The Alberta government’s inability to begin charting a shift off fossil fuels can only leave the province at risk of further economic mayhem, according to two news analyses published in the week leading up to a federal Throne Speech that largely cemented Ottawa’s embrace of a low-carbon transition.
While Toronto Star contributing columnist Gillian Steward points to Premier Jason Kenney’s “denial of oil’s gloomy future”, CBC writer Robson Fletcher asks whether Alberta can embrace the transition sweeping the global energy sector, rather than just bracing for it.
Steward opens her analysis by pointing to the big picture trends that are laying waste to Kenney’s vision of his province’s future. “Demand for oil has dropped like a stone since the pandemic hit,” she writes. “Renewable energy is gaining ground around the world. Forests in the western U.S. are burning up because climate change means warmer, drier weather: yet another urgent call to reduce carbon emissions as fast as possible.”
Yet Kenney “can still hardly bring himself to utter the words ‘climate change,’ ‘energy transition’ or, God forbid, ‘green plan’,” she notes. “Instead he refers to ‘green plans’ as ‘pie in the sky ideological schemes.’ Instead he establishes an inept ‘war room’ to fight environmentalists who he says are wrecking Alberta’s plans to keep producing oil.”
Premier Jason Kenney like to blame the down-turn in oil on the pandemic. After-all, he was elected on a promise of jobs, pipelines and a better economy. It can’t be blamed on the pandemic. May 03, 2019 there was close to 31 companies close to going insolvent. Dec. 29, 2019 Mr. Kenney claimed he was looking forward to the new year. He promised more jobs and more pipelines. But it didn’t happen. Read The Slow Painful Death of Fossil Fuel
Parks are proven to improve water quality, protect groundwater, prevent flooding, improve the quality of the air we breathe, provide vegetative buffers, habitat for wildlife, and a place where families can connect in mentally stress free ways.
Unfortunately, Lundbreck Falls Provincial Recreational Area along with 163 other parks are to be delisted by the Alberta government. Twenty of them could be closed by the end of the year. The fishing is great and it’s a wonderful place to stay with your family while exploring the Crowsnest Pass area. However, it’s a little too close for the coal mine expansion in Grassy Mountain.
Selenium from mining activities leeching into the Oldman River is a concern as it supplies 40% of the irrigated land in Alberta and the entire water supply for Lethbridge. In Sparwood, B.C., selenium from Tech Resources has poisoned one of its wells. There were other private wells with much higher (13.5 micrograms per litre) than safey limits as well. The mine is just across the Alberta and British Columbia border.
Coal mines use a lot of water. For every tonne of coal mined, between 1 and 2.5 cubic meters of groundwater is made unusable. For that matter, there are a lot of industries using what could be a limited supply of fresh water.
The California Water Association, an industry group for investor-owned water utilities, sells to customers in Los Angeles, Ventura and San Diego counties. Clean, affordable and accessible water is a human right according to California law, but it doesn’t mean we have the same rights here in Alberta, or Canada for that matter. If the Grassy Mountain Coal mine contaminates the headwaters, Alberta could wind up paying a lot more for fresh, clean water.
Quantity and cost isn’t likely to be consistent as heavy industries demand a bigger supply. There is a limit to how much water we have. Canada has 7% of the world’s renewablefresh water, but more than half of this water drains northward into the Arctic Ocean and Hudson Bay. As a result, it is unavailable to the 85% of the Canadian population who live along the country’s southern border. That means the remaining supply, while still abundant, is heavily used and often overly stressed.
Climate change is one of those stressors. With the global increase of ambient temperature, the soil which collects and filters the water, becomes dryer and doesn’t retain as much moisture. Places in North America this year are experiencing extreme temperatures. Phoenix, Arizona has had record temperatures above 110 degrees Fahrenheit for 43 days so far this year, setting a new record.
The Burning Environment
Warmer air and dryer soil create conditions that make us more susceptible to fires. It continues to get worse every year and affects millions of lives, including birds, animals and humans
Thousands of migrating birds died this year from thirst and hunger. Wildfires in California shut them out of their natural migration areas. It was reported these birds were dying mid-flight and falling to the ground. And, it isn’t just birds. The last few years have seen a number of species around the world dying off or going extinct. There have been reports of hundreds of seals and whales beaching themselves, and various other fish and animals perishing. The truth is, we are not good stewards of the land. Wealth and greed sees us turning our resources over to the big corporations for a pittance of what they are worth.
Between Washington State, Oregon and California, there have been over 5 million acres have been burnt. The exact count isn’t in yet but it’s said tens of thousands of people have been displaced. It isn’t unusual to find different kinds of animals and fish migrating northward because of the unbearable heat.
We’ve heard several reports over the last few years that confirm this pattern. Climate change is the recognized cause. These populations are moving towards the north, and this includes people as well. The heat is becoming unbearable, the soil is less fertile and fresh water will also be in short supply, not only in the west but also in places like Florida, Georgia and Alabama, where droughts now regularly wither cotton fields. “The Memphis Sands Aquifer, a crucial water supply for Mississippi, Tennessee, Arkansas and Louisiana, is already overdrawn by hundreds of millions of gallons a day. Much of the Ogallala Aquifer — which supplies nearly a third of the nation’s irrigation groundwater — could be gone by the end of the century, as reported in a New York Times article.”
Flooding is becoming more frequent in areas that aren’t as susceptible to fires, especially the coastal areas. Roadways will be submerged, crops drown and salt water will seep into the fresh water supply. An article in the New York Times claims that eight of the nation’s 20 largest metropolitan areas, including Miami, New York and Boston — will be profoundly altered, indirectly affecting some 50 million people. The World Bank warns that fast-moving climate urbanization leads to rising unemployment, competition for services and deepening poverty. These conditions will come on the heels of people migrating to get themselves and their families to a safer place to live.
