Study reveals roadmap for carbon-free California by 2045

Stanford University

Facebook

XLinkedInWeChatBlueskyMessageWhatsAppEmail

 

image: 

Sarah Saltzer, Sally Benson, and Joshua Neutel have co-authored a study detailing what's needed for California to meet its net-zero mandate.

view more 

Credit: Courtesy Sarah Saltzer; Javier Flores; David Neutel

A 2022 California law mandates net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2045 and negative emissions every year thereafter. The state can achieve this but will have to act quickly and thoroughly, and success will require new technologies for sectors difficult to decarbonize, a new Stanford University study finds. The state will need to decarbonize not only cars and electricity but also trucks, trains, planes, agriculture, and factories, while slashing pollution from its oil refineries.

The research team created a new model that projects emissions, society-wide economic costs, and consumption of energy resources under many scenarios for California to reach net-zero emissions by 2045. The model uses data from U.S. federal agencies, national laboratories, California state agencies, past studies, and various other online public sources. (Data sources are provided in the study’s Appendix B.) The model forecasts that 170 gigawatts of new generation and 54 gigawatts of storage will be needed by 2045, compared with California’s current generation capacity of 80 GW, as transportation, buildings, and industry transition from fossil fuels to low-carbon sources of electricity. The expansion of electricity will be needed despite expected gains in energy efficiency in many technologies.

The study, published this week in the journal Energy Policy, provides a detailed roadmap for meeting California’s net-zero mandate. First, commercially available technologies can slash the state’s emissions in half. Technologies proven at pilot scale that need commercial development and lower costs could address another 25%. The final quarter will rely on inventions still being worked on in laboratories.

“One key to success will be building an emission-free power grid using a combination of solar, wind, batteries, and sources of clean, firm power like natural gas with carbon capture and storage or nuclear power,” said the study’s senior author, Sally Benson, the Precourt Family Professor of energy science and engineering in the Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability.

The study, which was funded by several industry associations and trade unions impacted by the state’s move to net-zero emissions, also examines some policy and economic implications for the state.

“We will need to build this infrastructure at an unprecedented pace to put proven technologies to work at the scale we need,” added Benson, who was the chief strategist for the energy transition at the White House Office of Science & Technology Policy from 2021 to 2023.

First 52%: Commercial technologies

The necessary technologies already in commercial use that could halve California emissions include renewable electricity generation, batteries for storing that energy, electric passenger vehicles, heat pumps, and machines that produce methane fuel from wastewater, manure, and food and plant waste.

However, significant administrative and logistical barriers could stymie deployment of these technologies at the required speed and scale. The state is already experiencing overwhelmingly long queues to connect new renewable energy generation and grid-scale energy storage to the grid. Local ordinances frequently block permits for new power plants. Other obstacles include the early termination of federal tax credits for EVs and home solar, federal challenges to California banning sales of gas-powered cars in 10 years, elevated financing costs, and supply chain disruptions.

“California can build the infrastructure it needs to meet the 2045 mandate, but the state must implement policies to overcome regulatory and logistical barriers,” said the study’s lead author, Joshua Neutel, a PhD student in civil and environmental engineering, a joint department of Stanford’s School of Engineering and Doerr School of Sustainability.

Several readily available measures save more money than they cost to implement, after accounting for state and federal incentives – many of which are slated to end in the coming months. The authors estimate electric passenger vehicles, solar and wind power, reduced in-state oil production, and replacement of fossil-based gas with methane fuel made through anaerobic digestion could eliminate 44% of the state’s greenhouse gas emissions (based on estimated 2045 emissions if the state were to continue business as usual).

Next 25%: Early-stage technologies

The authors estimate a quarter of emissions abatement could come from technologies in the early stages of commercialization, including zero-emission heavy-duty vehicles, clean industrial heating from electricity and hydrogen, and carbon capture and sequestration (CCS).

Eliminating carbon emissions from heavy-duty vehicles could reduce California emissions 12%. However, emission-free trucks still need to improve their range and cargo capacity while reducing charging time and purchase price. Another area in early-stage deployment involves switching several industries from fossil fuels to carbon-free electricity and green hydrogen. This accounts for 5% of emission reductions in the authors’ projections.

CCS entails capturing carbon dioxide directly at the source, such as at gas-fired power plants and factories, and securely sequestering the emissions deep underground. In some hard-to-decarbonize sectors, like oil refining and producing cement, hydrogen, and some electricity, CCS may be the most viable option in the near and medium term, according to the authors. The study confirms prior findings that a limited amount of natural gas power paired with CCS (34 of 170 gigawatts, or about 20% of new generation capacity) could vastly reduce the number and costs of wind and solar farms. Pairing bioenergy with CCS could remove another 2% of emissions from 2019 levels to reach net-zero emissions.

