By Mia Rabson The Canadian Press
Posted October 27, 2021
The new federal environment minister is reassuring Albertans that he is not going to try to kill jobs in oil and gas. Steven Guilbeault co-founded an organization named in a recent inquiry looking into critics of the province's oil sector. But as Breanna Karstens-Smith reports, he is promising to work with the province.
OTTAWA — Newly minted Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault said Wednesday there is nothing “really new“ in the political rhetoric between Alberta and Ottawa around climate change this week, and shrugged off any suggestion his appointment will make that relationship more difficult than it already is.
Guilbeault is a former environmental activist from Quebec who has called the oilsands “dirty” and argued that pipelines and oil and gas expansion are not compatible with meeting Canada’s climate goals.
Elected in 2019, he was appointed to cabinet but not to the environment post many expected. Instead, he spent the last two years as minister of heritage while former cleantech CEO Jonathan Wilkinson shepherded through net-zero climate legislation and stronger greenhouse gas targets in the Environment Department.
There was talk in 2019 that Guilbeault’s appointment would have rubbed salt in the open sore that was the Ottawa-Alberta relationship. But that all changed Tuesday when Prime Minister Justin Trudeau majorly shook up his inner circle, moving Wilkinson to Natural Resources and Guilbeault into Environment.
READ MORE: Jim Carr out of cabinet, no more special envoy to Prairies for Liberal government
It was not, Guilbeault insists, at his demand.
“I was never promised anything and I never asked for anything either,” he said in an interview with The Canadian Press.
But rub salt in the wound it has, with Conservative MPs critical of the decision and Alberta Premier Jason Kenney warning that Guilbeault’s appointment to the environment portfolio sent a “problematic message” to his province about Ottawa’s plans for the oil and gas sector. He called Guilbeault’s “personal background and track record” on climate and oil and gas concerning.
Guilbeault dismissed any suggestion he will make the job of Ottawa-Alberta relations more thorny, pushing back with his own criticism of Kenney for skipping the United Nations COP26 climate talks that start next week in Scotland.
“I’m disappointed that Jason Kenney won’t be in Glasgow, other premiers will be there,” he said in a post-cabinet scrum Wednesday.
READ MORE: Trudeau unveils new cabinet with 9 new faces, major shake ups to top jobs
And he said Kenney using his appointment to pick a fight with Ottawa on climate action is just new lyrics to the same old song.
“Alberta has been trying to pick a fight with us on climate for quite some time,” he told The Canadian Press.
“They’ve taken us to court on carbon pricing, they’re taking us to court on environmental impact assessment. There’s nothing really new or surprising about that.”
Canada’s climate plan also isn’t changing with him in charge, said Guilbeault, noting it was not secret before and it’s not secret now that the plan is to curb emissions from every sector, including oil and gas.
READ MORE: Shortage of rig workers could slow Canadian oilpatch recovery, industry warns
Among his first priorities will be legislating or regulating an emissions cap on oil and gas, and then setting targets to force them downward over the next 30 years, in five-year increments.
The details of how and when are yet to be developed but Guilbeault said Wednesday the cap will be set at “current emissions” and go down from there.
The oil and gas industry produced almost 200 million tonnes of greenhouse gases in 2019, more than one-quarter of Canada’s total emissions. Catherine Abreu, executive director of Destination Zero, said climate action won’t be successful without getting those down.
She said the political will to do it has not been there before.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has instead tried to balance support for the fossil fuel sector with climate policy, without much success. Canada’s emissions are likely lower than they would have been without Trudeau’s climate policies, but they’re still about seven million tonnes higher than they were when he took office.
READ MORE: Alberta public inquiry finds no wrongdoing in anti-oilsands campaign
Almost all of that growth is due to oil and gas extraction and road transportation.
Guilbeault’s first job will be to sell Canada’s climate plan on the global stage. On Monday, the United Nations COP26 climate talks kick off in Glasgow.
Guilbeault is no stranger to COP meetings — this will be his 19th. But it’s his first from the government side of the table. He said Canada, like everyone else in the world, needs to do more to slow global warming, and that’s the message Canada will be pushing in Scotland.
The COP26 meetings, delayed one year by COVID-19, are intended to finalize the rule book for the Paris accord, including on such matters as how carbon emissions trading can work between countries, and what each country has to report about progress toward climate goals.