In August, Reuters reported the last fully intact ice shelf in the Canadian Arctic1 had collapsed. It’s been reported that the ejected section covers about 110 square km. The north is warming twice as fast as the rest of the world and it’s leading to some dramatic changes. It has been referred to as an abrupt climate change event. We have all heard that Greenland is melting too. It contains enough ice to raise global sea levels by seven metres, if it were all to melt. Thankfully, it won’t happen all at once. If we could match our temperatures to the Paris climate accord it might be possible to avert this calamity. However all the reports being released are saying there isn’t much chance of Canada or the world meeting these goals.
Greenland Is Melting
Who’s Coming to dinner?
How long will it be until Canada gets over run with American climate refugees? How long will it be before we can no longer feed everyone? Where will everyone live? Can we push north like the birds and other animals?
We’ve had fires burning above the article circle so we’re limited to how far north we can move. The farther north we go, the warmer it is from global warming. Luckily, those living in Alberta will be all-right for years to come.
The University of Lethbridge said: “On average, summer temperatures have gone up by less than one degree, rarely more than that. Spring temperatures have also risen by less than one degree in southern Alberta, but in northern Alberta there are regions with more than two degrees of increased warming.” There is little doubt. The good news about this increase is, that it’s lengthened the growing season by 3-4 weeks. Plants and vegetables can take advantage of the extended season. On the other hand, it means more extreme weather will follow.
When it’s Alberta’s turn to start shifting north, it may not be a viable choice. It already shown that the animals that live there have their lives in danger with the increasing temperature and dwindling ice. We can’t migrate to an unstable environment. A team of scientists visited the region on a Greenpeace vessel and took amazing footage with a drone showing the retreating ice.
Alberta is at a crossroads. Turning our parks back over to the crown means they won’t be saved for future generations to enjoy and there will be less available areas that can be built out for climate refugees. Our extinction may have started. It’s best we think about preparing for it. Some authors are heralding in the Apocalypse. ABC news carries a story saying:
According to the final Book of Revelation in the New Testament, the Earth suffers from “seven Plagues” — from disease to “intense heat” and drought, then finally a shower of deadly hailstones.
Then comes the Apocalypse, the final judgment of man and the destruction of the world by fire.
Perhaps this is an ideal time for religious fanatics to start their fear mongering that the end is near. If it motivates governments around the world to take the climate crisis a little more seriously it may be beneficial. However it’s doubtful that will be the case. We haven’t reached the tipping point yet. Sill, it is in our best interests to elect politicians who will help work to avert reaching that point. To do this, we must start taking better care of our environment, including the parks and recreational areas that we all enjoy.
1Reuters Greenpeace video found on Youtube — Drone footage shows extent of Arctic ice loss
A fleet of VORTEX2 vehicles tracks a supercell thunderstorm — Photo by NOAA on Unsplash
And the climate damn emergency is hard to deny. The west coast of the United States is aflame. What may be the hottest ambient air temperature ever noted in history, 54 and a half degrees Celsius, was recorded in Death Valley this summer. Serious people are suggesting it may not be long before millions of people in the United States face becoming climate refugees.
You don’t have to go to California to see that it’s real, either. You just have to sniff the air here in British Columbia’s capital these past few days.
Never mind COVID-19, as bad as it may be. When America’s suburbs start to burn, baby, burn, America’s party of climate change denial will be done like dinner. After all, a police station in flames in Minneapolis doesn’t hold a candle, if you’ll pardon a combustion metaphor, to 60-foot walls of flame roaring across a state with a population of 40 million.
Still, deny it some will — especially in petroleum-dependent places like Alberta. Which is presumably what Kenney’s “anti-Alberta” inquiry commissioner Steve Allan is trying to figure out how to do without actually analyzing any facts, because the facts are certainly not co-operating with the Alberta government’s narrative these days.
CTV got the story wrong. It’s before a joint review panel, with hearings set to begin on Oct. 27.
The Grassy Mountain Coal Project passed its environmental assessment, which now moves to the public input stage.
“The devastation it would rot on this part of the world is not an acceptable trade-off for a few dollars and a few jobs,” said Dr. Alan Garbutt who used to practice in the area.
Now retired, Garbutt — who also holds a PHD in wildlife biology — cites previous reports on U.S. coal mining communities, and how mines having affected the health of those residents.
“The mere presence of a coal mine in the vicinity causes great increases in a lot of health problems,” he said.
“Ranging from premature births and low birth weight babies to COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) and Cardiac and stoke problems.”
Environmentalists are also worried about the impact on habitat, wildlife, water quality and air pollution.
It’s impossible to keep track of the damage the UCP government is doing to Alberta. The sheer volume of it is overwhelming. It will be difficult to remember the worst of it when the next provincial election occurs. About a week ago it was decided this website should keep a running list of the damages so that it can be reviewed when one needs a refresher.
The forum is an ideal place for this. A central topic can have many sub-topics. It will make it easy to keep a list. You can create an account on this website to login and post items you want to share. There are a few already in place, if you would like to see some examples. If you would like to contribute to the list without logging in, just email me with a description and a link to a news source that contain more information. I will post it.
The ones that have already been posted can be updated at any time.
Jason Kenney really does deserve the title “Scumbag of the Year” and this will provide reasons why. I believe it’s Rankandfile.ca that promotes this every year and asks for votes on Scumbag of the year. I believe PressProgress.ca does as well.
You can see the central topic and sub-topics here or you can click on the menu at the top of each page. A drop-down under “Forum” will link to this page. Feel free to join the conversations even if you just want to discuss any of these topics.
The Slow Painful Death of Fossil Fuels