Final 23%: Research-phase technologies

Nascent technologies still in the research phase include decarbonized trains, planes, and boats; low-emission refrigerants; and carbon dioxide removal (CDR) from the atmosphere. Replacing fossil fuels for planes, trains, and boats with electricity, hydrogen, and renewable fuels faces challenges from their weight, cargo capacity, costs, and the limited availability of clean fuels.

Traditional refrigerants are powerful greenhouse gases up to 2,000 times more potent than CO2 during their first 100 years in the atmosphere. Climate-friendly alternatives, possibly including CO2 as a refrigerant, are still in the early stages of development.

CDR will play a significant role, with the researchers’ model projecting that California will need to sequester about 45-75 million tons of CO2 annually by 2045 through CDR, in line with the state’s 2022 forecast. Explored CDR options include bioenergy with CCS and direct air capture plants. The prior emits but then sequesters biogenic CO2 through industrial processes like hydrogen and electricity generation. The latter extracts CO2 directly from ambient air and stores it underground.

“If net-zero by 2045 is a binding constraint, then large amounts of CDR will be needed,” said study co-author Sarah Saltzer, managing director of the Stanford Center for Carbon Storage. Current methods for extracting carbon dioxide from ambient air remain costly and energy intensive.

Political and economic implications

The study recommends several policy changes, including streamlining the permitting of, and grid connections for, new generation, energy storage, and power lines. This year, the state has taken initial steps to do this.

The research advises that California should consider incentives for adding CCS to existing natural gas-fired power plants. For example, it could qualify such power plants as one way for utilities to meet the state’s renewable portfolio standard. This could prevent expensive overbuilding of solar power plus batteries.

This work also supports maintenance of the state’s EV sales mandate for 100% clean vehicles by 2035 and consideration of similar policies for building appliances. Policymakers could develop roadmaps for advancing “renewable natural gas” and “renewable diesel,” which are chemically equivalent to fossil-based natural gas and diesel but made from biological feedstocks, said the researchers. These fuels have a limited global supply but could be vital for decarbonizing hard-to-abate sectors.

“Reaching net-zero by 2045 is not so much a challenge in cost,” said Benson, “but a challenge in getting the necessary technologies available in time and establishing the social, political, and economic environment to deploy these technologies rapidly and broadly.”

---

Journal

Energy Policy

DOI

10.1016/j.enpol.2025.114848 

Method of Research

Computational simulation/modeling

Subject of Research

Not applicable

Article Title

What will it take to get to net-zero emissions in California?

Article Publication Date

26-Sep-2025

Inactive H5N1 influenza virus in pasteurized milk poses minimal health risks

Scientists at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital found that viral components in pasteurized milk did not alter flu immunity or increase susceptibility to infection.

St. Jude Children's Research Hospital

LinkedInWeChatBlueskyMessageWhatsAppEmail

 

image: 

First author Pamela Brigleb, PhD, St. Jude Department of Host-Microbe Interactions.

view more 

Credit: Courtesy of St. Jude Children's Research Hospital

(MEMPHIS, Tenn. – September 26, 2025) Proteins and genetic material from H5N1 influenza viruses have been found in pasteurized milk in the United States, but a study from St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital shows those inactive viral pieces represent little to no health risk. As the H5N1 outbreak in dairy cows continues in the U.S., commercial milk remains contaminated by viral pieces. However, the pasteurization process kills the virus. The researchers tested whether the resulting noninfectious viral materials could teach the immune system that these viral components were harmless, thus increasing susceptibility to influenza infections. They found that H5N1-contaminated milk that was pasteurized did not significantly affect the immune system in laboratory models. Unpasteurized milk remains a health concern. The findings were published today in Science Advances.

 

“We found that consuming pasteurized milk multiple times, even if it has inactivated H5N1 virus, poses minimal health risks,” said corresponding author Stacey Schultz-Cherry, PhD, St. Jude Department of Host-Microbe Interactions. “We observed no benefit or detriment to subsequent influenza infection.”

 

The scientists were originally concerned that regularly drinking inactivated viral components in milk may teach the immune system that these molecules were safe. This loss of immunity against materials in food is called oral tolerance, which prevents humans from developing unwanted immune reactions against what they consume. However, if people gained oral tolerance to flu’s viral proteins, it could lead to greater susceptibility to later influenza infections if the body no longer recognizes the viral components as part of an invader.

