Battle lines are being drawn over energy, resources and emissions after the premiers of Alberta and Saskatchewan staked out defensive lines and marshalled support for what is shaping up to be an epic jurisdictional battle with Ottawa over resources.. Scott MoeSaskatchewan Premier Scott Moe answers questions from the press at the Global Energy Show in Calgary. .The venue, appropriately enough, was the Global Energy Show in Calgary where Danielle Smith and Scott Moe each laid out their bottom line positions with respect to federal “overreach” into each province’s respective energy and resource sectors..In one corner Smith championed Alberta’s oil and gas industry, touting innovations in clean tech, hydrogen and petrochemicals. .In the other, Moe flatly rejected any suggestion of decarbonizing his province’s electrical grid by 2035 — even at the risk of being “arrested” by Environment Minister and Climate Change Steven Guilbeault..“No, I’m not afraid,” Moe told Western Standard. “It (decarbonization) isn’t going to happen.”.In her keynote address, Smith pleaded for “common ground” with Ottawa on issues like the carbon tax, emissions caps and Alberta’s own electrical grid. She insisted Alberta is prepared to work with the federal government on issues like emissions reduction, but complained they keep “moving the regulatory goalposts.”.“It would be nice if Ottawa recognized the value of Alberta’s natural gas sector,” she said, outlining a vision of an integrated value chain with hydrogen as the centrepiece. “This isn’t an abstract idea.”.However, “federal obstructionism is the only cloud in this picture,” she added..Likewise, Moe railed against “ideologically motivated policies” that are not only impractical, but unworkable. Although Saskatchewan is prepared to retire its coal fired power fleet by 2030, he flat out rejected any suggestion of phasing out natural gas by 2035..Saskatchewan has at least one gas-fired facility completed and ready to come on line and another in the final design stages awaiting construction. Moe said each have service lives that extend well beyond 2035 and in any event, won’t be shut down. Period..“We have a constitution in this country,” he said. “It’s not their decision to make … they’re out of their lane.”.When asked how far each were prepared to go at the risk of escalating a full-blown constitutional crisis, Smith said “that’s what the Sovereignty Act is all about,” although she was reluctant to say exactly what that would entail and how a process would work..“I think I’ve drawn a line in the sand,” she said..Likewise, Moe said his province is more than willing to implement its own Saskatchewan First Act. However, he said the process would be more of a defensive posture rather than an outright declaration of war. .Rather than suing Ottawa in court over what it would see as an unconstitutional law — a process that could take months or even years — the feds would be the ones forced to litigate. “It would be a pretty quick litigation,” he quipped..While both Smith and Moe acknowledged they've had both formal and informal meetings to discuss strategy and areas of “mutual interest” between the two provinces, each separately agreed on the need to bring in allies with other partners to form a united front and bring pressure to bear on Ottawa..Smith specifically mentioned First Nations who support energy development, while Moe noted other provinces such as Newfoundland and Labrador also have shared interests..“We’re not the only ones with these concerns,” he said.