Posted October 27, 2021
The new federal environment minister is reassuring Albertans that he is not going to try to kill jobs in oil and gas. Steven Guilbeault co-founded an organization named in a recent inquiry looking into critics of the province's oil sector. But as Breanna Karstens-Smith reports, he is promising to work with the province.
OTTAWA — Newly minted Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault said Wednesday there is nothing “really new“ in the political rhetoric between Alberta and Ottawa around climate change this week, and shrugged off any suggestion his appointment will make that relationship more difficult than it already is.
Guilbeault is a former environmental activist from Quebec who has called the oilsands “dirty” and argued that pipelines and oil and gas expansion are not compatible with meeting Canada’s climate goals.
Elected in 2019, he was appointed to cabinet but not to the environment post many expected. Instead, he spent the last two years as minister of heritage while former cleantech CEO Jonathan Wilkinson shepherded through net-zero climate legislation and stronger greenhouse gas targets in the Environment Department.
There was talk in 2019 that Guilbeault’s appointment would have rubbed salt in the open sore that was the Ottawa-Alberta relationship. But that all changed Tuesday when Prime Minister Justin Trudeau majorly shook up his inner circle, moving Wilkinson to Natural Resources and Guilbeault into Environment.
READ MORE: Jim Carr out of cabinet, no more special envoy to Prairies for Liberal government
It was not, Guilbeault insists, at his demand.
“I was never promised anything and I never asked for anything either,” he said in an interview with The Canadian Press.
But rub salt in the wound it has, with Conservative MPs critical of the decision and Alberta Premier Jason Kenney warning that Guilbeault’s appointment to the environment portfolio sent a “problematic message” to his province about Ottawa’s plans for the oil and gas sector. He called Guilbeault’s “personal background and track record” on climate and oil and gas concerning.
Guilbeault dismissed any suggestion he will make the job of Ottawa-Alberta relations more thorny, pushing back with his own criticism of Kenney for skipping the United Nations COP26 climate talks that start next week in Scotland.
“I’m disappointed that Jason Kenney won’t be in Glasgow, other premiers will be there,” he said in a post-cabinet scrum Wednesday.
READ MORE: Trudeau unveils new cabinet with 9 new faces, major shake ups to top jobs
And he said Kenney using his appointment to pick a fight with Ottawa on climate action is just new lyrics to the same old song.
“Alberta has been trying to pick a fight with us on climate for quite some time,” he told The Canadian Press.
“They’ve taken us to court on carbon pricing, they’re taking us to court on environmental impact assessment. There’s nothing really new or surprising about that.”
Canada’s climate plan also isn’t changing with him in charge, said Guilbeault, noting it was not secret before and it’s not secret now that the plan is to curb emissions from every sector, including oil and gas.
READ MORE: Shortage of rig workers could slow Canadian oilpatch recovery, industry warns
Among his first priorities will be legislating or regulating an emissions cap on oil and gas, and then setting targets to force them downward over the next 30 years, in five-year increments.
The details of how and when are yet to be developed but Guilbeault said Wednesday the cap will be set at “current emissions” and go down from there.
The oil and gas industry produced almost 200 million tonnes of greenhouse gases in 2019, more than one-quarter of Canada’s total emissions. Catherine Abreu, executive director of Destination Zero, said climate action won’t be successful without getting those down.
She said the political will to do it has not been there before.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has instead tried to balance support for the fossil fuel sector with climate policy, without much success. Canada’s emissions are likely lower than they would have been without Trudeau’s climate policies, but they’re still about seven million tonnes higher than they were when he took office.
READ MORE: Alberta public inquiry finds no wrongdoing in anti-oilsands campaign
Almost all of that growth is due to oil and gas extraction and road transportation.
Guilbeault’s first job will be to sell Canada’s climate plan on the global stage. On Monday, the United Nations COP26 climate talks kick off in Glasgow.
Guilbeault is no stranger to COP meetings — this will be his 19th. But it’s his first from the government side of the table. He said Canada, like everyone else in the world, needs to do more to slow global warming, and that’s the message Canada will be pushing in Scotland.
The COP26 meetings, delayed one year by COVID-19, are intended to finalize the rule book for the Paris accord, including on such matters as how carbon emissions trading can work between countries, and what each country has to report about progress toward climate goals.
Kenney, Notley both upset with Trudeau's choice of environment minister
Premier Jason Kenney and NDP leader Rachel Notley both express concerns about Canada's new environment minister on Oct. 26, 2021.
