Tuesday, November 01, 2022
BEWARE FRACKQUAKE
TransAlta sues Alberta government to prevent oilpatch fracking near hydro damKyle Bakx - CBC
Calgary-based electricity producer TransAlta Corp. is suing the Alberta government and the Alberta Energy Regulator to prevent oil and gas companies from fracking near its largest hydroelectric dam in the province because the technique can cause earthquakes.
The court action, which was filed in September in the Court of King's Bench of Alberta, takes place as two oil and gas companies have applied to frack within five kilometres of the dam.
TransAlta is concerned about possible seismic activity causing damage to the Brazeau power plant, near Drayton Valley in central Alberta, as well as the loss of wildlife, habitat and human life.
The company points to an agreement from the 1960s, when the Brazeau Hydroelectric Dam was built, which states that TransAlta should "peacefully enjoy and possess the premises" without any "interruption or disturbance from the province, or any other person."
TransAlta also refers to a section of the Brazeau Agreement, which states that the provincial government had agreed not to allow oilpatch activity that will restrict or interfere with the power plant.
In court documents, the company said the province "has not developed, implemented or enacted any clear policy directives that will protect the Brazeau Storage and Power Development from "unacceptable" risks posed by hydraulic fracturing in close proximity."
The Brazeau Hydroelectric Dam was built in the 1960s and is currently owned by Calgary-based TransAlta. The electricity producer is suing the Alberta government to prevent fracking near the dam, as two oil and gas companies have applied to frack within five kilometres of the structure.© Kyle Bakx/CBC
The case highlights a growing debate in the scientific community about the risk of earthquakes posed by fracking.
Fracking is a common technique in the oilpatch. When drilling an oil or natural gas well, a high-pressure mixture of water, sand and chemicals are injected into an underground rock formation to create cracks and access the hydrocarbons. The injection of those fluids has the potential to cause earthquakes.
There have been thousands of documented cases of fracking activity causing earthquakes in North America, including in Alberta and British Columbia.
Limitations near Brazeau dam
The Brazeau power plant is located about 200 kilometres southwest of Edmonton.
Fracking activity is currently not permitted within three kilometres of the power plant. However, the Alberta Energy Regulator (AER) does allow fracking between three and five kilometres in certain instances based on several factors, such as a review of the risk, the potential for seismic events and mitigation measures.
Calgary-based Ridgeback Resources is one of several oil and gas producers that operate in the area near Rocky Mountain House in Alberta and the Brazeau power plant.© Kyle Bakx/CBC
Westbrick Energy Ltd. and Ridgeback Resources Inc. both want to frack in the three-to-five-kilometre zone. A 10-day hearing is scheduled for the first half of 2023.
A 2016 technical report by a government committee stated that there was "unacceptable risk associated with hydro-fracture induced seismicity to the ... Brazeau infrastructure within the five-kilometre buffer zone."
However, a followup report in 2021 stated that "an action to reduce the risk is clearly necessary if the risk is unacceptable, which appears not to be the case."
TransAlta wants the court to intervene and prohibit fracking near the dam, among other safety measures.
"As we prioritize the safety of all our facilities, TransAlta is taking this prudent step to confirm the government's contractual obligations to not restrict or interfere with the safe operation of the facility," the company said in an email.
In its statement of defence filed in September, the provincial government argues that the court should dismiss the case, in part to avoid interfering with the AER's jurisdiction as the regulator of all oil and gas operations in the province.
In its statement of defence filed in response to TransAlta's lawsuit, the provincial government argues that the court should dismiss the case, in part to avoid interfering with the AER's jurisdiction as the regulator of all oil and gas operations in the province.
© Kyle Bakx/CBC
In court documents, government lawyers state that "there is considerable debate among interested stakeholders about the risks posed by hydraulic fracturing in the five-kilometre area," including some who say any fracking is "dangerous," while others say fracking "presents zero, or close to zero, risk if conducted within specific shallow geological formations."
The government did not provide comment to CBC News. Westbrick Energy and Ridgeback Resources did not respond to interview requests.
Ongoing scientific research
There is no doubt in the scientific community that fracking can cause earthquakes, but researchers aren't able to accurately predict when a large earthquake will occur.
Statistics show that only a small amount of fracking activity will actually cause a noticeable earthquake, so researchers are focusing on trying to figure out why, said Honn Kao, a senior seismology research scientist with the Geological Survey of Canada.
Without knowing whether or not an earthquake will occur, experts will instead create a risk model to come up with the probability.
