In 2006 Statistics Canada drew attention to a troubling relationship between women’s equality in Alberta and the growth of extractive industries in the province. The report noted that while women in Eastern Canada were reaping the rewards of increasing education levels, greater access to affordable childcare, lower birth rates, and greater income equality, all these …

A subsidiary of Petronas, the Malaysian state-owned petro giant courted by the BC government, has built at least 16 unauthorized dams in northern BC to trap hundreds of millions of gallons of water used in its controversial fracking operations. The 16 dams are among “dozens” that have been built by Petronas and other companies without …

Last month, Shell and ConocoPhillips became the latest global oil giants to pull back from the Alberta oil sands. On March 9, Royal Dutch Shell (Shell Canada’s parent company) sold most of its Alberta assets to Canadian Natural Resources Limited (CNRL), Canada’s largest hydrocarbon corporation by volume of production. On March 29, US-based ConocoPhillips sold …

Disclaimer: This is my personal letter as a member of Bigstone Cree Nation on current events regarding the environmental, social, and economic impacts of resource extraction. I have shared a copy of this letter with my Chief and Council as a concerned member. There is something happening underneath our feet. It will stop the rivers …

The problem of corporate influence in politics and government is heating up in BC as we head towards the May election. 2017 kicked off with an explosive story in the New York Times, aptly titled “British Columbia: The Wild West of Canadian Political Cash.” The story drew widespread attention to the complete absence of limits …

This study examines the political reach of the fossil fuel industry in British Columbia, as evidenced by donations to political parties and lobbying efforts by oil, gas and coal corporations and industry groups. It finds a remarkable and disturbingly close relationship between industry and the provincial government – one that not only contradicts the province’s stated aim …

This study re-examines Canada’s contribution to global climate change in light of the Paris Agreement by looking at extracted carbon—the total amount of fossil fuels removed from Canadian soil that ends up in the atmosphere—whether used for domestic purposes or exported and combusted elsewhere. According to the study, Canada’s extracted carbon has risen dramatically, almost …

What does the spruce budworm have to do with the oil industry? Let’s start with the budworm. Last year, I completed a year-long investigation in Quebec’s forestry industry, as a visiting journalist at Concordia University in Montreal. My seven journalism students and I reported on what happened after a cyclical budworm infestation hit the forests …

After the federal approval of Kinder Morgan’s controversial Trans Mountain Pipeline Expansion (TMX), Alberta Premier Rachel Notley came to BC to sell the pipeline’s economic benefits. She claims BC will get a $1 billion per year boost in GDP as a result of the pipeline, as well as thousands of jobs in both construction and …

Despite sustained opposition to Kinder Morgan’s plan to twin the Trans Mountain pipeline, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his Cabinet gave it their blessing yesterday. Reaction from the many people, communities and nations opposed to the pipeline was swift. Twenty one municipalities and over 100 First Nations and Tribes have registered their opposition since the …

One year ago this week, the government of Alberta announced its Climate Leadership Plan, and in June 2016, the enabling legislation for the plan, Bill 20, the Climate Leadership Implementation Act, received royal assent. Alberta’s Climate Leadership Plan is based on the report developed by the government’s Climate Change Advisory Panel, chaired by economist Andrew Leach, an associate …

Royal Bank of Canada CEO David McKay made a few headlines last week when he offered his thoughts to the Edmonton Chamber of Commerce on the energy and climate challenges facing Canada. In his speech he called on the federal government to help get fossil fuel resources to market by approving new bitumen pipelines and …