Melchin denies climate change, Stelmach denies environmental costs of the tar sands, and others just don’t do anything.

Well today was a strange day filled with strange admissions, weird denials and enough greenwashing to fill a conference centre.

Yes the oil sands summit met in Calgary, our Premier went to Washington and I got to sit in a room with 400 men in suits talking about how they can destroy the planet.

Here are some of the days highlights:

Total and StatOil gave a presentation on the dangers of climate change, the wonders of carbon capture and how all their facilities will be built “capture capable”. That all sounds alright until you ask them if they actually plan to implement the technology. The answer – nope. Not unless they are forced by government or the rest of the industry decides to do it. Wow now there is some leadership.

The lunch time keynote with Greg Melchin (Minister of Seniors) was also quite the display. It started with Melchin saying that when it comes climate change the “science is still unknown”. The Albertan Minister then went on to say that a “government cannot be too dogmatic (and take one side) when the debate (on global warming) is still out”. At this point my head almost exploded.

Alberta Premier’s “Mythical” Tar Sands Tour Attacked By Polar Bear – and a few facts

 

Alberta Premier Ed Stelmach was in Washington, DC today hyping his province’s vast reserves of oil-soaked tar sands.

Not everyone was applauding Stelmach, and rightly so.

According to news reports, Stelmach, “bemoaned what he termed the myth that the environmental cost of the oilsands is too high, saying calls from ’some quarters’ to slow or stop production doesn’t make sense.”

Here’s a few of the supposedly “mythical” facts about the Alberta tar sands:

• Tar Sands operations could eventually cover 149,000 square kilometers of pristine forest – that’s an area roughly the size of Florida.

Premier tells U.S. that environmental toll from oilsands is a “myth”

WASHINGTON – Alberta Premier Ed Stelmach asked American business leaders Wednesday not to buy into the “myth” that oilsands production comes at too high an environmental cost, saying attempts to curtail it “don’t make sense.”But he faced disbelieving protesters at every turn on the first day of his trade visit to the United States, including about 35 environmentalists who passed out flyers to guests arriving at a Canadian embassy reception.”Stelmach should be back home cleaning up the oil industry rather than running around Washington as an oil salesman,” said Liz Butler, organizing director for ForestEthics, a Canada-U.S. based organization.

“The U.S. does not want Canada’s dirty oil.”

TIME FOR US TO SAY ‘NO MORE OIL FOR WAR’ TO US

RICARDO ACUÑA / ualberta.ca/parkland

There are few things we progressive Albertans enjoy more than the opportunity to take a holier-than-thou attitude towards the United States.

Take, for example, how smugly we like to criticize the US media for refusing to publicly acknowledge the quest for oil as one of the major reasons for the US invasion and occupation Iraq. Likewise, we are quick to judge the people of the US for the degree to which the question of war for oil is absent from public dialogue and discussions, and does not register at all on political platforms during elections.

The sad reality, however, is that this smugness and criticism are misplaced. How much media coverage and public discussion have we seen in this province about our role in the war, or the fact that we are benefitting from it? Ultimately, we are doing no better than our neighbours to the south in addressing or even acknowledging these truths. And they are truths.