"Then the debate begins. The probability is very much like the weather, right? You say there is a 50 per cent chance of rain. What do you mean? For an operator and the local community, if an earthquake happens, it's 100 per cent. If an earthquake doesn't happen, it's zero," Kao said in an interview.
"But from a scientific point of view, we say, well, there is a 50 per cent chance. That actually is subject to interpretation, and I think a great amount of debate comes from there."
Induced earthquakes are felt strongest at the oil well drilling site and then slowly diminish in strength the further the distance away.
The earthquakes are caused by a buildup of stress on tectonic plates from fracking activity, although scientists can't measure how much tectonic energy has accumulated and how close the plates are to failure. Fracking also acts like a trigger for the earthquake.
At some point, regulators have to make a decision about safety standards and decide their level of risk tolerance, but others in the community will disagree. This difference of opinion is central to the court action taken by TransAlta about how close fracking can occur to its hydro dam.
In opposing fracking near the Brazeau dam, TransAlta says it has a strong interest in maintaining its physical plant and the safety of its workers, in addition to potential downstream impacts on the environment from an earthquake.© Kyle Bakx/CBC
"How far do you want to set up that exclusive zone? That actually is subject to debate," Kao said. "How high or how low of a risk tolerance level can you accept?
"We know a lot more about injection-induced earthquakes over the past decade. But certainly, in my opinion, I think we still have a lot to learn," he said.
AER subject of separate court action
In a separate case, TransAlta is also taking court action against the AER for approving an oil and gas company's application to frack between five and 10 kilometres of the dam "immediately," which "deprived TransAlta of the opportunity to submit a statement of concern to the AER."
The company is asking the courts to allow it to address its safety concerns about the proposed fracking activity to the regulator.
The AER said it wouldn't comment on an active legal matter, but it did refer to information about its rules for fracking near the Brazeau dam. The regulator has 50 seismic monitoring systems throughout the province.
Some of the largest earthquakes caused by fracking in Western Canada include a 4.5-magnitude event near Fort St. John in northeastern British Columbia. In the Fox Creek area of Alberta, there have been a pair of 4.4-magnitude earthquakes and a 4.8-magnitude event.
In the Brazeau dam area, an earthquake with a magnitude of more than 4.0 occurred in 2019. The epicentre was about 75 kilometres south of the power plant.
The number of earthquakes has risen rapidly in Texas, Oklahoma and other parts of the United States with oil and gas production. As a result, the number of lawsuits against the industry has also increased significantly.
In court documents, government lawyers state that "there is considerable debate among interested stakeholders about the risks posed by hydraulic fracturing in the five-kilometre area," including some who say any fracking is "dangerous," while others say fracking "presents zero, or close to zero, risk if conducted within specific shallow geological formations."
The government did not provide comment to CBC News. Westbrick Energy and Ridgeback Resources did not respond to interview requests.
Ongoing scientific research
There is no doubt in the scientific community that fracking can cause earthquakes, but researchers aren't able to accurately predict when a large earthquake will occur.
Statistics show that only a small amount of fracking activity will actually cause a noticeable earthquake, so researchers are focusing on trying to figure out why, said Honn Kao, a senior seismology research scientist with the Geological Survey of Canada.
Without knowing whether or not an earthquake will occur, experts will instead create a risk model to come up with the probability.
"Then the debate begins. The probability is very much like the weather, right? You say there is a 50 per cent chance of rain. What do you mean? For an operator and the local community, if an earthquake happens, it's 100 per cent. If an earthquake doesn't happen, it's zero," Kao said in an interview.
"But from a scientific point of view, we say, well, there is a 50 per cent chance. That actually is subject to interpretation, and I think a great amount of debate comes from there."
Induced earthquakes are felt strongest at the oil well drilling site and then slowly diminish in strength the further the distance away.
The earthquakes are caused by a buildup of stress on tectonic plates from fracking activity, although scientists can't measure how much tectonic energy has accumulated and how close the plates are to failure. Fracking also acts like a trigger for the earthquake.
At some point, regulators have to make a decision about safety standards and decide their level of risk tolerance, but others in the community will disagree. This difference of opinion is central to the court action taken by TransAlta about how close fracking can occur to its hydro dam.
In opposing fracking near the Brazeau dam, TransAlta says it has a strong interest in maintaining its physical plant and the safety of its workers, in addition to potential downstream impacts on the environment from an earthquake.© Kyle Bakx/CBC
"How far do you want to set up that exclusive zone? That actually is subject to debate," Kao said. "How high or how low of a risk tolerance level can you accept?