 

To learn if drinking contaminated pasteurized milk created oral tolerance of influenza viruses, the researchers took uncontaminated milk or milk contaminated with H5N1, which were both then pasteurized, and gave them to mice. The mice were given the milk over five days, mimicking how a person would consume it over time. Weeks later, the scientists challenged the mice with an H5N1 infection. There was no difference in how the infection proceeded between the two groups.

 

“We found an influenza infection after repeated exposure to H5N1 virus in pasteurized milk was normal, with no adverse events,” said first author Pamela Brigleb, PhD, St. Jude Department of Host-Microbe Interactions. “We saw no evidence of it worsening the disease.”

 

Pasteurization and pre-existing immunity prevent pathogenic infections

 

While pasteurized milk appeared to play no role in altering influenza immunity, unpasteurized milk represented a health threat. Mice exposed to unpasteurized H5N1-infected milk succumbed to their disease in a matter of days, which other groups have also documented.

 

“We did see that if infected milk wasn’t fully pasteurized, that was still very pathogenic in our model,” Brigleb said. “That highlights the importance of pasteurization, especially in potentially contaminated milk.”

 

Until this point, the researchers had only used mice that never had the virus. To better account for pre-existing flu immunity from previous infections and vaccinations, as occurs in the human population, the scientists infected mice with a nonlethal dose of H1N1 virus, leaving another group uninfected. They then took regular milk or milk that was H5N1-infected, then pasteurized both, and gave it to the mice for several days. Weeks later, they challenged those mice with the H5N1 virus, finding that prior H1N1 infection was 100% protective against mortality regardless of what type of milk the mice drank. All mice that did not have the pre-existing H1N1 immunity succumbed to their disease.

 

“Most of the population has had an infection or a vaccination at some point in their life, so we wanted to reflect that in our experiments,” Brigleb said. “We found that whether or not mice received viral particles in pasteurized milk or not, prior immunity still fully protected them from the H5N1 challenge.”

 

The study confirms that current food safety methods and vaccination practices are likely protecting human health from the H5N1 virus in milk, though the need for continued vigilance remains.

 

“It’s reassuring to find that these inactivated H5N1 viral components in pasteurized milk present minimal health risks and don’t alter flu immunity,” Schultz-Cherry said. “However, we also reaffirmed that consuming unpasteurized milk can expose people to this potentially dangerous infectious agent. We must continue to watch this virus and mitigate its risk of spilling over into the human population.”

 

Authors and funding

The study’s other authors are Ericka Kirkpatrick Roubidoux, Lauren Lazure, Brandi Livingston, Victoria Meliopoulos, Bridgett Sharp, Tyler Ripperger, Shelby Patrick, Dorothea Morris and Shaoyuan Tan, all of St. Jude.

 

The study was supported by grants from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (Contract No. 75N93021C00016, the National Institutes of Health (T32AI106700-08 and F32AI183804) and ALSAC, the fundraising and awareness organization of St. Jude.

 

St. Jude Media Relations Contacts

Michael Sheffield
Desk: (901) 595-0221
Cell: (901) 379-6072
michael.sheffield@stjude.org
media@stjude.org

 

St. Jude Children's Research Hospital

St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital is leading the way the world understands, treats, and cures childhood catastrophic diseases. From cancer to life-threatening blood disorders, neurological conditions, and infectious diseases, St. Jude is dedicated to advancing cures and means of prevention through groundbreaking research and compassionate care. Through global collaborations and innovative science, St. Jude is working to ensure that every child, everywhere, has the best chance at a healthy future.  To learn more, visit stjude.org, read St. Jude Progress, a digital magazine, and follow St. Jude on social media at @stjuderesearch.

---

Journal

Science Advances

Method of Research

Experimental study

Subject of Research

Cells

Article Title

Repeated Oral Exposure to H5N1 Influenza Virus in Pasteurized Milk Does Not Cause Adverse Responses to Subsequent Influenza Infection

Article Publication Date

26-Sep-2025

 

Key adaptation helps nomadic people survive in extreme desert

Cornell University

Facebook

XMessageWhatsAppEmail

ITHACA, N.Y. – Cornell University researchers have contributed to a multi-institutional study of how the nomadic Turkana people of northern Kenya – who have lived for thousands of years in extreme desert conditions – evolved to survive, showing humans’ resilience in even the harshest environments.

