Tag Archives: Export Development Canada

Cost of Climate Change, Energy

Ottawa warned public funding for LNG and fossil fuel projects could trigger Charter challenges

By Sonal Gupta, Canada’s National Observer, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

A BC citizens’ group and its lawyers are warning Ottawa it could face Charter challenges if it uses public money to support new or expanded fossil fuel projects, including major LNG developments in British Columbia.

Ecojustice lawyers, acting for Citizens for My Sea to Sky, recently sent a legal letter to federal ministers and Crown corporations, including the Canada Infrastructure Bank and Export Development Canada. The letter says new subsidies or financing for projects such as Ksi Lisims LNG, LNG Canada Phase 2 or a new oil pipeline, could violate Canadians’ constitutional rights — on the basis that public financing for these projects would worsen the climate crisis and increase risks to Canadians’ Charter-protected rights, including the right to life, security of the person and equality. 

“The subsidies drive the project; the project [drives] the emissions; the emissions drive the harms and the risk of harms,” said Ecojustice lawyer Charlie Hatt.

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Politics

There is no easy way for Canada to de-escalate the trade war

By John Woodside, Canada’s National Observer, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

As a federal election kicks off, the trade war with the U.S. is casting a long shadow  over voters’ choices, and whoever forms the next government will have  the tall order of trying to draw this conflict to a close. 

“President  Trump wants to break us so America can own us,” said Liberal Leader  Mark Carney at a campaign stop in Gander, NL on Monday. “We are over the  shock of betrayal, but we should never forget the lessons. We have to  look out for ourselves.”

International trade experts interviewed by Canada’s National Observer say  that will be much easier said than done. The two economies are more  integrated than ever before, and President Donald Trump’s chaotic  governing style makes it extremely difficult to know how to even begin  to unravel this dispute. 

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Environment

Feds press on climate in mandate letters, but environmentalists will wait and see

By John Woodside,  National Observer, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

The cabinet ministers’ mandate letters published last week hint at a whole-of-government approach to tackling the climate crisis, but the devil will be in the details, many environmentalists say. 

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Energy, Finances

Helping Canada’s Energy Sector Survive

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The transition to a low carbon economy started long before anyone heard of COVID 19.  According to a 2019 report from Clean Energy Canada, there are already 298,000 Canadians working in the clean energy sector. Yet as a result of the global pandemic, the demand for oil has fallen to 1995 levels. The Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers (CAPP) did not hide the fact they have been been working closely with the Trudeau government to “identify important areas for urgent action to help Canada’s energy sector survive the current economic crisis.”

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