Ottawa must scrap polarizing term 'just transition': Alberta environment minister

Alberta's environment minister saysOttawa must stop using the term "just transition" because she believes it is shorthand for phasing out Canada's oil and gas industry.

"The problem with the just transition, it's a polarizing term," Sonya Savage said. "And they've been using it."

Savage toldCBC's Rosemary Barton Live on Sunday that the Alberta government and Ottawa agree on many things, including reducing emissions from the oil and gas sector. But shesaid while the federal Liberals have"walked away" from using the "divisive term," it's still being used on Natural Resources Canada's website.

"Just transition"is a concept that emerged from the 2015 Paris Agreement, an international treaty on climate change. The goal is to reduce the harm to workers caused by economies moving from high-carbon activities into the green economy.

Some, including Alberta's environment minister, believe it also signals the sunset of the oil and gas sector.

"It means phasing out fossil fuels immediately, keeping it in the ground," Savage said. "Even more than that, it means restructuring societies and economies and redistributing wealth."

For Alberta, she said, "it's a non-starter."

WATCH | Alberta says 'just transition' bill haspolarizing name:

Alberta pushes back against Ottawas green jobs bill

2 years ago

Duration 1:51

Alberta's environment minister is pushing back against Ottawas proposed just transition bill to shift oil and gas workers to renewable energy jobs starting with the name, which she argues is shorthand for phasing out the industry altogether.

Responding to the Alberta government's latest comments, federal Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson said the federal governmenthasno intention of shutting down the province'soil and gas industry.

The Liberals promised during the 2019 election campaign to "move forward with just transition legislation." Wilkinson said he now prefers other language. But his department's website hasn't reflected the change.

"The term I prefer to talk about is sustainable jobs," hetold CBCNews. "This is about creating a future that will create good, well-paying jobs and economic prosperity in every region of this country."

WATCH | Natural resources minister says there's a future for oil and gas production:

Natural resources minister says theres a future for hydrocarbons in Alberta

2 years ago

Duration 0:52

CBC News asks Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson if the federal government wants to phase out oil and gas production. Wilkinson says theres still a future for fossil fuels in Canada but notes that the real issue is not about the consumption of fossil fuels but the emissions from them.

Wilkinson and others believe the world is undergoing a massive wave of industrialization as it seeks to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions to keep global warming to1.5 C compared with pre-industrial levels. The minister worries there will be too many jobs and not enough workers.

"I said it many times publicly that I do not believe that the challenge we are going to face is that there are workers who are displaced that will not find other good-paying jobs," Wilkinson said in a previous interview with CBCNews.

"I am actually quite worried that there are so many opportunities ... we will not have enough workers to fill the jobs."

The ministerdownplayed any disagreement between Ottawaand the Alberta government. He said he didn't want to "besmirch" his Alberta counterpart, saying he has had productive conversations with his peers in the Prairies.

When Alberta talks about the economic opportunities for the future, Wilkinson, said, it oftentalks about developing biofuels, hydrogen, small modular reactors, carbon capture, utilization and storage of critical mineral extraction, and processing. Hesaid those are the same areas of development that the federal government has been discussing.

At the same time, he said, the federal government's relationship with Alberta hasn't "always been peachy and rosy."

In reality, there's a lot everyone agrees on, he said, adding that there's no disagreement with the science of climate change.

"I honestly think it would behoove us all to dial down the political rhetoric," Wilkinson said. "Let's figure out how we actually move forward on all of these areas where I don't think there's much in the way of disagreement."