"We know a lot more about injection-induced earthquakes over the past decade. But certainly, in my opinion, I think we still have a lot to learn," he said.
AER subject of separate court action
In a separate case, TransAlta is also taking court action against the AER for approving an oil and gas company's application to frack between five and 10 kilometres of the dam "immediately," which "deprived TransAlta of the opportunity to submit a statement of concern to the AER."
The company is asking the courts to allow it to address its safety concerns about the proposed fracking activity to the regulator.
The AER said it wouldn't comment on an active legal matter, but it did refer to information about its rules for fracking near the Brazeau dam. The regulator has 50 seismic monitoring systems throughout the province.
Some of the largest earthquakes caused by fracking in Western Canada include a 4.5-magnitude event near Fort St. John in northeastern British Columbia. In the Fox Creek area of Alberta, there have been a pair of 4.4-magnitude earthquakes and a 4.8-magnitude event.
In the Brazeau dam area, an earthquake with a magnitude of more than 4.0 occurred in 2019. The epicentre was about 75 kilometres south of the power plant.
The number of earthquakes has risen rapidly in Texas, Oklahoma and other parts of the United States with oil and gas production. As a result, the number of lawsuits against the industry has also increased significantly.
Mounties' union says allowing trucks to park near Parliament was a mistake, Emergencies Act inquiry docs show
Catharine Tunney - Yesterday -
The union representing RCMP members says the decision to allow heavy trucks to park near the parliamentary precinct as part of last winter's convoy protests in Ottawa posed an unacceptable risk, according to documents tabled with the Emergencies Act inquiry.
People walk past fuel cans in front of Parliament Hill on Feb. 9, during the trucker convoy protest against COVID-19 measures that gridlocked Ottawa for more than three weeks last winter.
Catharine Tunney - Yesterday -
The union representing RCMP members says the decision to allow heavy trucks to park near the parliamentary precinct as part of last winter's convoy protests in Ottawa posed an unacceptable risk, according to documents tabled with the Emergencies Act inquiry.
People walk past fuel cans in front of Parliament Hill on Feb. 9, during the trucker convoy protest against COVID-19 measures that gridlocked Ottawa for more than three weeks last winter.
© Patrick Doyle/The Canadian Press
Lawyers with the Public Order Emergency Commission interviewed two members of the National Police Federation in the summer, ahead of official hearings currently underway.
Both Dennis Miller, a 29-year veteran of the force on leave to serve as vice-president of the federation, and Steve Madden, a board member with the group who previously served with the RCMP for 16 years, including with the Parliamentary Protective Services unit, liaised with commanders and other members during the convoy protests.
A summary of their joint interview was recently entered into evidence.
Both men raised concerns about allowing the self-described Freedom Convoy protesters to park near the parliamentary precinct.
"Mr. Madden observed that placing heavy fuel trucks near Parliament Hill posed an unacceptable risk because of the potential for those trucks to explode, whether by accident or design," reads a summary of the interview.
Miller told the commission's lawyers that he had policed G20 summits where the RCMP had directed protesters to park away from the central location and then arranged for buses to transport people to the protest site.
Former Ottawa police chief Peter Sloly has testified that he did not think he had the legal standing under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms to prevent protesters from parking their trucks and other vehicles downtown.
"I'm a police officer, not a lawyer," he testified on Friday.
Concerns with resources
Related video: Former Ottawa police chief defends handling of convoy protest
Duration 2:38 View on Watch
The need for more RCMP officers was almost immediately apparent after the convoy rolled into town on Jan. 28.
The two RCMP union reps said that by Jan. 30, the head of the force's national division declared a state of emergency.
Under the RCMP's collective agreement, a state of emergency allows the RCMP to redeploy members and temporarily waive scheduling and maximum work hours provisions to ensure public safety and delivery of policing services.
Miller said he was told that assistant commissioner Ches Parsons decided to declare an emergency "because he had exhausted RCMP assets and resources based in the National Division."
Sloly was asking publicly for roughly 1,800 extra officers to bolster the Ottawa police response, including hundreds from the RCMP.
As the commission has already heard, both the RCMP and the Ontario Provincial Police had concerns with the Ottawa police force's lack of an operational plan and were skeptical about how their additional officers would be used.
Miler told the commission that the Ottawa request resulted in an OPS-RCMP meeting, which he did not attend but was filled in on after.