Sean Amato
CTV News Edmonton
Follow | Contact
Updated Oct. 26, 2021 6:07 p.m. MDT
EDMONTON -
A pair of rival Alberta politicians had a rare moment of agreement on Tuesday: both are unhappy with the prime minister's pick for environment minister.
Steven Guilbeault, formerly a leader of Greenpeace Quebec and co-founder of Equiterre, was appointed to the position by Justin Trudeau Tuesday.
Alberta Premier Jason Kenney said he was worried Guilbeault would impose a "radical agenda that would lead to mass unemployment."
Environmental groups welcome Guilbeault's appointment as new environment minister, with some reservations
Both Equiterre and Guilbeault were mentioned in the final report of a commission, struck in July 2019, to look into allegations that environmentalists were accepting foreign money to fund campaigns aimed at impeding expansion of Alberta's oilsands, a major source of greenhouse gases.
The inquiry found Canadian environmental groups were exercising their democratic rights of free speech when they accepted foreign funding for campaigns opposing oilsands development, which the Alberta government has coloured wrong depite not being illegal. Equiterre, the report's commissioner wrote, sought to "frustrate" oil sands development.
Guilbeault left Equiterre in 2018.
"I hope that he will send a signal that he is willing to work constructively and cooperatively with us, as partners, in reducing greenhouse gas emissions while growing the economy," Kenney said.
NDP Leader Rachel Notley agreed with Kenney before quickly adding it's his government's job to sell Alberta's industry and environmental initiatives.
"I share some of the concerns about some of the historical positions taken by that minister in the past, some of his anti-pipeline commentary, that is certainly troubling," she said.
"After 30 years of fighting climate change outside of government, I am humbled and I am honoured to be given the opportunity to accelerate our fight against climate change as Canada’s new Minister of Environment and Climate Change," Guilbeault tweeted.
The new minister said one of his first assignments was to attend an upcoming UN Climate Change Conference in Scotland.
Notley said Kenney or Environment Minister Jason Nixon should join him there to promote Alberta's industry.
Nixon called Guilbeault a "radical environmentalist" and invited him to come out west so he can see Alberta oil and gas operations for himself.
Some environmental groups applauded Guilbeault's appointment.
With files from CTV News Edmonton's Chelan Skulski and The Canadian Press
CTV News Edmonton
Follow | Contact
Updated Oct. 26, 2021 6:07 p.m. MDT
EDMONTON -
A pair of rival Alberta politicians had a rare moment of agreement on Tuesday: both are unhappy with the prime minister's pick for environment minister.
Steven Guilbeault, formerly a leader of Greenpeace Quebec and co-founder of Equiterre, was appointed to the position by Justin Trudeau Tuesday.
Alberta Premier Jason Kenney said he was worried Guilbeault would impose a "radical agenda that would lead to mass unemployment."
Environmental groups welcome Guilbeault's appointment as new environment minister, with some reservations
Both Equiterre and Guilbeault were mentioned in the final report of a commission, struck in July 2019, to look into allegations that environmentalists were accepting foreign money to fund campaigns aimed at impeding expansion of Alberta's oilsands, a major source of greenhouse gases.
The inquiry found Canadian environmental groups were exercising their democratic rights of free speech when they accepted foreign funding for campaigns opposing oilsands development, which the Alberta government has coloured wrong depite not being illegal. Equiterre, the report's commissioner wrote, sought to "frustrate" oil sands development.
Guilbeault left Equiterre in 2018.
"I hope that he will send a signal that he is willing to work constructively and cooperatively with us, as partners, in reducing greenhouse gas emissions while growing the economy," Kenney said.
NDP Leader Rachel Notley agreed with Kenney before quickly adding it's his government's job to sell Alberta's industry and environmental initiatives.
"I share some of the concerns about some of the historical positions taken by that minister in the past, some of his anti-pipeline commentary, that is certainly troubling," she said.
"After 30 years of fighting climate change outside of government, I am humbled and I am honoured to be given the opportunity to accelerate our fight against climate change as Canada’s new Minister of Environment and Climate Change," Guilbeault tweeted.
The new minister said one of his first assignments was to attend an upcoming UN Climate Change Conference in Scotland.
Notley said Kenney or Environment Minister Jason Nixon should join him there to promote Alberta's industry.
Nixon called Guilbeault a "radical environmentalist" and invited him to come out west so he can see Alberta oil and gas operations for himself.
Some environmental groups applauded Guilbeault's appointment.
