Energy decisions—pipelines, natural gas development and the Site C dam—will have a huge impact on what kind of planet we will pass on to future generations.
As far as oil and gas goes, they both come smack up against the reality of global warming and the clock is ticking on that. It is said that unless we cut greenhouse gas emissions we will come to a point of no return.
How many more Calgary floods and eastern Canada ice storms can we factor in to the cash-flow spreadsheet that our grandkids will have to work with?
Natural gas development is another huge story to watch. There’s the fracking debate but also the fact that the BC Liberals built a financial plan around an industry that didn’t exist when it was announced last year.
So we better keep our fingers on that one. It’d be best if we don’t hold our breath though.
There is hope though. Victoria recently floated the idea of stripping responsibility for agricultural land from the Agricultural Land Commission and handing it to the Oil and Gas Commission. That should go a long way toward making natural gas development a reality.
Then we come to the Site C Dam.
Talk about impacting future generations—once that sucker goes in it’s forever!
In mid-December Victoria announced that the Site C Dam would be exempt from a review by the ALC, in spite of the fact that 4,000 hectares of prime farmland will be flooded.
Some reports say the power it will produce is going to be sold internationally for less than it cost to produce.
Is there a reset button on last May’s election someplace?