"Mr. Miller was advised that during the meeting, OPS representatives compared the Freedom Convoy to a terrorist attack at Parliament Hill and argued that RCMP should be the lead policing agency because protesters were protesting federal government policies," said the interview summary.
"RCMP representatives attending the meeting disagreed and stated that OPS was responsible for policing the Freedom Convoy because OPS was the police of jurisdiction in the protest site."
In Ontario and Quebec, RCMP officers can enforce federal laws but must be sworn in as provincial or municipal special constables to enforce provincial and municipal laws.
Miller and Madden told the inquiry's lawyers that the RCMP's lack of authority to enforce provincial and municipal laws was a barrier to using RCMP resources effectively to police protests in Ottawa.
"Miller mentioned that RCMP officers could only act if protesters were openly committing an offence under the Criminal Code, but would lack authority to act in the significantly more common circumstance of protesters committing provincial offences, such as under Ontario's Highway Traffic Act, or disobeying municipal orders or bylaws," the interview summary said.
He also said that even before the convoy arrived in Ottawa, the RCMP had been reducing its policing responsibilities in the Ottawa area. The RCMP used to maintain about 120 officers in Ottawa to patrol areas surrounding embassies and National Capital Commission lands, but it had only 60 patrol officers at the time of the convoy protest, according to Miller's interview.
On behalf of the union, both Miller and Madden told the commission they believe the RCMP should assume responsibility for security and policing in and around Parliament Hill.
A parliamentary committee is currently studying whether Ottawa police should cede control of Wellington Street.
Lawyers with the Public Order Emergency Commission interviewed two members of the National Police Federation in the summer, ahead of official hearings currently underway.
Both Dennis Miller, a 29-year veteran of the force on leave to serve as vice-president of the federation, and Steve Madden, a board member with the group who previously served with the RCMP for 16 years, including with the Parliamentary Protective Services unit, liaised with commanders and other members during the convoy protests.
A summary of their joint interview was recently entered into evidence.
Both men raised concerns about allowing the self-described Freedom Convoy protesters to park near the parliamentary precinct.
"Mr. Madden observed that placing heavy fuel trucks near Parliament Hill posed an unacceptable risk because of the potential for those trucks to explode, whether by accident or design," reads a summary of the interview.
Miller told the commission's lawyers that he had policed G20 summits where the RCMP had directed protesters to park away from the central location and then arranged for buses to transport people to the protest site.
Former Ottawa police chief Peter Sloly has testified that he did not think he had the legal standing under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms to prevent protesters from parking their trucks and other vehicles downtown.
"I'm a police officer, not a lawyer," he testified on Friday.
Concerns with resources
Related video: Former Ottawa police chief defends handling of convoy protest
Duration 2:38 View on Watch
The need for more RCMP officers was almost immediately apparent after the convoy rolled into town on Jan. 28.
The two RCMP union reps said that by Jan. 30, the head of the force's national division declared a state of emergency.
Under the RCMP's collective agreement, a state of emergency allows the RCMP to redeploy members and temporarily waive scheduling and maximum work hours provisions to ensure public safety and delivery of policing services.
Miller said he was told that assistant commissioner Ches Parsons decided to declare an emergency "because he had exhausted RCMP assets and resources based in the National Division."
Sloly was asking publicly for roughly 1,800 extra officers to bolster the Ottawa police response, including hundreds from the RCMP.
As the commission has already heard, both the RCMP and the Ontario Provincial Police had concerns with the Ottawa police force's lack of an operational plan and were skeptical about how their additional officers would be used.
Miler told the commission that the Ottawa request resulted in an OPS-RCMP meeting, which he did not attend but was filled in on after.
"Mr. Miller was advised that during the meeting, OPS representatives compared the Freedom Convoy to a terrorist attack at Parliament Hill and argued that RCMP should be the lead policing agency because protesters were protesting federal government policies," said the interview summary.
"RCMP representatives attending the meeting disagreed and stated that OPS was responsible for policing the Freedom Convoy because OPS was the police of jurisdiction in the protest site."
In Ontario and Quebec, RCMP officers can enforce federal laws but must be sworn in as provincial or municipal special constables to enforce provincial and municipal laws.
Miller and Madden told the inquiry's lawyers that the RCMP's lack of authority to enforce provincial and municipal laws was a barrier to using RCMP resources effectively to police protests in Ottawa.
"Miller mentioned that RCMP officers could only act if protesters were openly committing an offence under the Criminal Code, but would lack authority to act in the significantly more common circumstance of protesters committing provincial offences, such as under Ontario's Highway Traffic Act, or disobeying municipal orders or bylaws," the interview summary said.
