Earlier this month John Bennett, senior policy advisor of the Friends of the Earth Canada, spoke in Almonte on “Power, Politics and Pipelines”, an event hosted by the local Green Party.
This topic is of concern to residents of northern Lanark County because the proposed TransCanada Energy East pipeline to St. John, NB will pass through the area. Bitumen spills would contaminate rivers and/or groundwater.
How should we collect and use energy?
Since 2000, $100 billion has been invested in the tar sands to maintain Canada’s share of the US market, but the US is now nearly self-sufficient in oil due to fracking. Several pipelines are planned to take bitumen from the tar sands to salt water for export even though there is no guarantee of a market. The current low price of oil means that the tar sands are not as viable as in the past. Why should we oppose bitumen pipelines? They maintain our reliance on fossil fuels; they leak; we don’t need them; they divert capital from renewables and the benefit does not outweigh the risk. Many mayors and residents oppose pipelines going through their communities.
While the Harper government destroyed the environmental assessment process, Prime Minister Trudeau is not living up to his promises. There should be a requirement to include upstream greenhouse gas emissions when assessing the risks of pipelines and the public should be allowed to speak at hearings. The rules of the Ontario Energy Board (OEB) have also changed to exclude public participation and there is no longer an arm’s length review. The OEB only said that TransCanada should pay attention to Energy East’swater crossings. Some older sections of the existing pipeline are wrapped in polyethylene tape and there is no detection system for leaks.
The argument that pipelines are safer than rail is a false comparison. Eastern Canada imports cheaper Saudi oil; we don’t need western oil.
Nuclear is not the answer. Nuclear works best at full capacity but demand for electricity is decreasing due to improved technology such as LED lights. We can utilize distributed energy production. Industries that use natural gas can make their own electricity through co-generation. Reservoirs for flood control can be used for hydropower. We should invest in conservation and efficiency to get demand as low as possible.
How do we stop Energy East? We have to ensure that each community opposes it and we need to press for regulations to make it not worth it. Twenty-five thousand people make a living in the Bay of Fundy; all those jobs are at risk. To create new jobs for displaced oil workers, investment should be redirected to the green economy. The oil industry is already getting into renewable energy; Syncrude is the biggest wind energy owner in Canada.
A good example of how politicians respond to public pressure occurred in the 1980s. Sudbury was then the largest source of sulfur dioxide pollution in the world. Protests by the Inco Stinko Action League led to Ontario Environment Minister Jim Bradley ordering Inco to reduce SO2 emissions by 50%. Inco protested that it would cost too much, but ended up making an extra $300 million per year through increased efficiency and selling the captured sulfuric acid.
Concerned residents should contact their local, provincial and federal elected officials to support the transition to clean renewable energy and say no to new fossil fuel infrastructure.
Submitted by the Lanark-Frontenac-Kingston Green Party of Canada electoral district association.
