An Energy Gold Rush
The SPP hands control of Canada’s energy to the oil and gas industry
Energy, mainly the stuff coming
out of Alberta’s tar sands, is
arguably the sticky goo holding
the Security and Prosperity
Partnership of North America
together. But you probably
haven’t heard much about “energy integration”
in the mainstream media. The
term is somewhat nebulous, and doesn’t
come close to describing the very real
impact that a harmonized Canada-U.S.
energy strategy will have on Canadians’
day-to-day lives.
There are other elements of the SPP
that have already hit home with people,
including the new higher pesticide levels
on fruits and vegetables mandated
by the agreement, and the controversy
surrounding closed-door talks on bulk
exports of Canada’s water. But if the
U.S. government has its way, we will
see a fivefold increase in production in
Alberta’s tar sands in the coming years,
with disastrous environmental implications.
And if the plan for wholesale
North American energy integration is
allowed to continue, Canadians could
be left short in times of need.
Despite the fact that many Canadians
are unaware of the significance of energy
integration, the process has been under
way for several years now and is being
negotiated by a series of cross-border
working groups made up of industry
and government officials. In fact, energy
integration has already become deeply
entrenched as Canada has taken on new
obligations toward the United States.
Corporate drivers
The SPP is a far-reaching agreement,
which is being implemented in a piecemeal
fashion throughout the bureaucratic
structures of Canada, the U.S. and
Mexico – neatly bypassing the elected
legislatures of all three countries.
The corporate members of the North
American Competitiveness Council
– the advisory committee to the SPP
– have been the biggest drivers of the
pMarch 13, 2008three priorities in their
report to the leaders of Canada, the U.S.
and Mexico in February 2007.
The first step toward energy integration
occurred in 2005, when the SPP incorporated
the North American Energy
Working Group (NAEWG) into its
structure. The group was initially created
as the brainchild of the Bush-Cheney
administration in 2001.
In a 2005 address to the Canadian
Council of Chief Executives (CCCE),
then U.S. energy secretary Samuel
Bodman declared: “Since taking office
in 2001, the Bush administration has
worked to achieve a fully integrated
single North American market, one that
will … ensure a secure and reliable supply
of energy.”
According to the group’s website, the
NAEWG is made up of a series of subsidiary
“expert groups” that convene
regularly to “… build work plans and
develop mutually beneficial deliverables,
continuously identifying and implementing
areas of cooperation within the
continental energy market.”
According to Natural Resources Canada,
the Agreement for Cooperation in
Energy Science and Technology, signed
in July 2007, “allows for … trilateral
cooperation in mutually beneficial
research, development and deployment
on a wide range of energy technologies
for peaceful uses, including renewable
energy, energy efficiency, nuclear energy,
fossil fuels and electricity.”
This statement seems to imply that
nothing is off limits and the agreement
has room to grow. The language of the
agreement clearly states that the parties
can add areas or “forms of cooperation”
as they see fit. One has to wonder why a
treaty of this importance wasn’t brought
before Parliament for debate and subsequent
vote.
The implications here are clear. Canada’s
energy resources are now considered
“continental” energy resources. And an
unelected, unaccountable group of corporate
leaders and government officials
is quietly putting energy integration into
place, away from the scrutiny of citizens.
What ’s the point?
Based on their statements to date, we
can infer that the intent of the North
American Energy Working Group is to
limit government intervention, bow to
the whims of the energy corporations,
and harmonize rules across the border.
In January 2006, the Oil Sands Experts
Group met in Houston, Texas. In
the group’s own words, the meeting
“brought together experts representing
the oil sands industry, refiners, marketers,
pipeline companies and government
to address … value added development
in Canada or the oil sands.”
The “experts” present in Houston
called the Canadian government to “…
streamline the regulatory approval
process.”
The NACC recommendations to the
leaders likewise stated that “… convergence
on environmental standards is a
necessary condition for true energy market
integration over the long term.”
The intention is ultimately to facilitate
a rapid expansion of the tar sands based
only on what the market – in this case the U.S. market – demands. The tar
sands have already contributed to an
environmental catastrophe, including the
clear-cutting of the boreal forest, massive
water depletion and carbon dioxide
emissions. It’s hard to imagine what
would happen to northern Alberta’s ecosystem
if a planned “fivefold expansion”
of the tar sands became a reality under
“streamlined” environmental standards.
Boom for whom?
A de facto energy policy based on
continental integration raises a couple
of questions. First, who is going to
benefit from this policy? Certainly not
Canadians. Energy integration benefits
only the oil and gas conglomerates that
are driving the agenda in deference to
the U.S. market they wish to serve.
Second, who will determine how the
“continental resources” get distributed in
case of an energy crunch? You can bet it
won’t be the Canadian government.
Canadians can face brutally cold, long
winters, and heating our homes is not
a luxury we can give up. Without a
Canadian Energy Strategy – a strategy
that will give Canadians security of their
energy supplies, guaranteed access to
energy reserves in times of need, and
strong policies that protect our environment
and focus on finding alternative,
less harmful energy solutions – our
country will continue to be a victim
of an energy gold rush.
Politicians cannot let corporations and
the market set the agenda, focusing on
big business needs while ignoring the
energy security needs of Canadians.
Our country is rich with energy resources,
but Canadians do not have control
over them. NAFTA was the first agreement
to sign away Canada’s control. The
Harper government’s commitment to the
SPP gives away even more of our control.
The SPP moves Canada closer to a continental
resource pact that really means secure energy resources for the United
States and more money in the pockets
of large corporations. Meanwhile,
Canadians could be left out in the cold.
Jean-Yves LeFort is the Council of
Canadians’ Energy Campaigner.
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