In the study, published in Science, a team of researchers from Kenya and the U.S., working with Turkana communities, identified eight regions of DNA in the genomes of the Turkana that have evolved through natural selection in the last 5,000 to 8,000 years. One gene in particular showed exceptionally strong evidence for recent adaptation: STC1, which helps the kidneys conserve water and also may protect from waste products in a diet, like the Turkana’s, that is rich in red meat.

Cornell researchers helped to identify when and how the adaptive variant of STC1 emerged and to link it to changes in the environment, finding that the Turkana’s ability to thrive with less water emerged around 5,000 to 8,000 years ago, at the same time Northern Kenya went through a period of aridification.

Four years ago, lead researchers from the project – from the University of California, Berkeley; Vanderbilt University; the Nairobi-based Turkana Health and Genomics Project (THGP) and others – had already sequenced 367 whole genomes and identified the STC1 gene. But they wanted to better understand how the adaptive variant of this gene evolved.

Philipp Messer, associate professor of computational biology, and then-graduate student Ian Caldas found that the STC1 adaptation had likely already been present in the population at a low frequency long before it began to increase between 5,000 to 8,000 years ago. In another population in East Africa, the Daasanach, researchers found that the adaptation arose independently at around the same time.

“This made a lot of sense because that’s when a lot of aridification happened in the region,” Messer said. “We were also able to measure how strong selection was at this locus, and it’s very strong.”

They calculated that the selection coefficient is around 5%, which means Turkana with the adaptive variant of the gene, on average, had 5% more offspring than those without it. “It might seem like a small number, but if you have enough individuals, then it becomes statistically significant, and that adaptation is very likely to spread through the population,” Messer said. “Five percent is in line with the strongest other examples of recent adaption in humans that we know of.”

The study provides a uniquely robust link between the environment, genetic adaptation and the human phenotype and experience of Turkana: Over the course of years of blood and urine samples, the research team found that 90% of participants were technically dehydrated but otherwise healthy. Turkana get an estimated 70 to 80% of their nutrition from animal products such as milk, blood and meat, but gout, which can be caused by a buildup of waste products related to the body’s processing of red meat, is rare in the community.

The research underlines humans’ ability to survive and adapt to harsh environments – which is particularly germane given the impending impacts of climate change, the authors write. However, as more in their population transition to urban environments, their genetic makeup may turn from beneficial to detrimental, a phenomenon called evolutionary mismatch. The broader research team found that Turkana living in cities are more prone to chronic diseases such as hypertension and obesity.

The team is currently working on a podcast, in the native language, to reach Turkana communities and pass on the knowledge gleaned from the study.

Funding for the study came from Princeton, the John Templeton Foundation and the National Institutes of Health.

For additional information, read this Cornell Chronicle story.

-30-

---

Journal

Science

DOI

10.1126/science.adv2467 

Article Title

Adaptations to water stress and pastoralism in the Turkana of northwest Kenya

Article Publication Date

18-Sep-2025

Microsoft reduces Israel’s access to cloud and AI products over reports of mass surveillance in Gaza

ITS NEVER TOO LATE TO; DO NO EVIL

By The Associated Press
Published: September 26, 2025

The logo of Microsoft is seen outside its French headquarters in Issy-les-Moulineaux, outside Paris, on May 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus, File)

WASHINGTON — Microsoft said Thursday it had disabled services to a unit within the Israeli military after a company review had determined its artificial intelligence and cloud computing products were being used to help carry out mass surveillance of Palestinians.

The action comes after The Associated Press and The Guardian published reports earlier this year revealing how the Israeli Ministry of Defense had been using Microsoft’s Azure platform to aid in the war in Gaza and occupation of the West Bank. Brad Smith, Microsoft’s vice chair and president, wrote in a blog post that the company was taking steps to enforce compliance with its terms of service.

An AP investigation in February showed that the Israeli military’s use of Microsoft products skyrocketed after a deadly surprise attack by Hamas militants on Oct. 7, 2023. The AP’s report cited internal Microsoft data showing the Israelis were using gigabytes of cloud storage and massive amounts of AI-enabled language translation services.

The AP also reported that Israel’s military used Microsoft Azure to compile information gathered through mass surveillance, which it transcribes and translates, including phone calls and text messages. That intelligence is then cross-checked with Israel’s in-house AI systems for targeting airstrikes.

AP reported that internal Microsoft data showed multiple Azure subscriptions were tied to Unit 8200, an elite cyber warfare unit within the Israeli Army responsible for clandestine operations, collecting signal intelligence and surveillance.


