The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
British Columbia Premier Gordon CampbellÕs enthusiasm for fighting climate change is laudable. But CampbellÕs interest in harmonizing provincial standards through the BC-Alberta Trade, Investment and Labour Mobility Agreement (TILMA) could undermine his efforts. The basic problem is this: fighting climate change will necessarily involve a lot of regulation, while TILMA is fundamentally a deregulatory initiative. TILMA creates and codifies investor rights, and provides a mechanism for private enforcement. This has huge consequences for public interest regulation in BC, as TILMAÕs private dispute panels can award up to $5 million to an Alberta investor if a decision made by a BC government body Òrestricts or impairsÓ their investment. Almost every environmental regulation restricts or impairs someoneÕs investment. A bold restructuring of BC into a carbon-neutral economy will almost certainly affect the profits of AlbertaÕs oil patch. Provinces have the right to make laws and regulations that protect the public interest and the environment. This means that trucking standards are more rigorous in mountainous BC than in flat Saskatchewan Ð this is common sense, not a restriction on trade. In many other areas provinces make regulatory decisions based on what makes the most sense in the local context. In practice, we can expect TILMA to cast a chill over decision-making at Premier CampbellÕs Cabinet table. Already, for example, it has been reported that the Cabinet, in seeking to eliminate junk food from schools, resorted to seeking voluntary agreements with vending machine companies, rather than simply legislating them away. This is bad news for a climate action strategy. There is still much detail to come on exactly how BC will meet its greenhouse gas emissions targets. But regulation will necessarily be part of a meaningful strategy. BC municipalities are already frustrated with TILMA, and after consulting their lawyers, voted at the Union of BC Municipalities convention to reject the agreement. They understand that TILMA could greatly affect their ability to make decisions that benefit their communities. Actions to fight climate change at the municipal level are particularly important as we move ahead to the 2020 target. Right now, TILMA is a barrier to achieving BCÕs environmental goals, and should be scrapped.
