Letters about Coal Mining to Alberta's Kenney

 

The good news is that, since I sent these letters, the Calgary Herald reported a grassroots rebellion in the government caucus against the premier. 

Ms. Whitney Issik

Calgary.Glenmore@assembly.ab.ca

Dear Ms. Issik

The disclosure of the Terms of Reference of the Coal Consultation Committee has unsurprisingly caused outrage across Alberta. The dishonesty of the actions of the Minister of Energy were stunning in their efforts to deceive the public. To defuse the broad surge of pushback against her actions on coal mining, she announced the consultation, promising it would be wide-ranging.

Then what happened? She announced that the Committee's work would exclude virtually all the issues on which Albertans want to provide feedback: water use, the environmental risk of water pollution, the damage to landscape this would inevitably lead to, and so on. If you find this as disturbing as I do, I hope you will call for the Minister's resignation and a complete re-thinking of the coal mining issue. Such an appalling betrayal of public trust requires no less.

The UCP government has been in office two years. The government has picked numerous unproductive fights with public-interest groups over policies which have little or no positive bearing on the long-term health of the province – for example, the now apparently withdrawn proposal to close 160 provincial parks. During that time, UCP policies have enabled COVID to reach into the stratosphere; the tragic third wave in this province is leading to the worst per capita death toll since the post-WWI Spanish flu.

I could go on at great length, but will instead bring this missive to an end. I am deeply concerned that the UCP government seems unable to develop a strategy to deal with big issues – to a large degree, it seems to me, because it is distracted by small ones. My fond (but fading) hope is that the government will turn decisively to the big issues – dealing with COVID with sensible policies, rather than putting the blame on Ottawa. Seeking ways to put the province's finances on a sustainable basis would also be of interest – but would include acknowledgement of UCP’s blunder of investing $1.5 billion (plus loan guarantees) in the Keystone XL pipeline.

Below is a copy of my letter to the Premier and the Minister of Energy.

Yours truly

 

 

Peter McKenzie-Brown

 

Dear Premier Kenney (premier@gov.ab.ca) and Minister Savage (minister.energy@gov.ab.ca)

I recently reviewed your government’s Terms of Reference for the Coal Policy Committee. These represent a cynical betrayal of the public’s trust in the Government’s actions on this issue.

During the winter, many Albertans expressed outrage at your Government’s actions on coal mining (for example: repealing the Coal Policy without any consultation, granting numerous exploration leases without consultation or environmental review, and paving the way for Australian speculators to start their destructive exploration activities in Alberta’s mountains). Essentially, the Albertans protesting were asking your Government to consult with them on the question of whether coal mining in the mountains should take place at all. Instead, what you have announced is a Committee which will look only at how coal mining will be undertaken. This ignores the protests.

The Terms of Reference are entirely contrary to what Minister Savage said on March 29 when she was seeking to defuse the considerable pushback from Albertans in response to her actions to date. She talked then about an open conversation and a willingness to get the views of all Albertans.  Foolishly we took her at her word. What she has implemented is the opposite of her declamation. The Terms of Reference instruct the Committee to “focus only on matters related to coal that are under the administration of the Minister of Energy.” This seems deliberately designed to exclude Albertans’ concerns which centre largely on the important issues of preservation of landscape and water supply. In a feature article, The Globe and Mail recently confirmed the broad details of this story.

Taken together, these events illustrate a disturbing inclination toward dishonesty and deception through the actions of the UCP government. I would strongly suggest the Minister of Energy reconsider the Terms of Reference, allowing the Committee to consider the vital broader issues associated with coal mining in the mountains. The Committee should hear from representatives of the many  stakeholders concerned about these issues.

Yours truly

 

 

Peter McKenzie-Brown