Our policy for dealing with climate change in a fair and effective way.

The Climate Change Risk

Over the past 100 years, greenhouse-gas emissions have been steadily increasing.

Scientists believe these emissions are causing the earth’s temperature to rise.  They predict an increase between 1.4 and 5.8 degrees Celsius by the end of this century.

The effects of this temperature change would be devastating.  Some effects could include:

• an increased incidence of severe weather, such as drought and forest fires, which have already cost Alberta over $2.3 billion in the past five years;
• glacial shrinkage, resulting in less available drinking water;
• a decline in biological diversity crucial to the environment;
• adverse effects on Alberta tourism such as skiing and fishing; and decreasing water quality for human consumption.

Clearly it is in the best interests of Albertans to act now and avoid these consequences.

Tackling Climate Change

Climate change is a real risk to Albertans and our environment.  As a contributor to this problem and as stewards of the environment, we must act now to counter this growing threat.

The Alberta Liberal Caucus has established a set of principles to guide our solution the problem of climate change.

• A strategy that unfairly targets any single province, region, or economic sector is unacceptable.
• The climate change strategy must respect the goal of economic growth in Canada and the provinces.
• Any strategy to reduce emissions must be a cooperative effort between the provinces, the federal government, and Canadians.
• Climate change demands immediate action.
• We must reduce greenhouse gas emissions – not just slow their increase – to stop climate change.
• Protecting our environment and the air we breathe is an important element of long-term economic growth.
• Climate change initiatives provide growth opportunities for environmental technology companies in Alberta.

At What Cost?

The Alberta Government claims that meeting Kyoto reduction targets would cripple Alberta’s economy.  However, the government’s numbers fail to consider many important factors, such as:

• the cost of climate change, such as drought and other severe weather conditions;
• savings to consumers and businesses through energy efficiency;
• economic growth and job creation from the increased demand for clean energy (solar and wind) and new technology;
• an increased quality of life for Albertans through a cleaner environment; the ability of future technological innovation to help meet emissions targets economically.

A Strong Plan Of Action

The key to slowing down climate change is a strong plan of action created through consultation between all orders of government, the public and industry stakeholders.

• Emissions standards should be set for different emissions categories.
• In other words, different industries should reduce emissions proportional to their ability to do so.
• CO₂ should be defined as a commodity and placed on a national exchange where emitters could buy and sell emissions credits.
• The federal government should be able to buy international emissions credits when the domestic price becomes too high.
• The primary cause of greenhouse gas emissions, consumer energy use, should be addressed through consumer awareness and incentive programs.

Innovative Solutions

Storing CO₂ underground

One possibility is the storage of CO₂ underground, including exhausted oil wells.  This would also provide industry a supply of CO₂ to help recover oil from wells.

Coal-bed CO₂ injection

One specific kind of geological storage is coal-bed methane enhancement with CO₂.  This technique assists in recovering valuable methane from coal deposits while storing CO₂ underground.

An Energy Efficiency Fund

By allocating just ½ of one percent of our royalty revenues (about $20 million) the government could create a revolving fund for energy efficiency to help Albertans make their homes more energy efficient.  The low-interest loans would be paid back over time with the money saved on energy bills.

CO₂ should be defined as a commodity and placed on a national exchange where greenhouse gas emitters would be able to buy and sell emissions credits.  This market would ensure that emissions levels are reduced in the most efficient manner possible for our country.

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