Following AP’s report, Microsoft acknowledged in May that it had sold advanced AI and cloud computing services to the Israeli military during the Gaza war and aided in efforts to locate and rescue Israeli hostages. But the company said an internal review found “no evidence” its Azure platform was used to target or harm people.

The Guardian, working in partnership with the Israeli-Palestinian publication +972 Magazine and the Hebrew-language outlet Local Call, reported in August that the commander of Unit 8200 had met directly with Microsoft chairman and CEO Satya Nadella in 2021. The Israeli unit then used Microsoft products to aid in the development of an AI-powered mass surveillance system that was sweeping up, translating and analyzing millions of telephone calls per day made by Palestinian civilians. The report also revealed that data from the Israeli surveillance system was being stored at Microsoft cloud data centers in Europe.

Following The Guardian’s report, Microsoft commissioned a second review, this time by an outside law firm. While that review is still ongoing, Smith said Thursday the probe had uncovered evidence that its products were being used in violation of its terms of service. However, Smith did not name the specific Israeli unit losing access to Microsoft services.

Microsoft declined to answer detailed questions from the AP on Thursday, including whether Unit 8200 was involved. The company would also not answer how it would ensure the Israeli military wouldn’t simply shift its mass surveillance operations to any of the hundreds of other Azure subscriptions under its control.

An Israeli security official told the AP Microsoft’s move would produce “no damage to the operational capabilities” of the Israel Defense Forces. The official spoke on condition of anonymity, consistent with military protocol in Israel.

Hossam Nasr, one of more than a dozen Microsoft employees fired or arrested after protests over the company’s involvement in the war in Gaza, called Thursday’s announcement a “significant and unprecedented win.” But, he said, it was not enough.

“Microsoft has only disabled a small subset of services to only one unit in the Israeli military,” said Nasr, an organizer with the group No Azure for Apartheid. “The vast majority of Microsoft’s contract with the Israeli military remains intact.”

___

The Associated Press receives financial assistance from the Omidyar Network to support coverage of artificial intelligence and its impact on society. AP is solely responsible for all content.

Mednick reported from Jerusalem and Burke from San Francisco.

Michael Biesecker, Sam Mednick And Garance Burke, The Associated Press

More AI grocery deliveries as Loblaws strikes deal for 50 self-driving trucks in Ontario

By Anam Khan
September 25, 2025 

Gautam Narang, CEO and co-founder of Gatik, joins BNN Bloomberg to discuss Loblaws' expanded partnership with Gatik for North America's largest rollout of autonomous trucks.

More self driving trucks will be carrying freight for Loblaws in the Greater Toronto Area by the end of this year.

The grocery chain signed a five year deal with U.S. based startup, Gatik to put 50 autonomous trucks on the road tasked with delivering time sensitive groceries and household items to 300 Loblaw stores.

“The goal is to remove reliance on drivers and get more trucks on the road,” Gautam Narang, Gatik’s CEO and co-founder told BNN Bloomberg.ca

“Being able to go from driver in, to driver out is the biggest contributor for having profitable margins and very healthy margins,” said Narang, who already works with large U.S. brands like Walmart and Kroger.

He calls this agreement with Loblaws, “the largest rollout of autonomous trucks in North America”.


“We are focusing on scaling the fleet in Canada, and doubling down on our commitment towards Canada,” said Narang.

Loblaw’s reliance on autonomous cars is not new. It paired with Gatik to place five trucks on the road in the Greater Toronto Area in 2020.

Today, it has 10 trucks. Narang says with the new deal, the company plans to put 20 trucks on the road by the end of this year, and another 30 by the end of next year.

“We’re starting out with over five years today, but Loblaws has also joined Gatik as a strategic investor,” said Narang. “The vision (is) that we have to roll out our solution, our technology across their supply chain is highly aligned,” said Narang.

Safety driver on board

The autonomous trucks will hit the road with a safety driver on board for the first few months after deployment.

Narang said the responsibility of the driver is to oversee the autonomous driving system. After the company’s AI system understands the network and the routes, and the team completes its safety validation, it will remove the safety driver on board.

“Proud to say that we have never had any incident or any accident while the system was in autonomous mode on public roads,” said Narang.

He said the company focuses its autonomous trucking technology within a nearly 500 kilometre range. It can handle complex driving scenarios like on and off ramps, intersections and pedestrian navigation. It also has cameras and radars designed for day and night operations.

Right now, it can handle Ontario’s fair weather conditions, but isn’t ready for extreme weather just yet.

“We do light rain,” said Narang. ”Light snow is fine. Heavy downpour. Heavy snow is something that is further down the roadmap in terms of the time of operation,” said Narang.