He also said that even before the convoy arrived in Ottawa, the RCMP had been reducing its policing responsibilities in the Ottawa area. The RCMP used to maintain about 120 officers in Ottawa to patrol areas surrounding embassies and National Capital Commission lands, but it had only 60 patrol officers at the time of the convoy protest, according to Miller's interview.
On behalf of the union, both Miller and Madden told the commission they believe the RCMP should assume responsibility for security and policing in and around Parliament Hill.
A parliamentary committee is currently studying whether Ottawa police should cede control of Wellington Street.
THE DEAD MINK ELECTION
Denmark PM to try to form new government after election win
COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen was in a strong position to remain in power after her Social Democrats won the most votes in Denmark’s election Tuesday and a center-left bloc in Parliament that backs appeared set to retain a majority by just one seat.
Denmark PM to try to form new government after election win
Denmark PM to try to form new government after election win
COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen was in a strong position to remain in power after her Social Democrats won the most votes in Denmark’s election Tuesday and a center-left bloc in Parliament that backs appeared set to retain a majority by just one seat.
Denmark PM to try to form new government after election win
© Provided by The Canadian Press
The result was preliminary and based on the assumption that a vote count in Greenland expected early Wednesday would give the autonomous Danish territory’s two seats to the center-left bloc.
“I am so thrilled and proud. We have gotten the best election result in 20 years,” Frederiksen told supporters early Wednesday in Copenhagen.
Despite the success, Frederiksen, who heads a Social Democratic minority government, said she would resign as prime minister and try to form a new government with broader support across the political divide, something she had said suggested before the election.
"It is also clear there is no longer a majority behind the government in its current form. Therefore, tomorrow I will submit the government’s resignation to the queen,” said Frederiksen, adding that she would meet with other parties about forming a new government.
Frederiksen was forced to call the vote earlier this month amid the fallout from her government’s contentious decision to cull millions of minks as a pandemic response measure. The cull and chilling images of mass graves of minks have haunted Frederiksen since 2020 and eventually led to cracks in the center-left bloc.
The Social Democrats remained Denmark’s top party with 28% of the vote, but it remained unclear long into the night whether the center-left parties together would reach the 90 seats needed for a majority in the 179-seat Parliament. Exit polls suggested they would fall short, but the decisive seat flipped at the very end of the vote count.
Before that former Prime Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen appeared set to become kingmaker. His newly formed centrist party won 9% of the vote for 16 seats, according to the preliminary results.
Løkke Rasmussen said he too wanted to Mette Frederiksen to try to form a government but he would not point at her “as prime minister.”
A two-time government leader who lost the 2019 election to Frederiksen and abandoned the center-right Liberal party following an internal power struggle, Løkke Rasmussen, wouldn't say whom he would back as the next prime minister or whether he saw that role for himself.
“I know for sure that Denmark needs a new government, “ he told jubilant supporters in Copenhagen. “Who is going to sit at the end of the table we do not know.”
Denmark may be a small, tranquil country known for having some of the happiest people on Earth, but its politics is filled with intrigue that will be familiar to fans of the fictional Danish TV drama series “Borgen.”
Before the election, Frederiksen, 44, floated the idea of a broader alliance that would also include opposition parties, but was rebuffed by opposition leaders Jakob Ellemann-Jensen of the Liberals and Søren Pape Poulsen of the Conservatives, who both ran as candidates for prime minister in a center-right government.
Even though the election result suggested she could ostensibly carry on as prime minster with only center-left support, Frederiksen said she would keep her ambition to also reach out to opposition parties.
“The Social Democrats went to the election to form a broad government," she said. "I will investigate whether it can be done.”
Denmark’s more than 4 million voters could choose among over 1,000 candidates — the most ever — from 14 parties. Four of the 179 seats in the Danish legislature, Folketinget, are reserved for the Faeroe Islands and Greenland, which are autonomous Danish territories.
Concerns about rising inflation and energy prices linked to Russia’s war in Ukraine and a shortage of nurses in the public health care system were key themes in election campaigns.
“What I feel is important and is a worry to many are the soaring prices, whether it be electricity, bread or gasoline,” said Inge Bjerre Hansen, 82, after casting her vote in Copenhagen. “My son is reducing the number of his visits because it has become expensive to fill the tank (of his car).”
Unlike in previous elections, immigration received little attention. Denmark has some of Europe’s strictest immigration laws and there is broad agreement among the major parties to keep it that way.
