The Stelmach Government's first budget does little to acknowledge the accelerating environmental impacts of an overheating energy sector, let alone begin to address them, three leading environmental organisations said today.
"The environment was a complete no-show in this budget," said Amy Taylor, Senior Economist at the Pembina Institute. "Premier Stelmach's government doesn't seem to understand that the environment is a priority for Albertans, and that Albertans' priorities need to be reflected in the budget."
In this context, four of the budget's failures are particularly troubling:
1. A failure to translate resource revenues into economic and environmental security:
The 2007 Budget does not allocate any fossil fuel royalties to long-term savings such as the Heritage Fund. In fact, no new money will be deposited into the Heritage Fund at all. Dedicated savings are essential to the security of future generations in Alberta and the government should be setting aside at least half of its non-renewable resource revenues annually for this purpose. The government should also be investing annually and strategically to build a more diversified and sustainable economy.
2. A failure to put Albertans' interests ahead of the oilsands industry:
Budget 2007 passes up the opportunity to follow the federal precedent on eliminating the Accelerated Capital Cost Allowance (ACCA) for oilsands - a subsidy that is inappropriate and unnecessary by any standard. The budget forecasts a decline in oilsands royalties by 2009, a trend occurring because Albertans are not receiving their fair share from resource development. In fact, a 2005 Alberta Energy review found that under the current royalty regime, oilsands royalties would be roughly the same in 2020 as they are now, despite a tripling of production. Without fair returns, Albertans will be unable to plan for the future - a fact that this budget's lack of strategic investment demonstrates only too well.
3. A failure to fund departments responsible for environmental protection:
Budget 2007 extends a history of under-resourcing environmental protection even as Alberta Environment and Alberta Sustainable Resource Development face increasing workloads. For instance, since 2000, the number of approved projects in the oilsands region has almost tripled, substantially increasing the scale of environmental impacts that need to be addressed. Over the same period, however, both departments' staffing levels have remained essentially constant and their share of the overall budget has declined by more than a tenth to less than 1.6 percent of the total. Alberta cannot hope to address cumulative impacts in the oilsands and elsewhere if environmental protection is not prioritised in the government's budget decisions.
4. A failure to invest seriously in addressing the climate crisis:
The minister's Budget Speech makes no mention of climate change, the most serious environmental issue of our time. This represents yet another lost opportunity for significant investments in energy efficiency and renewable energy, which would not only reduce greenhouse gas pollution immediately, but also reduce energy costs over the long term. In addition, efficiency improvements such as building retrofits could earn rates of return higher than 15 percent, the benchmark achieved by the Heritage Fund last year. Compared to the potential for cost-effective action on climate change, the government's move to extend Accelerated Capital Cost Allowances to a few clean energies is a drop in the bucket.
"The finance minister spoke today about the 'price of prosperity'," said Lindsay Telfer, Director of the Sierra Club Prairie Chapter, "but the real issue is the price that future generations will pay for this government's abject lack of planning. It's time to change course and start investing in a sustainable, diverse and stable economy so that Albertans can enjoy prosperity's rewards."
"Think about it this way: no oilsands company would operate without a plan for sustainable profits thirty or forty years in the future. This budget, on the other hand, provides no evidence that the Alberta government has a vision for that far ahead," added Nashina Shariff, Associate Director of Toxics Watch. "You have to ask yourself, where does that leave Albertans' interests?"
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For more information, please contact:
Amy Taylor
Pembina Institute
Tel: 403-996-0510
Lindsay Telfer
Sierra Club Prairie Chapter
Tel: 780-710-0136
Nashina Shariff
Toxics Watch
Tel: 780-915-8946