Ontario pushing for more autonomous trucks

Loblaws says Gatik worked closely with Ontario’s Ministry of Transportation to help shape the development of the Automated Commercial Motor Vehicle (ACMV) Pilot Program which launched On Aug. 1,according to a news release.

The province says the ten year pilot program runs until Aug 1. 2035, and will allow participants to test their automated technology on provincial roads in order to improve road safety and support the trucking sector.


Anam Khan
Journalist, BNNBloomberg.ca

Live updates as Canada Post goes back on strike

By CTVNews.ca Staff
September 26, 2025 

CUPW announces nationwide strike in retaliation of Ottawa’s ‘attack’ on workers


Canada Post is back in the throes of a national strike, and the corporation says mail and parcels are no longer being processed or delivered.

Workers walked off the job Thursday just hours after Ottawa announced door-to-door mail delivery will end for nearly all Canadian households within the next decade, favouring community mailboxes.

Canada Post says Canadians should expect delays during the work stoppage. Delivery of socio-economic cheques and live animals will continue during the strike.

Here are the latest updates:

11:32 a.m. EDT: Need a passport?

The federal government is encouraging people applying for passports to use couriers other than Canada Post if they are applying for their travel document by mail.
Here’s what the move means for items you may have been expecting

They say applicants can also visit a Service Canada Centre or passport office to begin the process.

The Canadian Press

Canada Post workers picket outside a distribution centre as part of a strike action in Montreal on Friday, Sept. 26, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Christinne Muschi

11 a.m. EDT: ‘They’re trying to shoot their own foot’

Union negotiator Jim Gallant says the federal government’s plan could send Canada Post’s revenue south of the border.

He told CTV News Channel on Thursday that Ottawa’s plan is “going to shove people to other carriers,” and “maybe the government wants to give all this work to FedEx and UPS so the profits can go to the States.”

Luca Caruso-Moro, CTVNews.ca journalist.

10:15 a.m. EDT: Dozens of readers react

CTVNews.ca heard from dozens of readers reacting to the Canada Post announcement. Some welcomed the changes, saying they were long overdue, don’t go far enough and that the Crown corporation was no longer relevant. Meanwhile, other readers lamented the changes, calling them “another attack on services to our vulnerable seniors” or those with mobility issues.


Mary Nersessian, CTVNews.ca digital news director.

9 a.m. EDT: Impact will be ‘massive,’ CFIB says

“As expected, Canada Post workers are back on an immediate, nation-wide strike. The impact on small business will be massive,” reads a press release from the Canadian Association of Independent Business responding to the strike.

“Doing this in the lead-up to the critical holiday retail shipping season is especially troubling.”

Minister of Government Transformation, Public Works and Procurement Joel Lightbound speaks during a press conference at the National Press Theatre in Ottawa, on Thursday, Sept. 25, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Spencer Colby

The CFIB reiterated its support for the government’s overhaul of Canada Post operations, calling the strikes a “direct result” of inaction on the federal level and blaming former prime minister Justin Trudeau’s government.

The group also said last year’s Canada Post strike cost small firms over $1 billion.

Luca Caruso-Moro, CTVNews.ca journalist.

8:15 a.m. EDT: Jobs minister demands negotiation

Jobs Minister Patty Hajdu wrote that it’s up to the union and the Crown corporation to find the balance between the future of postal service and respect for employees.

“Federal mediators remain available to support the bargaining process, and I encourage both parties to continue working toward a fair resolution,” she wrote in a statement her office provided in response to the union’s notice.

The Canadian Press

Minister of Jobs and Families and Minister responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Northern Ontario Patty Hajdu speaks to reporters ahead of a cabinet meeting on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, on Thursday, Sept. 25, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Spencer Colby (Spencer Colby/The Canadian Press)

8 a.m. EDT: Canada Post cuts were ‘inevitable’

Cuts to Canada Post services were “inevitable,” says one business expert amid news that the carrier will end door-to-door delivery, nationwide.

“The post office has been in long-term decline since 2006, when letters peaked in Canada,” Carleton University Business Prof. Ian Lee told CTV Your Morning in an interview Friday. “Ever since, it’s been going downhill like a ski slope.”

Lee notes that the declining volume of letter mail has come in spite of a growing population, but he also says the reason why isn’t obscure.

Ian Lee from Carleton University says Canada Post will need to lay off thousands of workers to cut back on costs as letter mail continues to decline.

