Coal mining must first be carefully assessed

Environmental concerns need to be at the forefront,

In his piece in the Calgary Herald on Aug. 26, Robin Campbell, president of the Coal Association of Canada, asks that the facts about coal mining become known. Unfortunately, in his article, Mr. Campbell ignores multiple inconvenient truths.

He writes as if the Vista decision was the only coal mine that Ottawa decided to review. More accurately, there will now be reviews of two proposed mines, one in Alberta and one in B.C. Both are in mountainous terrain that is very difficult if not impossible to reclaim. Both proponents had adjusted the project size so that they were just under the levels where a federal review would have been automatic. In the case of Vista, the revised project size was barely one per cent below the threshold.

Mr. Campbell decries federal intrusion into provincial jurisdiction, but he neglects to mention that his Vista project will produce huge amounts of pollutants that do not respect any political or even geographic boundary. The Vista mine produces thermal coal whose sole purpose is to be burned to produce electricity. This coal will release more than 30 million tonnes of CO2 each year. This greenhouse gas comes from coal from our country, Canada, that is pushing others to stop burning coal to produce electricity.

Mr. Campbell claims that Alberta requires full reclamation bonding before a mine can proceed. If only! The latest figures from the Alberta Energy Regulator suggest there is a massive hole in the fund that is supposed to ensure mines are reclaimed. The potential liabilities for the fund exceed $30 billion, while it has assets of only $2 billion. Taxpayers may see a repeat of the Orphan Well Association debacle where the public faces bills of many billions to clean up behind companies that have exploited hydrocarbon resources owned by Albertans.

Mr. Campbell claims that Alberta has some of the strictest regulations for resource projects. Unfortunately, a recent letter in the Lethbridge Herald by Richard Quinlan, a retired biologist, paints a very different picture. He describes how a Hinton area coal mine violated regulations frequently but never faced significant penalties. The best regulations are worthless if they are not enforced.

At a point in time when it is crucial to make it clear to the world that Alberta’s oil and gas industry is, in Premier Jason Kenney’s words, “the most environmentally responsible and ethical producer in the world,” why would we endanger this important reputation and Alberta’s economic recovery by supporting coal production that is well understood to be a major polluter and contributing factor in global warming?

Finally, Mr. Campbell is unhappy that politics may influence decisions regarding the Vista mine. It might be more accurate to say he is concerned that decisions will be made by politicians who do not subscribe to his ideology. Fortunately, not all politicians believe that economics should always trump environmental concerns.

The Livingstone Landowners Group believes Alberta should only allow mining in areas where vital watersheds aren’t put at risk, where chemical pollutants can be controlled and where the economics are such that taxpayers will not face a risk of enormous delayed costs. The Vista mine, and most other coal projects proposed in the mountain areas, fails on all these points.

The federal government should be commended for taking on the responsibility that Alberta seems to be prepared to abdicate.