Alberta NDP candidate Samir Kayande (Calgary-Elbow) said the oil and gas industry “must go away.” . Oil and GasOil and gas .“This is how the NDP really feels about our energy industry,” said Alberta United Conservative Party MLA Prasad Panda (Calgary-Edgemont) in a Thursday statement..“They don’t support it.” .Kayande said in an op-ed published in CBC Opinion in 2021 there is no alternative to hydrocarbons..“It's too polluting,” he said..“And the longer we wait, the worse the reckoning.”.Even in its reduced state, oil and gas makes a massive contribution to the Canadian economy. These good jobs come from the geology which put oil and gas in Alberta and a few other places..Now that those jobs cannot be counted on, Kayande said it's the right time to think about the future. He added he's “talking about the replacement of a dominating, export-oriented industry with … something else.”.One reason why people might oppose the just transition is because they are unwilling to change, he said. He acknowledged it's hard to make the case liquefied natural gas is cleaner than burning coal from one side of a person’s mouth while screaming carbon taxes kill jobs from the other..Some times it's easier hoping the same actions at a different time will lead to different results, while other times people are lazy, he said. .The Alberta NDP candidate went on to say the province's obvious strengths are sunshine and wind, which help renewable energy economies. He admitted there isn't enough to make it a renewable energy powerhouse, as it is far from markets and electricity transportation costs are high..Kayande said renewable energy could be great and lead to an amazing future of cheap power forever. For now, it is a local business..While renewables could be used to decarbonize Alberta’s own electricity and help to lower greenhouse gas emissions, he said they might not be a source of competitive advantage similar to hydrocarbon production..Other ideas Kayande proposed were geothermal energy, hydrogen, and carbon capture and storage. He said a sensible beginning to any discussion about their merits should start with the capabilities needed..The punchline is no other business is likely to provide the kind of returns oil and gas brought Alberta..Kayande called creating a new future “very hard work.” There is probably no other resource which could make up for the excess returns it was paid in the past..“But if that hydrocarbon past is gone and never to return, moving on is not a luxury,” he said..Panda said Kayande’s comments make it clear the NDP wants to go away from the oil and gas industry..“We cannot trust the NDP with our largest industry and the hundreds of thousands of livelihoods attached to it,” he said..Panda pointed out in February Kayande and NDP candidate Nagwan Al-Guneid (Calgary-Glenmore) did work for energy policy think tank the Pembina Institute..READ MORE: Two Calgary NDP candidates have affiliations with anti-oil and gas think tank.“It’s important for Calgarians to know about the close relationship between the Alberta NDP and anti-oil groups like the Pembina Institute,” he said..The Pembina Institute said it is working to solve present energy challenges, which it believes can be done by reducing the effects of fossil fuels and promoting renewable energy..Kayande could not be reached for comment in time for publication.
