R-L: Alberta Premier Danielle Smith, Minister of Environment and Protected Areas Rebecca Schulz, Minister of Energy and Minerals Brian Jean, and Minister of Justice Mickey Amery announced in Edmonton on November 26, 2024, new actions to defend Alberta from the proposed federal emissions cap. (Chris Schwarz/Government of Alberta)

By rdnewsNOW Staff

JAN. 8 TECHNICAL RESPONSE

Alberta renews call for feds to “scrap the cap” on oil and gas emissions

Jan 8, 2025 | 11:49 AM

Alberta’s minister of environment and protected areas, Rebecca Schulz, is renewing her call for the federal government to scrap its proposed oil and gas emissions cap regulations.

In November 2024, the Government of Canada announced drafted regulations that would set a cap on greenhouse gas emissions in the oil and gas sector, mandating them to 35 per cent below 2019 levels. It also included a cap-and-trade system designed to recognize better-performing companies and incentivize those that are higher-polluting to invest in cleaner production.

In the announcement, federal minister of energy and natural resources, Jonathan Wilkinson, said the proposal is intended to ensure “long-term economic competitiveness” amidst our democratic allies and other major countries making changes to their carbon footprints.

Read more: Federal emissions cap a “sucker-punch” to province, Alberta says

In the province’s newest technical response to the proposed cap, it refers to independent assessments by Deloitte, the Conference Board of Canada and S&P Global, which found the cap could have significant detrimental impacts to Alberta’s economy.

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“Alberta has submitted detailed analysis showing, once again, that the proposed federal oil and gas emission cap is in reality an ideological cap on oil and gas production. The 35 per cent cut to emissions by 2030 is not achievable or realistic, and families across Canada will pay the price,” said Schulz in her latest statement.

Deloitte’s report forecasts a $16 billion cut to Canada’s GDP produced by oil and gas in 2035, while the Conference Board of Canada predicts an $11 billion cut in revenue for all of Canada in the same year.

Schulz continued, “Trade of oil, natural gas, electricity and uranium reached a record total of $156 billion USD in 2023 and nearly all natural gas going into the U.S. comes from Canada. The proposed regulations would significantly harm this important trade relationship and threaten to make Canadian industry less competitive while further disrupting Canada’s trade balance with one of our largest trading partners.”

Additionally, Alberta says the proposal infringes on its constitutional jurisdiction over non-renewable natural resource development, and that it’s prepared to bring the issue to the courts if it is to become law.