Energy Campaign Questions

Would you support a Canadian energy strategy that provides reliable supplies of oil, gas and electricity at stable prices and protects the environment, even if this means placing restrictions on exports and foreign ownership of Canadian supplies?
89% of Canadians agree that Canada should establish such an energy policy, based on a survey commissioned by the Council of Canadians. Right now, our country does not have a national energy strategy that addresses where our energy comes from, where it is going and the environmental devastation that comes with producing it. Governments have signed away control of our energy resources under the free-market, energy integration agenda through multilateral agreements such as NAFTA and the Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America (SPP). Thanks to NAFTA, Canada now exports 70 per cent of the oil and 61 per cent of the natural gas we produce each year to the U.S. while importing close to 49 per cent of Canada’s oil needs. NAFTA prevents us from selling our energy resources at rates lower than we sell them in the U.S. and cutting back on the proportion of energy we produce and sell to the U.S. – even in times of need or to meet conservation goals. 

Would you press the federal government to pursue a policy of multi-year energy reserves for use by Canadians in hard times and to assist in the transition to greener energy alternatives?
For over 15 years, Canada has lived with free trade agreements and free market rules that are used to ensure that our energy resources keep flowing out of the country with little or no direction from government. Faced with diminishing conventional resources globally and climate change, now more than ever, we need a Canadian energy strategy.  This strategy must protect the environment, provide security of energy production, distribution and supply and plan for a transition to less harmful energy alternatives. This should include a plan for multi-year energy reserves that can be used by Canadians in times of need and to assist in the necessary transition away from fossil fuels. Before exporting oil and gas, our governments should ensure that 10 to 15 years of oil and gas supplies are reserved. In order to accomplish this, an energy exemption should be negotiated in NAFTA and the continental resource pact as proposed under the Security and Prosperity Partnership (SPP) should be rejected. 

Would you support a ban uranium exploration and mining?
Uranium mining is environmentally and socially destructive. The effects of uranium exploration and mining threaten to contaminate surrounding environment and water sources. Reputable scientists have linked uranium exploration and mining to rises in cancer and other diseases in neighbouring communities. Across the country people are challenging explorations for new uranium mines, many of which are on or near First Nations land.

Would you support a position of no new approvals on tar sands developments?
The Council of Canadian’s supports the call for no new approvals in the tar sands as a first step to addressing the environmental and social impacts of uncontrolled tar sands development. Some of the well-known effects of oil and gas production include: the devastation to the boreal forest; the vast amounts of water required for the mining process; the fact that the tar sands are the fastest growing source of greenhouse gas emissions in Canada; the use of relatively clean burning natural gas to extract heavy crude; the lack of infrastructure and public services in affected communities; and the impact on aboriginal communities and their land claims.