XPost: can.politics, ab.politics, edm.general
XPost: calgary.general
From: doctor@doctor.nl2k.ab.ca
In article ,
Barry Bruyea wrote:
>On Fri, 12 Dec 2014 16:22:42 +0000 (UTC), The Doctor
> wrote:
>
>>On 2014-12-12, Barry Bruyea wrote:
>>> On Thu, 11 Dec 2014 21:20:29 +0000 (UTC), doctor@doctor.nl2k.ab.ca
>>> (The Doctor) wrote:
>>>
>>>>In article <3apj8apdf6k6ntd84763n4r0ohill4ss8b@4ax.com>,
>>>>Barry Bruyea wrote:
>>>>>On Thu, 11 Dec 2014 13:49:42 +0000 (UTC), doctor@doctor.nl2k.ab.ca
>>>>>(The Doctor) wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>>>In article ,
>>>>>>Barry Bruyea wrote:
>>>>>>>On Wed, 10 Dec 2014 23:46:11 +0000 (UTC), doctor@doctor.nl2k.ab.ca
>>>>>>>(The Doctor) wrote:
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>In article ,
>>>>>>>>Barry Bruyea wrote:
>>>>>>>>>On Wed, 10 Dec 2014 17:26:01 +0000 (UTC), doctor@doctor.nl2k.ab.ca
>>>>>>>>>(The Doctor) wrote:
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>In article ,
>>>>>>>>>>Barry Bruyea wrote:
>>>>>>>>>>>On Wed, 10 Dec 2014 13:41:38 +0000 (UTC), doctor@doctor.nl2k.ab.ca
>>>>>>>>>>>(The Doctor) wrote:
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>>In article ,
>>>>>>>>>>>>=?UTF-8?B?IijgsqBf4LKgKSAi?= wrote:
>>>>>>>>>>>>>December 9, 2014 - Macleans
>>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>>>Harper and the oil patch: Honesty is the only policy
>>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>>>The prime minister explains crazy policy to us
>>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>>>Prime Minister Stephen Harper, today in the House of Commons:
>>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>>> ???Frankly, Mr. Speaker, under the current circumstances of
the oil and gas
>>>>>>>>>>>>>sector, it would be crazy, it would be crazy economic policy to
do unilateral
>>>>>>>>>>>>>penalties on that sector. We???re clearly not going to do
that,??? Harper told the
>>>>>>>>>>>>>House as Conservative MPs roared their approval.
>>>>>>>>>>>>> ???In fact, nobody in the world is regulating their oil and
gas sector. I???d
>>>>>>>>>>>>>be delighted if they did. Canada will be there with them.???
>>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>>>Jim Prentice, then federal minister of the environment, not quite
five years ago:
>>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>>> ???For those of you who doubt that the government of Canada
lacks either the
>>>>>>>>>>>>>willingness or the authority to protect our national interests as
a ???clean
>>>>>>>>>>>>>energy superpower,??? think again,??? he warned darkly. ???We do
and we will. And, in
>>>>>>>>>>>>>our efforts, we will expect and we will secure the co-operation
of those
>>>>>>>>>>>>>private interests which are developing the oil sands. Consider it
a
>>>>>>>>>>>>>responsibility that accompanies the right to develop these
valuable Canadian
>>>>>>>>>>>>>resources.???
>>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>>>Back then, it was possible to believe the federal government
would impose
>>>>>>>>>>>>>regulations on the oil and gas industries. The government
certainly said it
>>>>>>>>>>>>>would, often enough. (Peter Kent in February, 2013: ???We are now
well into, and
>>>>>>>>>>>>>very close to finalizing, regulations for the oil and gas
sector.???) But, as
>>>>>>>>>>>>>Chris Turner reminds us in his book The War on Science, Prentice
quit as
>>>>>>>>>>>>>environment minister in November 2010, and the Harper
government???s periodic
>>>>>>>>>>>>>attempts to demonstrate environmental virtue, even at some
hypothetical cost to
>>>>>>>>>>>>>the resource sector, pretty much came to an end.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>>>Of course, it can be hard to tell where the notion of oil and gas
regulations
>>>>>>>>>>>>>ended. Prentice himself has been sounding much like Harper since
he became
>>>>>>>>>>>>>premier of Alberta:
>>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>>> ???Environmental performance is important, but so, too, is
our industrial
>>>>>>>>>>>>>competitiveness . . . I think this low-price environment is a
reminder . . .
>>>>>>>>>>>>>that we have to be careful laying on costs, including regulatory
costs, on our
>>>>>>>>>>>>>industry, because we need to remain competitive.???
>>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>>>But is even that new? From my 2010 article, linked above:
>>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>>> ???We will only adopt a cap-and-trade regime if the United
States signals
>>>>>>>>>>>>>that it wants to do the same. Our position on harmonization
applies equally to
>>>>>>>>>>>>>regulation. Canada can go down either road???cap and trade or
regulation???but we
>>>>>>>>>>>>>will go down neither road alone.???
>>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>>>So the paper trail on the government???s oil and gas policy is a
bit of a mess.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>The feds will only impose regulations in concert with the
Americans? Well,
>>>>>>>>>>>>>there are two problems with that story. First, as Bruce Cheadle
points out:
>>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>>> An Environment Canada briefing memo revealed last month by
the Globe and
>>>>>>>>>>>>>Mail shows that the United States, in fact, placed what were
called
>>>>>>>>>>>>>???significant??? limits on its oil and gas sector in 2012.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>>> ???For oil and gas, recent air pollution regulations are
expected to result
>>>>>>>>>>>>>in significant greenhouse-gas reduction co-benefits, comparable
to the
>>>>>>>>>>>>>reductions that would result from the approach being developed
for this sector
>>>>>>>>>>>>>in Canada,??? states the June 2013 memo obtained by Greenpeace
under an Access to
>>>>>>>>>>>>>Information request.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>>>Second, there is simply no record of a concerted Canadian effort
to work with
>>>>>>>>>>>>>the Americans on joint regulations. Foreign Affairs Minister John
Baird
>>>>>>>>>>>>>mentions the Keystone pipeline to U.S. Secretary of State John
Kerry in every
>>>>>>>>>>>>>meeting and at every phone call. There is literally no record of
any public
>>>>>>>>>>>>>proposal from Harper to U.S. President Barack Obama to work on
the joint
>>>>>>>>>>>>>regulations that are now, the PM says, the necessary condition of
any Canadian
>>>>>>>>>>>>>regulations.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>>>In this light, I note with genuine surprise that the
???U.S.-Canada clean energy
>>>>>>>>>>>>>dialogue??? that was created when Obama visited Ottawa in 2009 is
actually still
>>>>>>>>>>>>>a thing. I also note with no surprise at all that the latest
joint report,
>>>>>>>>>>>>>barely a month old, does not mention joint regulations on oil and
gas
>>>>>>>>>>>>>industries anywhere in its 10 pages.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>
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