With files from CTV News Edmonton's Chelan Skulski and The Canadian Press
Oilpatch concerned as former Greenpeace activist Steven Guilbeault named environment minister
Alberta Premier Jason Kenney said Guilbeault’s appointment sent a 'very problematic' signal to the province
Author of the article:Geoffrey Morgan
Publishing date:Oct 26, 2021 •
One energy executive, who declined to speak on the record, said they would wait to see the mandate letters for Guilbeault and Wilkinson before they make any conclusions but they are concerned that Guilbeault will now have the power to start and stop major project reviews under the Impact Assessment Act.
There are also concerns about Guilbeault’s hostile history to oil and gas extraction. He vehemently opposed the Trans Mountain Pipeline expansion from Alberta to B.C. and has previously been arrested for protesting oil and gas infrastructure.
“This will be very concerning and frustrating for everyone who’s part of the natural resource economy in Canada,” said Heather Exner-Pirot, a fellow at the Macdonald-Laurier Institute, adding that a former Greenpeace activist “will have significant influence on how we go forward with our resource development.”
La Presse newspaper once dubbed Guilbeault “the green Jesus of Montreal.”
“The background is concerning,” said Jeremy McCrea, who covers Canadian oil and gas stocks for Raymond James.
“It’s the perception that that’s the kind of person that will have more of a voice in the Trudeau cabinet,” he said, adding it could add to the “political headwinds for an investor that’s worried about the political landscape here.”
This will be very concerning and frustrating for everyone who’s part of the natural resource economy in Canada
HEATHER EXNER-PIROT
Guilbeault scaled the CN Tower in Toronto in 2001 while working with Greenpeace to unfurl a banner that called Canada and former U.S. president George Bush “climate killers.”
“After 30 years of fighting climate change outside of government, I am humbled and I am honoured to be given the opportunity to accelerate our fight against climate change as Canada’s new Minister of Environment and Climate Change,” Guilbeault said in a social media post Tuesday.
Greenpeace applauded both Guilbeault’s appointment and Wilkinson’s shift to the natural resources portfolio on Tuesday.
“Minister Guilbeault knows the file, he knows the key players and he understands just how much is at stake,” Keith Stewart, senior energy strategist at Greenpeace Canada, said in a statement. “He’s also a practical person who knows the rules, which is important because implementing and raising the Liberal government’s climate commitments is going to take the whole government pulling hard in the same direction.”
Mount Royal University political scientist Duane Bratt expected “heads exploding” in both the Calgary oil patch and in the Alberta Legislature on Tuesday.
“They’ve just flown a huge red flag in front of the Kenney government and some elements of the oil patch,” Bratt said.
Bratt said the appointment comes immediately before the global COP26 climate conference in Glasgow begins this weekend and is likely intended to signal Canada’s commitment to reducing emissions. “They’re walking in with tougher targets and a stronger commitment to climate change,” he said.
The Calgary oil patch has made the case in previous years that emissions can be reduced without cuts to crude oil production, which is a case the industry and the provincial government will need to make again to the incoming environmental minister.
“The question is sometimes framed as to whether or not we should have a fossil (fuel) free future. That is the wrong question, the correct question is whether we should have an emissions free future,” said Gary Mar, president and CEO of the Canada West Foundation. “Energy is good, it’s the emissions that are bad.”
With files from the Canadian Press
Alberta Premier Jason Kenney said Guilbeault’s appointment sent a 'very problematic' signal to the province
Author of the article:Geoffrey Morgan
Publishing date:Oct 26, 2021 •
Minister of Environment and Climate Change, Steven Guilbeault speaks during a press conference in Ottawa, Canada on Oct. 26, 2021.
PHOTO BY LARS HAGBERG/AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES FILES
CALGARY — A former activist is the new environment minister in Canada and the oil and gas industry is extremely concerned.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau picked Steven Guilbeault, a former Greenpeace activist and founder of the Quebec environmental group Équiterre, to be the country’s next environment minister Tuesday in a move that oil patch insiders say is disappointing and concerning.
Guilbeault, who was previously heritage minister, succeeds Jonathan Wilkinson at Environment and Climate Change Canada. Wilkinson is the country’s new Natural Resources Minister.
Alberta Premier Jason Kenney said Guilbeault’s appointment sent a “very problematic” signal to the province, which is the largest oil-and-gas-producing region in the country.