That and internal squabbles help explain the collapse of the populist Danish People’s Party, which spearheaded Denmark’s crackdown on immigration two decades ago. Once polling over 20%, the party recorded its worst parliamentary election result since its creation in 1995, with around 3% of the vote, the results showed.
The Danish People's Party faced competition for nationalist voters from new right-wing parties. Among them are the Denmark Democrats, created in June by former hardline immigration minister Inger Støjberg. In 2021, Støjberg was convicted by the rarely used Impeachment Court for a 2016 order to separate asylum-seeking couples if one of the partners was a minor.
She was eligible to run for office again after serving her 60-day sentence. The official results showed her party getting 8%.
Frederiksen, who became Denmark's youngest prime minister when she took office at 41 more than three years ago, teamed up with the opposition to hike NATO-member Denmark’s defense spending in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Her steadfast leadership during the COVID-19 pandemic was partly overshadowed by the mink-culling episode.
The decision to slaughter up to 17 million minks to protect humans from a mutation of the coronavirus was taken in haste and without the required legislation in place. It dealt a devastating blow to Danish mink farmers, even though there was no evidence the mutated virus found among some minks was more dangerous than other strains.
___
Ritter reported from Stockholm. Associated Press journalists and Aleksandar Furtula and Anders Kongshaug in Copenhagen contributed to this report.
Jan M. Olsen And Karl Ritter, The Associated Press
The result was preliminary and based on the assumption that a vote count in Greenland expected early Wednesday would give the autonomous Danish territory’s two seats to the center-left bloc.
“I am so thrilled and proud. We have gotten the best election result in 20 years,” Frederiksen told supporters early Wednesday in Copenhagen.
Despite the success, Frederiksen, who heads a Social Democratic minority government, said she would resign as prime minister and try to form a new government with broader support across the political divide, something she had said suggested before the election.
"It is also clear there is no longer a majority behind the government in its current form. Therefore, tomorrow I will submit the government’s resignation to the queen,” said Frederiksen, adding that she would meet with other parties about forming a new government.
Frederiksen was forced to call the vote earlier this month amid the fallout from her government’s contentious decision to cull millions of minks as a pandemic response measure. The cull and chilling images of mass graves of minks have haunted Frederiksen since 2020 and eventually led to cracks in the center-left bloc.
The Social Democrats remained Denmark’s top party with 28% of the vote, but it remained unclear long into the night whether the center-left parties together would reach the 90 seats needed for a majority in the 179-seat Parliament. Exit polls suggested they would fall short, but the decisive seat flipped at the very end of the vote count.
Before that former Prime Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen appeared set to become kingmaker. His newly formed centrist party won 9% of the vote for 16 seats, according to the preliminary results.
Løkke Rasmussen said he too wanted to Mette Frederiksen to try to form a government but he would not point at her “as prime minister.”
A two-time government leader who lost the 2019 election to Frederiksen and abandoned the center-right Liberal party following an internal power struggle, Løkke Rasmussen, wouldn't say whom he would back as the next prime minister or whether he saw that role for himself.
“I know for sure that Denmark needs a new government, “ he told jubilant supporters in Copenhagen. “Who is going to sit at the end of the table we do not know.”
Related video: Denmark election: Frederiksen's government hangs in the balance as it battles for centrist votes Duration 1:35 View on Watch
Denmark may be a small, tranquil country known for having some of the happiest people on Earth, but its politics is filled with intrigue that will be familiar to fans of the fictional Danish TV drama series “Borgen.”
Before the election, Frederiksen, 44, floated the idea of a broader alliance that would also include opposition parties, but was rebuffed by opposition leaders Jakob Ellemann-Jensen of the Liberals and Søren Pape Poulsen of the Conservatives, who both ran as candidates for prime minister in a center-right government.
Even though the election result suggested she could ostensibly carry on as prime minster with only center-left support, Frederiksen said she would keep her ambition to also reach out to opposition parties.
“The Social Democrats went to the election to form a broad government," she said. "I will investigate whether it can be done.”
Denmark’s more than 4 million voters could choose among over 1,000 candidates — the most ever — from 14 parties. Four of the 179 seats in the Danish legislature, Folketinget, are reserved for the Faeroe Islands and Greenland, which are autonomous Danish territories.
Concerns about rising inflation and energy prices linked to Russia’s war in Ukraine and a shortage of nurses in the public health care system were key themes in election campaigns.
