Jim Prentice talks pipelines with Canada’s U.S. envoy Gary Doer
Alberta Premier Jim Prentice and Canada’s ambassador to the United States talked about pipelines Friday as they met with Calgary's business community.
Gary Doer says there are a lot of positive signs in the coming year for approval of the Keystone XL pipeline. The TransCanada project would carry crude oil from northern Alberta to refineries in Oklahoma and the Gulf Coast in Texas.
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Doer says there would be better safety and lower costs to transport oil by pipeline.
"The refusal to approve the pipeline has meant that more oil is on rail, crude oil on rail, that will continue to be a problem in the United States. And it speaks to the issue of having an infrastructure like pipelines rather than crowding out grain, minerals, forest products in the U.S. transportation system."
He says it makes sense for the pipeline to go ahead.
"So I hope a journalist in a press conference with the president asks, 'Well, Mr. President, it's all coming down on rail — is that what you prefer or would you prefer pipelines,'" he said.
Doer sees a State Department report that says the pipeline would not add to emissions as one of the positive signs for approval of Keystone XL.
Climate change initiatives
Environmental impact has been a key focus in the public relation campaign for multiple pipeline projects waiting for approval.
TransCanada is also seeking regulatory approval for its proposed 4,600-kilometre Energy East oil pipeline, which is expected to cost $12 billion.
Enbridge's Northern Gateway pipeline out to the West Coast has been approved by the federal government, but it's subject to 209 conditions recommended by the National Energy Board and further talks with aboriginal communities.
Kinder Morgan is also trying to move forward its Trans Mountain pipeline project despite recent protests.
Kyle Fawcett, Alberta's minister of Environment and Sustainable Resource Development (ERSD), says the province will be rolling out a new climate change framework in the new year.
“No one disputes the need to reduce our carbon footprint. Alberta was an early leader with our mandatory emissions reduction targets, our innovation and technology fund and investment in carbon capture and storage," he said in a release.
"We will remain leaders as we work with our local, provincial, national and international partners to further address climate change.”
Regulations extended
The province announced Friday that four climate change regulations expected to expire Dec. 31 will now be extended until next June so they can be analyzed for options in the new framework:
- Specified Gas Emitters Regulation (SGER).
- Specified Gas Reporting Regulation (SGRR).
- Administrative Penalty Regulation.
- Climate Change and Emissions Management Fund Administration Regulation.
Fawcett said he also hopes to include new approaches and partnership opportunities that came from the recent United Nations climate change conference that he attended in Peru.
“It’s good that we have a clear timeline for improving Alberta’s climate regulations, and a premier who is talking about getting it right rather than rushing changes through just to meet the year-end deadline," said Chris Severson-Baker, managing director of the Pembina Institute, in a release.
He says Alberta's current system is flawed, and has not been effective in reducing carbon pollution.
“There are four main ways Alberta can turn its climate record around: phasing out coal-fired power ahead of schedule, investing in energy efficiency, increasing the amount of renewable energy generated in the province and raising the carbon price while applying it to a larger percentage of emissions," said Baker.