“I certainly hope that the new minister, Minister Guilbeault, will quickly demonstrate to Alberta and other resource producing provinces a desire to work together constructively on practical solutions that don’t end up killing hundreds of thousands of jobs, but his own personal background and track record on these issues suggests somebody who is more of an absolutist than a pragmatist,” Kenney said. “I hope that I’m wrong about that.”
CALGARY — A former activist is the new environment minister in Canada and the oil and gas industry is extremely concerned.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau picked Steven Guilbeault, a former Greenpeace activist and founder of the Quebec environmental group Équiterre, to be the country’s next environment minister Tuesday in a move that oil patch insiders say is disappointing and concerning.
Guilbeault, who was previously heritage minister, succeeds Jonathan Wilkinson at Environment and Climate Change Canada. Wilkinson is the country’s new Natural Resources Minister.
Alberta Premier Jason Kenney said Guilbeault’s appointment sent a “very problematic” signal to the province, which is the largest oil-and-gas-producing region in the country.
“I certainly hope that the new minister, Minister Guilbeault, will quickly demonstrate to Alberta and other resource producing provinces a desire to work together constructively on practical solutions that don’t end up killing hundreds of thousands of jobs, but his own personal background and track record on these issues suggests somebody who is more of an absolutist than a pragmatist,” Kenney said. “I hope that I’m wrong about that.”
Alberta Premier Jason Kenney in Edmonton on Oct. 26, 2021.
PHOTO BY GREG SOUTHAM/POSTMEDIA
One energy executive, who declined to speak on the record, said they would wait to see the mandate letters for Guilbeault and Wilkinson before they make any conclusions but they are concerned that Guilbeault will now have the power to start and stop major project reviews under the Impact Assessment Act.
There are also concerns about Guilbeault’s hostile history to oil and gas extraction. He vehemently opposed the Trans Mountain Pipeline expansion from Alberta to B.C. and has previously been arrested for protesting oil and gas infrastructure.
“This will be very concerning and frustrating for everyone who’s part of the natural resource economy in Canada,” said Heather Exner-Pirot, a fellow at the Macdonald-Laurier Institute, adding that a former Greenpeace activist “will have significant influence on how we go forward with our resource development.”
La Presse newspaper once dubbed Guilbeault “the green Jesus of Montreal.”
“The background is concerning,” said Jeremy McCrea, who covers Canadian oil and gas stocks for Raymond James.
“It’s the perception that that’s the kind of person that will have more of a voice in the Trudeau cabinet,” he said, adding it could add to the “political headwinds for an investor that’s worried about the political landscape here.”
This will be very concerning and frustrating for everyone who’s part of the natural resource economy in Canada
HEATHER EXNER-PIROT
Guilbeault scaled the CN Tower in Toronto in 2001 while working with Greenpeace to unfurl a banner that called Canada and former U.S. president George Bush “climate killers.”
“After 30 years of fighting climate change outside of government, I am humbled and I am honoured to be given the opportunity to accelerate our fight against climate change as Canada’s new Minister of Environment and Climate Change,” Guilbeault said in a social media post Tuesday.
Greenpeace applauded both Guilbeault’s appointment and Wilkinson’s shift to the natural resources portfolio on Tuesday.
“Minister Guilbeault knows the file, he knows the key players and he understands just how much is at stake,” Keith Stewart, senior energy strategist at Greenpeace Canada, said in a statement. “He’s also a practical person who knows the rules, which is important because implementing and raising the Liberal government’s climate commitments is going to take the whole government pulling hard in the same direction.”
Mount Royal University political scientist Duane Bratt expected “heads exploding” in both the Calgary oil patch and in the Alberta Legislature on Tuesday.
“They’ve just flown a huge red flag in front of the Kenney government and some elements of the oil patch,” Bratt said.
Bratt said the appointment comes immediately before the global COP26 climate conference in Glasgow begins this weekend and is likely intended to signal Canada’s commitment to reducing emissions. “They’re walking in with tougher targets and a stronger commitment to climate change,” he said.
The Calgary oil patch has made the case in previous years that emissions can be reduced without cuts to crude oil production, which is a case the industry and the provincial government will need to make again to the incoming environmental minister.
“The question is sometimes framed as to whether or not we should have a fossil (fuel) free future. That is the wrong question, the correct question is whether we should have an emissions free future,” said Gary Mar, president and CEO of the Canada West Foundation. “Energy is good, it’s the emissions that are bad.”
With files from the Canadian Press
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