“It’s called a smartphone,” Lee said. “Young people, and most people, don’t write letters. You don’t write your mother or father a letter; you send them a text, you send them an email.”

But that falling demand hasn’t been met with downsized costs, he notes, nor has there been significant growth in parcel deliveries, even with the rise of online shopping.

“They’re hemorrhaging cash.”

Charlie Buckley, CTVNews.ca journalist. Read the full story here.
Thursday: CUPW says announcement ‘an outrage’

In a statement posted to its website entitled “Public Post Office Under Attack,” the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) called the government’s announcement an “outrage.”

CUPW National Director, Metro-Montreal region Yannick Scott (left) and National Grievance officer Carl Girouard(right) look on as National President Jan Simpson speaks during a news conference in Ottawa, Friday, Sept. 12, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld

The union said the changes, which would see some postal offices close, move millions of addresses to community mailboxes, and extending expected delivery time to up to seven days, could result in job losses.

Luca Caruso-Moro, CTVNews.ca journalist.

Five things to know about Canada Post’s future after Ottawa announces reforms

By The Canadian Press
September 26, 2025 

An overhaul to Canada Post's operations is on the way after the federal government delivered a suite of changes Thursday. A Canada Post vehicle sits outside a facility in Ottawa, Friday, Sept. 12, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld

Mail service is halted at Canada Post after unionized workers announced Thursday they are on a countrywide strike — the latest eruption in a labour dispute that has been going on for nearly a year.

The move came just hours after the federal government promised a suite of changes to overhaul the Crown corporation’s operations in response to significant financial losses.

Here’s what you need to know about the factors affecting the Crown corporation’s future.

What is Canada Post’s financial situation?

The mail carrier is hemorrhaging money.

In the second quarter of this year, Canada Post recorded a loss before tax of $407 million — the Crown corporation’s largest loss before tax in a single quarter. Canada Post reported a profit of $46 million in the same period a year earlier.

Canada Post lost $448 million before tax in the first half of 2025, following a loss before tax of $30 million in the first half of 2024.

Public Works and Procurement Minister Joël Lightbound said Thursday the corporation is losing about $10 million per day, despite the federal government providing a $1-billion injection earlier this year to keep it operational.

“Canada Post is now facing an existential crisis. Since 2018, the corporation has accumulated more than $5 billion in losses,” he said in a media statement.

“In 2024 alone, it lost over $1 billion, and in 2025 it is already on track to lose close to $1.5 billion.”

What is going to change?

The federal government is lifting a moratorium on community mailbox conversions, authorizing the mail carrier to convert the remaining four million addresses that still receive door-to-door delivery.

Ottawa says that by bringing them in line with the three-quarters of Canadians who already receive mail through community, apartment or rural mailboxes, it will save nearly $400 million annually.

The government announced it will also end a moratorium on closing rural post offices that has been in place since 1994, covering close to 4,000 locations. It said closing some of those post offices in regions that are no longer rural will reduce duplication in overserved areas.

To reflect a decline in delivery volumes — Ottawa said the average household now receives just two letters per week — non-urgent mail will be cleared to move by ground instead of air, saving Canada Post more than $20 million per year.

Ottawa said Canada Post’s delivery standards are woefully outdated, with operations designed for the higher volumes of years ago. Canada Post is delivering two billion letters annually, down from 5.5 billion two decades ago.

What’s the timeline?

Canada Post must come up with a plan within 45 days that outlines how it will implement these changes, the minister said.

As for making the switch from door-to-door delivery to community mailboxes, Lightbound said the full process will likely take close to a decade, though most areas will see changes much sooner.

“We’re talking about four million addresses,” he told a press conference.

“It’ll happen over the course of the next nine years, the bulk of which will be in the next three or four years.”

Wasn’t there already a report that recommended changes?

After a month-long postal workers’ strike during the critical holiday season last year, the labour minister launched an inquiry into the labour dispute that also looked at Canada Post’s financial status and viability.

The report from inquiry head William Kaplan concluded that Canada Post was essentially bankrupt. The board’s final report, tabled in May, showed Kaplan recommended an end to daily door-to-door mail delivery and an expansion of community mailboxes, among other measures to keep the postal service in business.

Some of the Kaplan report’s recommended changes would fall under the bargaining process and require agreement between the company and the union.

Other measures, however, are within the government’s purview and are among the changes Lightbound announced on Thursday.

What’s the status of the labour dispute?

The Canadian Union of Postal Workers announced a countrywide strike Thursday evening in response to what Lightbound announced. The union has not said what that strike will entail but one union negotiator told CBC News that different units are organically organizing picket lines.

