Thoughts on BC Politics and More

Premier David Eby used British Columbia's latest call for more power sources to invite American clean energy producers to the province after U.S. President Donald Trump criticized "ugly" windmills in Scotland. Trump called the wind turbines near his Turnberry golf resort in Scotland "ugly monsters," prompting Eby to issue the call to producers in the United States to come to BC, where there's support for clean energy. In the latest call to power, BC Hydro is looking for renewable sources to generate almost as much energy as the new Site C dam in northeastern B.C. BC Hydro's request for proposals is looking for up to 5,000 gigawatt hours of electricity from large clean or renewable projects in partnership with First Nations and independent power producers ... CLICK HERE for the full story 

Retraining Alberta’s oil and gas workers for the solar industry costs far less than you think. The results of our new study clearly show that a rapid transition to sustainable energy production is feasible, as costs of retraining oil and gas workers are far from prohibitive ... ... many factors — including increasing electrification, reduction in renewable energy costs and climate policy — are aligning to annihilate Alberta’s traditional fossil fuel-focused energy industry. This raises a real concern for oil and gas workers’ jobs in the near future ... CLICK HERE for the full story

There will be no special treatment for Alberta when it comes to Canada’s incoming regulations to make electricity cleaner, Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault said Friday. The comments are the latest salvo in the seemingly never-ending battle between Alberta and Ottawa over climate policy. This one relates to new clean electricity regulations that Guilbeault published in draft form in August. The regulations will require all electricity to be from either renewable sources, like wind or hydro, or equipped with carbon-capture technology by 2035. Both Alberta and Saskatchewan have said that that is simply not doable, and they are instead targeting 2050 as the date for full emissions-free electricity. The two provinces still rely heavily on fossil fuels — natural gas for Alberta and coal and gas for Saskatchewan — to make power, and they say they can’t eliminate those or build enough carbon capture without hurting reliability or costing their residents a fortune ... CLICK HERE for the ...

As Alberta Premier Danielle Smith pushes back against the federal government’s plans to decarbonize the power grid, Albertans lean towards supporting the recently implemented moratorium on large-scale solar and wind projects but remain concerned about potential ripple effects on jobs and power prices. New data from the non-profit Angus Reid Institute finds approaching half of Albertans (47%) feel the moratorium on renewable energy development to be a good idea. However, there are many – two-in-five (40%) – who disagree. The green energy development pause is supported by a majority (55%) outside of Edmonton and Calgary. Opinions are more divided inside the province’s two largest cities, though Calgarians are more inclined to say the moratorium is a good idea than not ... CLICK HERE for the full story

  On this Labour Day long weekend, who do you think is standing up for the best interests of Alberta workers?   Is it Premier Danielle Smith, who suggests that anyone who questions the future of oil and gas in the province is essentially betraying workers?   Or is it people like me, the president of Alberta’s largest worker advocacy group, who say workers in our province would be better served if we prepare ourselves for change instead of burying our heads in the sand?     This became a public question last week when Premier Smith decided to release a letter that I had written to her, along with her four-page reply ...     CLICK HERE for the full story

Report says 118 projects affected and 24,000 jobs at risk.   An estimated 24,000 full-time jobs and $33 billion in investments are at risk because of the Alberta government’s seven-month moratorium on renewable energy development, the Pembina Institute said this morning.    Courtney Smith, spokesperson for the Calgary-based clean energy think tank, said Pembina researchers reviewed the Alberta Electric System Operator’s list of electricity generation projects in development in relation to their approval status from the Alberta Utility Commission to determine how many projects are impacted by Danielle Smith government’s freeze on renewable energy development.   “Public data shows that 118 projects are currently in development and are either waiting for permitting approval or could submit an approval application within the next few months,” the fact sheet by Jason Wang and Will Noel released this morning said. “These projects represent at least $33 billion of...

  B.C. Premier David Eby recently rejected the Canadian Energy Regulator's findings indicating that nuclear power would be a necessary component of Canada’s climate change response. His proclamation that the province would remain nuclear-free and would not need the energy appeals to the no-nuke environmentalist vote.    However, with the recent heat waves , no one knows (or cares) that we are frying. Faced with an existential climate crisis, we are still debating and squaring off rather than executing well-thought-out policy. Our leaders, ever wedded to their roles, continue to appease popularist memes rather than evaluate the hard evidence and form policy of meaningful consequence.    The push for renewable energy sources and achieving net-zero via widescale electrification has seen the emergence of wind, solar and biofuels being presented as the great saviours of our time. But adoption of these technologies invokes dark consequences, replete with...

Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister says, "We will make that gas greener" Manitoba will have the cleanest fuel standards in Canada by increasing the ethanol and biodiesel content of its transportation fuels as it implements its Made-in-Manitoba Climate and Green Plan , Premier Brian Pallister announced yesterday during his dignitary address at the annual Manitoba Ag Days exhibition. “ We have the cleanest electricity in Canada already and soon we will have the cleanest fuels in Canada too ,” said Pallister.  “ Manitoba is leading the country once again .” The new clean fuel standards, which Pallister announced, will reduce Manitoba’s emissions by almost 400,000 tonnes cumulatively over the next five years.  This is the equivalent of taking 100,000 vehicles of the road. “ Agriculture always has been and always will be the key to Manitoba’s economic success ,” said Pallister.  “ As an important economic driver, our agriculture industry cannot take its foot off...

USED WITH PERMISSION of the authors -- originally published in the Calgary Herald Greta Thunberg, the teenaged Swedish environmentalist, has focused global attention on the climate change debate like never before. So, as she tours Alberta, what better time for a reality check than to look at a country that is furthest ahead in already adapting steps that Greta is advocating. That country is Germany. And it’s not a pretty sight. Germany embraced the rush to renewables before anyone else, and did so with gusto. The result? Germany’s largest news magazine Der Spiegel published an article on May 3   of this year entitled “ A Botched Job in Germany .” The cover showed broken wind turbines and half-finished transition towers against a dark silhouette of Berlin. Germany’s renewable energy transition, Energiewende, is a bust. After spending and committing a total of US $580 billion to it from 2000 to 2025. Why is that? Because it’s been a nightmar...

We rarely hear about the dark side of renewable energy sources like windmills. Governments and the media are determined to convince us that wind power is part of our future and refuse to admit that there may be problems that affect our ecosystems. Our hysterical approach to climate change as an emergency precludes realistic assessment of the risks that wind farms entail. Hysterical people toss common sense, critical assessment and reason out the window. That is why our government talks of climate change in terms of “ an emergency ”. They don’t want us poking around and finding the multitude of flaws in their policies and positions. Fortunately, we have enough cooler heads to question the government’s motives and their position is increasingly difficult to justify. We will see many governments crash and burn long before pred...