NOTLEY BRINGS LIMITED TRIUMPH HOME
At her first national premiers’ meeting, Premier Rachel Notley faced the equivalent of a rookie hazing.
She had to deal with a pipeline leak, a surprise attack from another premier, even the reappearance of ex-premier Alison Redford, whom she ended up praising.
On top of that were the complex private talks and agreement on a Canadian Energy Strategy. The new strategy isn’t a huge win for Alberta, but its failure would have been a genuine disaster.
The energy strategy affirms that pipelines have equal status with other transmission infrastructure such as electricity lines. That would have been apple pie a decade ago, but today it’s a victory.
This is, however, a limited and grudging one.
The word “pipelines” only appears four times in the 40-page “aspirational” document. One senses that these projects were allowed at the table until dinner was done and then sent back to their room, the annoying children of modern Confederation.
The word “oilsands” doesn’t appear in the document at all. How can a Canadian Energy Strategy not mention one of the world’s biggest oil deposits?
Maybe because that would have meant a fight over whether to call it oilsands, or tarsands.
Notley gave a hint that even this deal could have gone off the rails. She said that at the last minute, she had to object to some proposed language around energy and climate change.
“Don’t expect a pipeline to be built tomorrow,” Notley said afterward. “It won’t.”
She knows how little the strategy means on the practical level. But she does have something useful in hand; a firm assurance that pipeline projects, as well as the stuff they carry, are legitimate and have to be treated fairly by other provinces.
It implies that projects shouldn’t be endlessly delayed by intransigent enemies or nervous provincial governments.
When that happens again — as it surely will — Notley can at least wave the document at other premiers.
The alternative, flat-out defeat of the energy strategy, would have left Alberta’s own approach to pipeline and energy approvals in a shambles.
That in turn could have produced deep bitterness, and a serious West-East divide.
The strategy was thus a positive for Notley, and certainly for Redford, who originated the whole idea of developing a Canada-wide agreement.
Redford even appeared on the CBC, a sighting as rare as the pileated woodpecker, to praise both Notley and the agreement.
Asked if Redford deserves credit, Notley was as brief as she could be while still sounding warm: “Yes, she does.”
But the positive symbolism was largely swept away by the Nexen emulsion spill east of Fort McMurray, from the kind of brand-new pipeline touted as super-safe.
Notley said she expects a “robust investigation” and the public is “rightly worried” about pipeline safety.
She also had to deal with Premier Brad Wall, who blasted her implication — which she denies — that she would allow other provinces a veto on pipelines, if they don’t like Alberta’s climate change policy.
Wall painted himself as the pure defender of the energy industry. His play for a big investment shift to Regina — maybe with The Bow tower thrown in — could not be more obvious.
Notley’s people said Friday they had no warning his attack was coming. They don’t doubt the link both to investment dreams and Wall’s upcoming election battle with the Saskatchewan NDP.
In the end, the western producing provinces had a paper victory, but came out of the meeting weaker rather than stronger.
The conference launched a high-level political feud between Alberta and Saskatchewan. It didn’t mute the long-running quarrel with B.C. over revenuesharing from the Northern Gateway pipeline. We still don’t know whether bitumen itself is a banned substance to Premier Christy Clark.
With all that going only two months after she took office, Notley handled herself with skill, humour and a sharp eye for the bear traps.
That’s called victory in this club. May she enjoy her membership.
In the end, the western producing provinces had a paper victory, but came out of the meeting weaker rather than stronger. — Columnist Don Braid