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Alberta Government and the Alberta Energy Regulator cannot be trusted

The Environmental Assessment process should be done by a body that is independent of business and environmental interests that can be trusted to evaluate the pros and cons of a project based on scientific and other evidence provided to it.

The Alberta Government (AG) and the Alberta Energy Regulator (AER) have shown many times over many years that they are not independent of business and in the last 5 years it seems that AER often takes instructions from the provincial government. I believe the AER now has a paid government employee on the board.

The Oldman Dam was approved despite overwhelming scientific evidence saying it was a bad idea.

Alberta has billions of dollars in environmental liability from Orphan Oil and Gas wells due to AER’s lack of oversight on companies who fail to clean up after the wells are non producing. While regulations exist they are not enforced - this applies even if conditions are applied for a project approval.

In the last year or so the AER cancelled a public hearing for a coal mine west of Edmonton after a phone call from the proponents CEO.

The Minister of Energy directed the AER to consider Northback’s Grassy Mountain coal proposal to be an “Advanced Project” which exempted it from new regulations and despite a previous applying having been rejected as “not in the public interest” by a Joint Federal Provincial Review panel in 2021. So the regulator is not independent of the whim and ideology of the provincial government.

Regarding species at risk: AG cannot be trusted to do assessments that take species’ needs into consideration. This is evident in the Upper Smoky sub regional plan where the needs of the caribou have been ignored to allow almost all of the caribou habitat to be clearcut. With AG directing AER it does not bode well for these species in environmental assessment processes.

In general it seems in the last 5 years that AG/AER only consider science if it happens to agree with their ideology and desired outcome for a project.

So I feel it would be a disservice to Albertans of all species if the AG/AER was allowed to be the sole entity doing environmental assessments of projects that currently come under Federal Jurisdiction.

Serious concerns about Draft Cooperation Agreement between Alberta and Canada

I am writing as a professional biologist with over 30 years of experience in environmental assessment, permitting and mitigation planning for oil and gas development in Alberta.I am concerned with provisions in the draft Agreement that position Alberta as “best placed” to undertake impact assessments on behalf of the federal government, including for matters within federal jurisdiction. While I support efficient regulatory processes, my professional experience leads me to conclude that reliance on provincial oversight alone is not appropriate in the current context.In principle, Alberta possesses a well-developed regulatory framework. However, in my professional experience, and increasingly in recent years…

Fox in the Henhouse

I want to appeal to the Federal Government to continue their important role in environmental assessment, permitting, monitoring and regulation. We have a semblance of all of those in Alberta but the current situation with coal mining in the Eastern Slopes of the Rockies makes it abundantly clear that regulations are not being followed or enforced. At this particularly critical time for our environment, please do not abandon our province to its own devices.

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