A Canada Post spokesperson said in a media statement that no new mail will be accepted during the labour disruption.

Canada Post and the union representing 55,000 postal workers have been in contract talks for almost two years over issues like wages and part-time workers.

A strike and lockout lasted more than a month in November and December 2024. It ended only after then-labour minister Steven MacKinnon declared an impasse in the talks and asked the Canada Industrial Relations Board to order an end to the work stoppage.

In early August, union members rejected what Canada Post said was its final offer after the government ordered the contract to a vote. The union put forward its latest counter-proposal on Aug. 20, which Canada Post said would add significant new costs and restrictions at a challenging time for the postal service. The Crown corporation countered with a new offer earlier this month.

The union said in a press release on Thursday it was not informed about the government’s announcement ahead of time. But Lightbound said he met with union representatives last week and some of the issues they raised were reflected in the new government measures — namely, a review of management structure at Canada Post and the process for raising prices on stamps.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 25, 2025.

 SCI-FI-TEK 70YRS IN THE MAKING

First Light Fusion presents novel approach to fusion

Monday, 22 September 2025

British inertial fusion energy developer First Light Fusion has presented the first commercially viable, reactor-compatible path to 'high gain' fusion, which it says would drastically reduce the cost of what the company says is a limitless clean energy source.
 

(Image: First Light Fusion)

In its white paper published today, First Light Fusion (FLF) outlines a novel and scientifically grounded approach to fusion energy called FLARE – Fusion via Low-power Assembly and Rapid Excitation. While the conventional inertial fusion energy (IFE) approach is to compress and heat the fuel at the same time to achieve ignition, FLARE splits this process into two: first compressing the fuel in a controlled and highly efficient manner and then using a separate process to ignite the compressed fuel, generating a massive surplus of energy, a concept known as 'fast ignition'.

FLARE leverages over 14 years of First Light's inertial fusion experience and its unique controlled-amplification technology, creating a system capable of reaching the high gain levels needed for cost competitive energy production. This new approach "would underpin the design for commercial reactors that can be based on much lower power systems that already exist today, opening up an opportunity for partners to build those systems, using FLF's technology as the fuel, and to roll it out worldwide," according to the company.

Gain - the ratio of energy output to energy input in a fusion reaction – is the critical metric determining commercial viability. The current record gain level stands at 4, achieved at the US Department of Energy's National Ignition Facility (NIF) in May of this year.

"The FLARE concept, as detailed in today's white paper, could produce an energy gain of up to 1000. FLF's economic modelling suggests that a gain of at least 200 is needed for fusion energy to be commercially competitive, while a gain of 1000 would enable very low-cost power," the company said.

According to FLF, an experimental gain scale facility is expected to cost one-twentieth that of NIF and could be built using existing, proven technologies. Due to the lower energy and power requirements provided by the FLARE technology, future commercial power plants would have significantly lower capital costs than other plausible IFE schemes, with lower complexity and core components such as the energy delivery system costing one-tenth of the capital cost of previous fast ignition schemes.

"By building on existing technology, First Light's approach takes the brakes off inertial fusion deployment as it has the potential to leverage existing supply chains, significantly reduce capital expenditure, speed up planning approvals and reduce regulatory hurdles in the deployment of commercial fusion plants," it said.

"This is a pivotal moment not just for First Light, but for the future of energy," said First Light Fusion CEO Mark Thomas. "With the FLARE approach, we've laid out the world's first commercially viable, reactor-compatible pathway to high gain inertial fusion - and it's grounded in real science, proven technologies, and practical engineering.

"A pathway to a gain of 1000 puts us well beyond the threshold where fusion becomes economically transformative. Through our approach, we're opening the door to a new industrial sector - and we want to bring others with us."

First Light Fusion was founded by Yiannis Ventikos of the Mechanical Engineering Department at University College, London, and Nicholas Hawker, formerly an engineering lecturer at Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford. The company was spun out from the University of Oxford in July 2011, with seed capital from IP Group plc, Parkwalk Advisors Ltd and private investors. Invesco and OSI provided follow-on capital.

In February, Oxfordshire-based First Light Fusion announced it will focus on commercial partnerships with other fusion companies who want to use its amplifier technology, as well as with non-fusion applications such as NASA seeking to replicate potential high-velocity impacts in space. By dropping its plans for a fusion power plant, and instead targeting commercial partnerships with others, it aims to "capitalise on the huge inertial fusion energy market opportunities enabling earlier revenues and lowering the long-term funding requirement".