The Point of No Return: Uphold Treaties or Fall to the United States
An open letter to Prime Minister Carney, Premier Smith, and Premier Eby
To: pm@pm.gc.ca, Premier@gov.ab.ca, premier@gov.bc.ca, premier@gov.sk.ca
Cc: info@chiefssteeringcommittee.net, pierre.poilievre@parl.gc.ca, contact@ndp.ca, ministre-minister@ec.gc.ca, info@pathwaysproject.ca
Dear Prime Minister and Premiers,
As an Alberta, Canadian, Geophysicist, oil and gas environmental liability expert, and mother, I am beyond belief. It seems we are living the darkest timeline. After decades of believing that Canada was a country to be proud of, I am disheartened to learn that the Canadian Government has abandoned our duty towards Truth and Reconciliation, for the public good.
It is clear that Canada’s political class are choosing a Canada who openly exploit communities to the point of genocide and/or ecocide, both at home and abroad. So-called Alberta, Canada is not only the home of the largest ongoing environmental catastrophe on the planet but you are now proposing we double the harm, abandoning Land Stewardship, International Treaty, and Natural Law. At Canadian taxpayer expense—Why?
The corporate leaders who led us here have proven their inability to deliver on climate for decades now. Back in the 1990s when it was clear that the oil and gas industry was NOT meeting its “world class” environmental regulations, my former “mentor” designed to the orphan programs for the industry across British Columbia, Alberta, and Saskatchewan, as well as the Mine Financial Security Program (MFSP) special for the oil sands companies—which contains a loophole: no backstop. These programs are like no other programs on the planet. They promise that no matter what happens, the companies standing will pay for the costs to clean up and restore the lands and waterways. Except for the oil sands, those operators need to time their exit perfectly by paying to clean up right when they know they can’t extract anymore before going broke. How is that going?
From 2020-2022, my role in the industry was to provide advice to your governments to mitigate insolvencies and orphans on behalf of the company I worked for—a company with a hefty stake in the orphan programs across all three provinces (BC ~40%, AB ~ 25%, and SK ~15%). Over those years it was very apparent that the costs to clean up and restore well, facility, and pipeline sites are way higher than what the public (investors) sees. Throughout those years, my employer kept telling me we could not know these costs. It wasn’t possible. I insisted this wasn’t true. It turns out the work had been completed by the Alberta Energy Regulator (AER) in 2018. And when this news reached the public, the work was thrown out and the team disbanded. Turns out the very same thing happened at the AER with respect to the oil sands.
After pleading constructive dismissal, a friend within the company took me for coffee to hear my story. I closed with, “I don’t understand why our company isn’t taking insolvency risk seriously, since we stand to lose the most when companies go under” (via the orphan program). His responded with, “Oh the plan is separation, I just went for coffee with an industry President and he told me there are 10 oil and gas executives who have been working on a plan to separate for more than 10 years.”
I say this for the record, as I now see that there is no confusion as to:
the size of the problem,
who is responsible for it,
how they plan to avoid paying for it,
how to address it, and
when it all needs to be done.
Federal Land Stewardship Laws provide the guidance, several databases are available to high-grade lands, waterways, and waterbodies for restoration. What is needed is a federal water, biodiversity, and ecological ongoing monitoring program. Instead, we are witnesses:
A rollback on carbon pricing targets and timelines.
Underreported emissions and increased freshwater consumption by companies in the provinces and no federal or provincial enforcement towards meaningful reductions. The world is facing freshwater bankruptcy, it is criminal to abandon this responsibility.
Provincial-Federal agreements void of Treaty Law.
A rollback of Environmental Impact Assessments.
A rollback of AER flaring limits.
The Notwithstanding Clause used to abuse our Charter Rights.
Canada’s Trans Mountain Expansion (TMX) not being refunded.
The promotion of carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology—proven to have failed time and time again—to justify continued oil and gas development.
The end of the Alberta Water Council.
The end of the Clean Air Alliance.
The industry is being rewarded for all of these rollbacks with:
An obscene economic strategy of AI data surveillance to support natural gas and LNG development across the country, primarily in Alberta. Last count is 57 projects proposed.
Another grand bargain: you want us to pay for another pipeline and a sure-fail CCS project.
Rollbacks in the Department of Fisheries and Oceans where water rights are upheld.
It is clear that the Government of Canada is abandoning your legal obligations to your people and the planet. Please let’s not pretend this is some kind of 4D chess. As an Albertan who cares deeply for this place and its people, please know that I see this for what it is and am deeply ashamed of you for misleading us here.
There is another path, instead of holding onto a system of exploitation and extinction, you can choose to be a hero. You can choose honesty and redemption. If I can do it, so can you. I will continue to do this work whether I am a free to do so or not.
Sincerely,
Jennifer D. Yeremiy, P. Geoph
Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Thank you for doing this and sharing with us, Jenny!