healthcare folks too.
#BCHealth #HealthCare #Canada #Immigration #USA #CanPoli #CdnPoli
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ryTdNBC9mn8

2 years later, my Freedom of Information Request shows a snapshot of Government ignoring Vancouver Islanders for 20 years.
On June 28, 2023 I submitted a Request for Information to the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure of British Columbia for documents related to the Island Railway on Vancouver Island. It took two years to receive the response.
#VancouverIsland #BC #BCPoli #transportation #FOiA #Canada #CdnPoli
https://chrisalemany.ca/b/2tp

Just sent a truly epic email to the Freedom of Information office at the BC Ministry requesting that they release a bunch of information that they refused/redacted in my 2000 page Island Railway related information disclosure.
It was 1160 words with 11 attachments. 😂
Feeling my citizen-power rn
Though i don't envy the FOI analyst opening that up just before lunch on a Friday in June. 😇
(blog post about the FOI request: (#BCPoli #BCGov #IslandRail #FOIPPA #FOI

According to news reports the first LNG tanker to receive a commercial LNG shipment from the LNG Canada faciility in Kitimat will be the “Gaslog Glasgow”
It's currently well offshore of Haida Gwaii on its way to the BC Central Coast.
A sad sad day for the climate.
#EndFossilFuels #RenewablesNotGas #RenewableEnergy #ClimateEmergency #ClimateChange #BCPoli #Canada #CdnPoli #CanPoli
https://www.marinetraffic.com/en/ais/home/shipid:4101114/zoom:7
News item: https://www.albernivalleynews.com/news/lng-canada-produces-first-commercial-ready-liquefied-natural-gas-8089444