Environment committee  California has often been a leader when it comes to a lot of these different zero-emission vehicle programs. An example is that California has had some type of ZEV standard in some form in place since 1990. They also are significantly ahead when it comes to electrification of heavy-duty trucks through their incentive program for that class of vehicle.

Environment committee  The Quebec ban on gasoline-powered vehicles is essentially not equivalent, but it's comparable to a zero-emission vehicle standard that requires 100% of vehicles to be either low emitting or zero emission. Depending on how the ban is structured, I'm not sure the extent to which it takes hybrid electric vehicles into consideration.

Environment committee  Absolutely, we always encourage strong research and exploring every opportunity to reduce greenhouse gases in Canada.

Environment committee  I would say outside of Canada one jurisdiction that we always refer to when we're looking at best practices when it comes to ZEVs is California within the United States.

Environment committee  I would say that if there are any restrictions that reduce the potential for electric vehicles to contribute to greenhouse gas reductions and reduce the ability of an average family that's looking to do their part to move Canada to net zero, and the restrictions on those are artificial, then we would hope that, as much as possible, those could be cleared out over time.

Environment committee  That's a great question. I think one thing to keep in mind is that the subsidy amount is not very flexible. If you're purchasing a zero-emission vehicle that's battery electric or hydrogen fuel cell electric, you're getting $5,000. As far as I'm aware, it doesn't matter if it's a jeep or a smaller car.

Environment committee  That's a great question. I'll try to be quick on this. I think it comes to two main ways of doing it. The first is making it easier to install these electric-vehicle charging stations within the MURBs or within the garage or within areas. The second is an increased amount of publicly available charging infrastructure, specifically in the areas around where a lot of these garages for a lot of these apartments and condominiums exist.

Environment committee  First of all, with respect to that legislation, we're really encouraged to see this being put into law—the net-zero by 2050 target. I want to re-emphasize how ambitious that target is. Recent projections from the International Energy Agency state that about 50% of passenger car sales would have to be electric by 2030 in order for us to meet that target.

Environment committee  It's always good to be aggressive when it comes to climate.

Environment committee  Could you expand on that?

Environment committee  I agree.

Environment committee  That's a fascinating and great question. The Pembina Institute does consider hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles within that broader electric vehicle banner. Traditionally, zero-emission vehicles are considered to be hydrogen, battery electric or plug-in hybrid electric. If you look at, for example, the zero-emission vehicle infrastructure program, it does provide infrastructure incentives to those hydrogen-powered vehicles.

Environment committee  As just a bit of background, the Pembina Institute represents a national coalition of businesses looking to accelerate low-carbon solutions in trucking, especially in last-mile solutions. This is an area that is a bit more of a nascent market than the electric car area. There are challenges to electrification in this area that are not in electric cars, or are not as significant in electric cars.

Environment committee  Absolutely. I'll just quickly add on to the great remarks we just heard. Pembina Institute did some engagement with stakeholders in the affected auto sector communities. One thing we will note is that the Canadian auto sector is already in decline, so this thinking about retraining and about a just transition has to happen anyway.

Environment committee  Yes, absolutely. Mr. Jeneroux, if I understood the question correctly, talked about how a significant number of EV purchasers are purchasing Tesla Model 3s, which are in that luxury or higher-end segment of the electric vehicle market, and how a top-up of the iZEV program would contribute to equity.