Premier: Alberta Won't Slow Oilsands Growth, Claims GHG Cuts By Province, Later Retracts

[hatrack]

EDMONTON (CP) - Premier Ed Stelmach warned Monday of "dire economic consequences" if Alberta were ever forced to slow oilsands development to curb emissions that cause global warming. Stelmach called reporters to his office to respond to what he said were recent comments by Ontario MP Mark Holland, the Liberal natural resources critic.

Holland was asked on a radio talk show if the Liberals would nationalize the oilsands if Alberta refused to go along with federal efforts to curb developments that increase emissions. He responded by saying that a Liberal government would try to "work with (Alberta) collaboratively," but added "there will be consequences" if the province refused.

Stelmach described the comments as "reprehensible" and insisted the Liberals were threatening to grab control of the oilsands. "When we hear talk of perhaps nationalizing the oilsands - a moratorium on oilsands development will bring about dire economic consequences right across the country."

EDIT

Stelmach also threw out some figures Monday suggesting Alberta has taken a leading role in reducing greenhouse gas emissions. "Alberta is the only province on record that has actually reduced CO2 emissions by 16 per cent," he said. But the premier later conceded he was talking about so-called emissions intensity, which is a measurement against the growth in industrial production rather than a total measurement of what's coming out of the smoke stack. If a company increases emissions at a slower rate than it increases production, then emissions intensity is reduced even though absolute emissions have increased. An Alberta Environment official later confirmed that total emissions have increased by 40 per cent since 1990, but emissions intensity is down by 16 per cent over the same period.

EDIT

http://www.brandonsun.com/story.php?story_id=42006

So, forty = negative sixteen. Interesting arithmetic there, Ed.

[Lautremont]

1. I knew this Ed guy was a tool.

That's what "simple man of the people" seems to be code for these days.

[hatrack]

2. Was this the guy who went off on some people in a homeless shelter?

I remember a Canadian politician out west doing this fairly recently, but couldn't remember if this was the guy.

[Lautremont]

3. That was Ralph Klein, a true piece of work and another man of the people.

This guy is new and supposed to be more moderate and less likely to get drunk and tell guys in a homeless shelter that they were bums and should get jobs.

If Ralph was like a loud fart in church, this guy is an SBD.

[hatrack]

4. Yeah, THAT'S who I was thinking of.

Also, sort of a naive oversimplified question from someone south of the border:

Is Alberta basically the Texas of Canada?

[Lautremont]

5. It pretty much is.

A theory on that is that a whole bunch of homesteaders, making their way West across the States, found it easier to make a right turn and head North into Alberta rather than cross the Rockies. That's how we ended up with our own small version of America, or, specifically, Texas. The oil riches couldn't have hurt the Texification process either, I guess.

[Javaman]

6. More screaming into the empty room...

yes he is a tool. Yes, he stands to make loads of money from the oil sands. No he doesn't give a flying fuck about the average Canadian.

At the end of the day, the ratios vary, but the total amount of out put from the oil sands will basically equal the amount of energy it needs to extract it. Some have even calculated that there will be a default on the energy required to extract it at 4 barrels of oil expended for every 1 extracted.

So why on earth would one think that the oil companies would piss away such money on a losing proposition? Because they are banking on long term returns. Sadly, unless they come up with some kind of new fangled super cheap solution to extract the oil, it will only get worse, because right now they are getting at the easy stuff. Wait till it become harder to extract deeper stuff later on. Or just run out of water. They never like to talk about that part.

I sometimes get the image of several passengers fighting over the same life preserver on the Titanic. Only one can use it but everyone wants to be that one.

In the end, there will be less people by our own stupid design.