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.
Canadians might be surprised to learn that Canada does not have an energy strategy. Despite our vast endowment of energy resources, we do not have a strategy in place to manage this wealth and to maximize the opportunities it presents for Canada. Partly to blame for this absence of an energy strategy is the recent blurring of the lines between energy and climate change. The energy and climate change policy files are intimately connected, but it may be time to start thinking about them separately. Prime Minister Stephen Harper says Canada aspires to be a Òclean energy superpower,Ó a phrase that implies global leadership in this area. If we truly want to Ògo cleanÓ and make it work for us in the global arena, we must set goals that enable us to use our energy capital to be global leaders and produce energy in a way that is best for Canada. We need a Canadian (not a federal government) strategy that incorporates the interests and strengths of all of CanadaÕs provinces and major urban centres, and asks provinces, cities and Ottawa to work together to identify priorities, coordinate policy development, and integrate their climate change and energy policies. We need a strategy that will coordinate federal, provincial, territorial and municipal policy initiatives; establish hard energy production targets across a range of energy sources (e.g., wind, solar, nuclear, oil, natural gas, coal, geothermal and hydro); be compatible with and inform a national climate change strategy; and be broad in scope, moving beyond regulation and beyond singular initiatives such as carbon capture and storage. We need a strategy that takes into account both international realities and the need for continental policy coherence; recognizes the potential social and economic costs associated with transforming our energy needs/demands; stresses energy conservation; sends appropriate price signals; recognizes the need for public investment in research and technology; and is built for the long haul, recognizing that many aspects of an effective energy strategy may take years, decades and even generations to accomplish. Perhaps there is no better time than during a federal election campaign to think about what our energy future should look like. For better or for worse, we are looking at a carbon-constrained future, and we must tailor our energy goals around this reality.
