Daily Commercial News
On this episode of the Construction Record podcast, digital media editor Warren Frey speaks with ConstructConnect chief economist Alex Carrick and senior economist Michael Guckes about American infrastructure legislation and large-scale shifts in economics and technology.
Carrick pointed to a real shift away from fossil fuels and said the United States through the Inflation Reduction Act has not only addressed infrastructure needs but also made a major commitment to dealing with climate change. The concurrent shift towards electricity will mean an increased need for lithium and other materials which will be mined by both Canada and the United States.
Guckes also pointed at the need for a shift in labour in order to change energy consumption and sustainability, and how the biggest resource challenge will be having to find the large number of workers needed to build infrastructure and mine for resources. He added the challenge of “death by a thousand cuts” if further legislation slows down the process.
You can listen to The Construction Record and TCR Express on the Daily Commercial News and Journal of Commerce websites as well as on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music’s podcast, and you can listen to the previous podcast featuring BCCA president Chris Atchison talking about B.C. apprenticeships here. Thanks for listening and we’ll see you next week.