Associate minister defends natural gas, highlights Peace region projects
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Associate Minister of Natural Gas Dale Nally highlighted the benefits of the Coastal Gaslink project and natural gas in general as protests continue across Canada.
Nationwide rail and road blockades have been popping up for weeks as a show of support for the Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs in northwestern B.C., who oppose the Coastal GasLink project cutting across their traditional territory. The pipeline is expected to deliver natural gas from the Dawson Creek area to a facility near Kitimat.
Nally said these protesters were giving the “erroneous perception” that they represented the Indigenous peoples in B.C. Along the pipeline’s path, 20 elected band councils have signed agreements with Coastal GasLink Pipeline Ltd.
“The vast majority of Indigenous people in B.C. support the Coastal GasLink,” Nally said.
“They support it for a lot of reasons and one of the reasons is the prosperity that it’s going to bring to Indigenous people and another reason is it’s great for the environment.”
According to the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers (CAPP), natural gas is the cleanest-burning hydrocarbon, emitting about 40 per cent less carbon dioxide when used in electricity generation.
“If we’re going to not only stop countries from expanding in coal and actually begin reducing GHG (greenhouse gas) emissions globally, the best way to do that is to get natural gas to global markets,” Nally said.
While acknowledging that renewable energy was cleaner and had a role in responsible energy development, Nally noted that the technology wasn’t yet able to power the globe.
“We would freeze in the dark in Alberta if we had to rely on solar and wind,” he said.
“Natural gas is the cleanest fossil fuel that we have and it will always be there when solar and wind cannot be.”
Nally added that Canada had the “toughest” regulations in the world regarding methane emissions, while coastal liquefied natural gas (LNG) facilities would be powered by hydroelectricity.
“It is going to be the cleanest gas, the cleanest LNG in the world, and we’re confident the last drop of gas that’s used on this planet should come from right here in Canada.”
Successes in the Peace
Earlier this month, Seven Generations Energy signed a supply contract with Quebec’s main natural gas distributor. The operational headquarters of Seven Generations is located in Grande Prairie.
“The work that Seven Generations is doing is just one more example of the innovation and environmental responsibility that exists within Alberta’s natural gas sector,” Nally said, attributing this achievement to the company’s “environmental and social governance.”
The Alberta government also signed a memorandum of understanding this month with the Tri-Municipal Partnership to co-ordinate the development of an eco-industrial area south of Grande Prairie. This area is expected to become a global energy and petrochemical manufacturing hub.
“My department is working on a vision to make Alberta a destination for world-class petrochemical development projects,” Nally said.
“I see Grande Prairie as an absolutely big destination for some petrochemical facilities in the future.”
—With files from Tyler Dawson
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