“What I feel is important and is a worry to many are the soaring prices, whether it be electricity, bread or gasoline,” said Inge Bjerre Hansen, 82, after casting her vote in Copenhagen. “My son is reducing the number of his visits because it has become expensive to fill the tank (of his car).”
Unlike in previous elections, immigration received little attention. Denmark has some of Europe’s strictest immigration laws and there is broad agreement among the major parties to keep it that way.
That and internal squabbles help explain the collapse of the populist Danish People’s Party, which spearheaded Denmark’s crackdown on immigration two decades ago. Once polling over 20%, the party recorded its worst parliamentary election result since its creation in 1995, with around 3% of the vote, the results showed.
The Danish People's Party faced competition for nationalist voters from new right-wing parties. Among them are the Denmark Democrats, created in June by former hardline immigration minister Inger Støjberg. In 2021, Støjberg was convicted by the rarely used Impeachment Court for a 2016 order to separate asylum-seeking couples if one of the partners was a minor.
She was eligible to run for office again after serving her 60-day sentence. The official results showed her party getting 8%.
Frederiksen, who became Denmark's youngest prime minister when she took office at 41 more than three years ago, teamed up with the opposition to hike NATO-member Denmark’s defense spending in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Her steadfast leadership during the COVID-19 pandemic was partly overshadowed by the mink-culling episode.
The decision to slaughter up to 17 million minks to protect humans from a mutation of the coronavirus was taken in haste and without the required legislation in place. It dealt a devastating blow to Danish mink farmers, even though there was no evidence the mutated virus found among some minks was more dangerous than other strains.
___
Ritter reported from Stockholm. Associated Press journalists and Aleksandar Furtula and Anders Kongshaug in Copenhagen contributed to this report.
Jan M. Olsen And Karl Ritter, The Associated Press
BACKGROUNDER
Danish election: 17 million dead minks and a US spy allegation plunge country into chaos
Denmark's politics have been fraught with scandal in recent years. Now, the country is set to go to the ballot box.
By CHARLIE BRADLEY
Tue, Nov 1, 2022
Denmark goes to the polls on Tuesday in a vote, a ballot which on the surface appears to be heading in a business-as-usual direction. Mette Frederiksen, the Danish Prime Minister and leader of the Social Democrats, is expected to win. But it is unknown whether her party will stay in government. This is because former Danish Prime Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen, leader of a surging centrist party, has refused to endorse either the left coalition or the group of right-leaning parties. It is likely his Moderate party will be the kingmaker in this vote.
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Prime Minister Frederiksen was forced to call the election after losing the support of a leftist party which collapsed the coalition. The story of how her government lost the confidence of the political class and the Danish population is as dramatic as it is bizarre.
The catalyst for Ms Frederiksen's polling slump in recent months has been attributed to a decision she made in 2020. Amid fears that COVID-19 could spread into the human population via minks, she ordered the culling of the 17 million mink population in the country.
Not only was the policy illegal, it destroyed Denmark's fur industry. Danish farmers were seen on TV crying as they saw their livelihoods were torn apart. Ms Frederiksen apologised earlier this year and said she "regrets [the] mistakes" that were made.
Announcing the election last month, she said it was "peculiar to have a general election in the middle of an international crisis" but conceded that it is “nevertheless what a majority in parliament wants.”
The global economic crisis will also beat the forefront of Danes' minds as they fill out their ballots this week. Like many other countries, Denmark is suffering from inflation, labour shortages and low salaries.
Another key issue is immigration. The country has some of the strictest rules in Europe, and Ms Frederiksen has adopted the tougher approach to nullify the right-wing parties aiming to oust her from power. The verdict is out on whether this is enough to clinch the support of her country.
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Denmark's politics have been fraught with scandal in recent years. Now, the country is set to go to the ballot box.
By CHARLIE BRADLEY
Tue, Nov 1, 2022
Denmark goes to the polls on Tuesday in a vote, a ballot which on the surface appears to be heading in a business-as-usual direction. Mette Frederiksen, the Danish Prime Minister and leader of the Social Democrats, is expected to win. But it is unknown whether her party will stay in government. This is because former Danish Prime Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen, leader of a surging centrist party, has refused to endorse either the left coalition or the group of right-leaning parties. It is likely his Moderate party will be the kingmaker in this vote.
Danish election: Frederiksen ordered the killing of minks (Image: Getty)
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Prime Minister Frederiksen was forced to call the election after losing the support of a leftist party which collapsed the coalition. The story of how her government lost the confidence of the political class and the Danish population is as dramatic as it is bizarre.
