Alberta says it will introduce a motion under the provincial Sovereignty Act that will work as a “constitutional shield” against Ottawa’s plans to reduce emissions in the oil and gas sector by one-third as of 2032.
The resolution asks the legislative assembly for approval to take actions to “protect Alberta” if Ottawa’s emissions cap becomes law, the provincial government
said on Nov. 26. These actions would include launching an immediate constitutional challenge, and adopting steps to ensure that no provincial entity participates in implementing the emissions cap and that all emissions data be reported and disclosed at the province’s discretion.
If the motion passes, the provincial government would begin to ready itself in case the federal regulations become law, officials said. Since the UCP government holds a majority, it is expected that the motion will pass.
“We’re fighting back with every weapon in our arsenal,” Premier Danielle Smith said at a Nov. 26
news conference. “The Alberta Sovereignty Within a United Canada Act was designed to protect our province from unconstitutional interference, and now we’re going to use it again.”
The province said it has exclusive jurisdiction over non-renewable natural resource development under the Constitution, and that the emissions cap could result in a reduction of at least 1 million barrels per day in Alberta’s oil and gas production.
On Nov. 4, Ottawa
released details of its oil and gas emissions cap, which is part of the federal plan to reach
net-zero emissions by 2050. The cap would require oil and gas companies to lower their greenhouse gas emissions by 35 percent below 2019 levels by 2032. The federal government says its regulations aren’t infringing in resource development, but rather involve a nation-wide environmental initiative.
Federal Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault
said all sectors, including oil and gas, should do their “fair share” to limit pollution, and that oil and gas companies that have made “record profits” in recent years should re-invest some of their earnings in pollution reduction projects.
“The science is clear—greenhouse gas pollution must be reduced significantly and urgently to avoid the most severe impacts of climate change,” Guilbeault said in the press release.
The Alberta government has opposed the cap since it was announced,
calling it an “intentional attack” by Ottawa on the province’s economy and the “financial well-being” of Canadians. The province
argues the policies act as a de facto cap on production.
“Capping our production does not cap the world’s energy demands, but it certainly does increase how much coal and other higher polluting energy is produced by less responsible jurisdictions around the world,” Alberta Minister of Environment Rebecca Schulz said on Nov. 26.
Leading up to the announcement of Ottawa’s plan to reduce emissions, the Alberta government
launched a $7 million ad campaign on Oct. 15 called “Scrap the Cap,” saying the measures will cost billions in lost wages.
In response to Alberta’s ad campaign, Guilbeault and federal Energy Minister Jonathan Wilkinson released a joint statement saying the federal policy will not limit outputs from the oil and gas sector.
“Our government’s commitment is to drive down pollution from the oil and gas sector, not to cut production,” said the statement. “Canada’s oil and gas industry recognizes this imperative: they know that reducing their pollution is necessary for their own long-term competitiveness.”
Alberta has legally challenged other Ottawa’s initiatives focused on the energy sector and pipelines, such as the Impact Assessment Act, which the Supreme Court of Canada last year
declared “largely unconstitutional.” The act brings in federal environmental evaluation requirements for major projects such as pipelines. Provinces including Alberta and Saskatchewan say the regulations bring unnecessary burden and costs for projects.
Ottawa has amended and reintroduced that legislation. Alberta
said it would take Ottawa to court if it did not address the province’s concerns about jurisdictional issues.
Consultations on the proposed emissions cap regulations
are open until Jan. 8, 2025. The final regulations
are scheduled for publication in 2025 and would come into force in 2026.
Chandra Philip contributed to this report.
