Canada appears headed for a trainwreck due to the widening chasm on energy, climate, and finance policy between Alberta and Ottawa.
It is possible that no combination of voting outcomes in the October 21 federal election can prevent the breakup of the federation.
Canada has been described as “a road from Ottawa to Montreal and back again”, a blunt reference to the fact that when Ontario and Quebec agree on something, the rest of us are chopped liver.
This has given rise over the years to the angst known as western alienation. It has presently reached a boiling point like no other time in our history.
Premier Jason Kenny’s first move upon winning the Alberta vote was to call an inquiry into foreign (US) funding of the anti-oilsands campaign.
This will expose the dirty tactics of the Rockefeller Brothers-led initiative, funneling hundreds of millions of $US into “grass-roots” environmental and First Nations front groups with the aim of landlocking Canadian oil and killing the project.
Meanwhile, 14 pipelines are under construction in Texas while zero are even approved in Canada.
All Canadians should imagine what it feels like for Albertans when both Ottawa and BC treat them like a hostile foreign power.
BC pretends it doesn’t absolutely depend on Alberta for its transport and aviation fuel while blocking the Trans Mountain Pipeline that would bring Alberta oil to tidewater for export.
And Eastern Canada prefers oil brought in tankers from Saudi Arabia, Nigeria and Venezuela rather than Canadian oil from Alberta via the stalled Energy East Pipeline. Meanwhile, Ottawa bans tankers on the Pacific coast.
Whether it’s the Conservatives or the Liberals that are able to form a government in October, both are committed to the Paris Agreement on climate change.
This applies in spades to both the Greens and the NDP. Only the People’s Party of Canada has pledged to quit Paris and to unabashedly support the oilsands and the pipelines that are needed to deliver it to Eastern Canada and to tidewater in BC.
So long as our federal government supports this anti-fossil fuel fraud there will be no further investment in Alberta’s and Canada’s most important energy sector.
Meanwhile, some signatories to the Paris Agreement, such as China and India, are free to increase their emissions with no restriction.
Alberta’s first move after the election will likely be to hold a referendum calling for a renegotiation of the equalization payments formula.
Under the present formula, Alberta is required to make large payments despite their now very difficult economic situation.
An inevitably successful referendum result would force Ottawa and the other provinces to the table, but it is likely the talks will fail, increasing resentment in the province.
Then Premier Kenny will have the ammunition he needs to call for a referendum on the separation of Alberta from Canada. This may pass with a comfortable majority.
Saskatchewan would almost certainly join Alberta, and Manitoba would definitely consider it. What British Columbia will do is anybody’s guess, but if they decide to stay with Ottawa they will be decidedly isolated.
Although a bit far-fetched, the real wild card is Ontario. This would be an opportunity to realize what has been called “Ontario and West” as the new Canada.
The fact that Ontario has needed Quebec’s agreement all these years has led to a certain resentment of the fact, often accompanied by what might be called extortion on Quebec’s part.
Quebec separatists may get what they bargained for without having to win a referendum of their own! Lord knows how the Maritime Provinces would react to any of this.
I realize that many Canadians, particularly those in the eastern half of the country, don’t believe any of this could ever happen.
They should take a vacation in Alberta to smarten themselves up.
It’s not very nice to be treated like a leper when you are one of the main economic providers for people who call your oil “dirty” and “filthy” while they import the same product from despots, dictators and corrupt regimes in Saudi Arabia, Nigeria, and Venezuela.
Dr. Patrick Moore is a native British Columbian, a co-founder of Greenpeace and an ecologist with wide international experience in energy and climate policy. He is presently the Chairman of the CO2 Coalition in Washington DC.
If our moron in chief Justin wins on the 21st then Alberta should vote to leave Canada or Canada should vote to leave Quebec
I agree with separation . But we need to be prepared for civil war. But that is all that ya left to do. I see some are including BC in the separation . But I don’t think so, we do not need the NDP . But north west territories sask and MNitoba,
Very unfortunate, but not surprising given the long time & ever growing “Rift” between Ottawa & Alberta. In reality, it closely mirrors the same situation in the U.S where the right & left “coasts” increasingly force their agenda on “flyover” territory. Perhaps we should reorganize North America. The U.S states inside a 100 mile buffer area on either coasts can join Ottawa, BC & Quebec and the rest of us can form a new confederation of rational, common sense adults who enjoy freedom & individual liberty. Might make more sense…
Randy, I read an article around 20 years ago that stated that the borders in North America were drawn the wrong way. The author said you could draw a line from Texas to Alaska with a wide swath on either side and build a nation free from the Left Coast lunatics. He pointed out that the people have more in common with those living north and south of the US/Canada Border than they have with those East and West of them.
Now there is a growing movement in California for the rural east to split off from the “Liberal” urban coastal zone. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ahvXaPR_xUU
As the Far-Left falls further down it’s Cognitive Dissonance LGB2QMMOLGWTFPAWNINGNOOBSLOL… rabbit hole, the more and more you will see movements to separate rise.
While they are trying to figure out which bathroom to use we can forge an even greater Nation out of the US and Canadian flyover county.
Actually, I believe that individual about 20 years ago may have been the Alberta Energy Minister who suggested the usage of the Mississippi River & then draw a straight line up to the Arctic Circle as the means of east/west division. Looks like a better idea all the time! I have to admit, growing up in Texas and living in “flyover country” a number of years leads me to believe it has a lot of merit. Wonder how long all the liberal elites will last once they de-couple from the “producers” situated in the middle?
I see the same pattern here. The hippies of the old days and the green youth of today show distain for the very values that give them food, shelter, and medical care. Alberta with its rich resources has done a lot to support the rest of Canada. Some other provinces have responded with distain and hostility. Lets see how well Canada gets by without Alberta.
I really wish we get rid of the control of the liberal states that is getting worse and form a fly over nation.
Alberta is an export Province. It ships a mix of oil and refined products to BC and Washington. Refined stuff takes up room in the pipe, therefore in order to meet increased contractual obligations and increase exports to create income, the existing line must be dedicated solely to crude. It would be up to BC to build a bigger refinery or obtain refined products from Mexico or other sources using the dreaded tankers. This would leave BC at the mercy of a foreign country, paying world price. Ebe & Horgan want Alberta to refine more oil and sell it to BC. It only makes economic sense to refine closer to the population and market areas. Building a modern refinery in BC means shipping more Alberta oil. DUH. Alberta does not have to sell refined products to BC and BC does not have to buy from Alberta. This is a free market, something Horgan can’t understand.
Correct me if I’m wrong. Alberta’s crude oil is on the heavy side. It has made sense to pipe it, unrefined, to as many refineries as possible, where it can be blended with lighter crude. North Dakota and Saskatchewan have Bakken shale oil, which is light.
Let the market decide.