The catalyst for Ms Frederiksen's polling slump in recent months has been attributed to a decision she made in 2020. Amid fears that COVID-19 could spread into the human population via minks, she ordered the culling of the 17 million mink population in the country.
Not only was the policy illegal, it destroyed Denmark's fur industry. Danish farmers were seen on TV crying as they saw their livelihoods were torn apart. Ms Frederiksen apologised earlier this year and said she "regrets [the] mistakes" that were made.
Danish election: 17 million minks were culled (Image: Getty)
But she maintained that the decision was the "only solution", adding: "I would like to apologize to the mink farmers and their families. I know it has been hard. And the fact that there have been mistakes in the process has made it all the more painful.
"For the sake of the Danes' health and our country's reputation and responsibility to the rest of the world, the only solution was to cull the mink. Unfortunately."
While the mink farming ban is set to end in 2023, this is not expected to lead to renewed investment in the industry.
As reported by Politico's Brussels playbook, a mere 13 breeders’ licenses have been registered for next year. The Danish government will also have to fork out over £2million to compensate those whose businesses have collapsed due to the ban.
Minks are not the only thorn in the side of the Danish Prime Minister. A number of other scandals have also left Danes questioning the credibility of Ms Frederiksen — and crucially the country's security.
But she maintained that the decision was the "only solution", adding: "I would like to apologize to the mink farmers and their families. I know it has been hard. And the fact that there have been mistakes in the process has made it all the more painful.
"For the sake of the Danes' health and our country's reputation and responsibility to the rest of the world, the only solution was to cull the mink. Unfortunately."
While the mink farming ban is set to end in 2023, this is not expected to lead to renewed investment in the industry.
As reported by Politico's Brussels playbook, a mere 13 breeders’ licenses have been registered for next year. The Danish government will also have to fork out over £2million to compensate those whose businesses have collapsed due to the ban.
Minks are not the only thorn in the side of the Danish Prime Minister. A number of other scandals have also left Danes questioning the credibility of Ms Frederiksen — and crucially the country's security.
Danish election: Findsen was charged for leaking classified information
(Image: Getty)
In May last year, allegations were made claiming that Denmark’s military intelligence agency cooperated with the US to spy on European leaders, including former German Chancellor Angela Merkel
French Europe minister, Clément Beaune, summarised the concern amongst those in the EU, last year saying the allegations were “extremely serious”.
Then, in January this year, another scandal rocked Copenhagen when Denmark's spy chief was imprisoned for allegedly leaking classified information. Later, in September, Lars Findsen was charged for the offence. He has denied any wrongdoing and is now awaiting his sentence.
Denmark's security services were also caught off guard when the Nord Stream pipeline exploded in the Danish part of the Black Sea, an event that many suspect was an attack carried out by Russia.
In May last year, allegations were made claiming that Denmark’s military intelligence agency cooperated with the US to spy on European leaders, including former German Chancellor Angela Merkel
French Europe minister, Clément Beaune, summarised the concern amongst those in the EU, last year saying the allegations were “extremely serious”.
Then, in January this year, another scandal rocked Copenhagen when Denmark's spy chief was imprisoned for allegedly leaking classified information. Later, in September, Lars Findsen was charged for the offence. He has denied any wrongdoing and is now awaiting his sentence.
Denmark's security services were also caught off guard when the Nord Stream pipeline exploded in the Danish part of the Black Sea, an event that many suspect was an attack carried out by Russia.
Danish election: The Nord Stream explosion happened near Denmark
(Image: Getty)
With Ms Frederiksen's reputation tarnished and Danes losing confidence in their leaders, the upcoming election will lay bare just how much damage has been done. The Danish Prime Minister seemed to be aggrieved having been forced to call the vote.
With Ms Frederiksen's reputation tarnished and Danes losing confidence in their leaders, the upcoming election will lay bare just how much damage has been done. The Danish Prime Minister seemed to be aggrieved having been forced to call the vote.
Announcing the election last month, she said it was "peculiar to have a general election in the middle of an international crisis" but conceded that it is “nevertheless what a majority in parliament wants.”
The global economic crisis will also beat the forefront of Danes' minds as they fill out their ballots this week. Like many other countries, Denmark is suffering from inflation, labour shortages and low salaries.
Another key issue is immigration. The country has some of the strictest rules in Europe, and Ms Frederiksen has adopted the tougher approach to nullify the right-wing parties aiming to oust her from power. The verdict is out on whether this is enough to clinch the support of her country.
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