by Jim Fulton
BC government pushes offshore oil
The push for offshore oil and gas is coming from both the federal
minister of natural resources and the provincial government.
In the 2003 throne speech, Premier Gordon Campbell said he wanted
an offshore oil and gas industry “up and running, environmentally
sound and booming with job creation” by 2010.
Most experts say that offshore production by 2010 is creating false
hope. At the earliest, seismic testing and exploratory drilling are
about seven to 20 years down the road.
But there are both federal and provincial moratoriums on offshore
drilling in British Columbia. A public review of the federal moratorium
on oil and gas exploration started April 5. The provincial moratorium
is expected to be lifted or become irrelevant if the federal moratorium
is lifted. A three-member panel is looking at the possibility of lifting
the moratorium in the Queen Charlotte Basin.
There have been complaints that the panel is biased. It is headed
by the former head of the National Energy Board and a director of
Talisman Energy Corp. Federal Natural Resources Minister John Efford
is in favour of lifting the moratorium and won’t change the
makeup of the panel. Environment Minister David Anderson is adamantly
opposed to lifting the federal moratorium.
British Columbia’s coast is one of the most biologically rich
coasts in the world. Before production begins, seismic testing to
locate deposits of gas and oil could disrupt the migratory paths and
feeding patterns of whales, damage fish with swim bladders, destroy
fish eggs and larvae and cause fish to leave an area.
This could have a tremendous negative impact on our fishing and tourism
industries.
The BC coast’s stormy nature, deeply indented coasts and strong
landward currents make is highly vulnerable to the effects of oil
and gas pollution. A spill here would be devastating, as the oceanic
conditions would ensure the contaminants would hit the biologically
sensitive coast.
Expanding the oil and gas industry perpetuates a dependence on fossil
fuels and is contrary to the aims of the Kyoto protocol to cut greenhouse
gas emissions. If hydrocarbons are found in hoped for quantities,
the amount of carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere from burning
the crude oil and natural gas from BC’s offshore would be the
equivalent of putting 13 million cars on the road for 20 years, the
life of the offshore project.
Canadians and British Columbians have an opportunity to become global
leaders in building a 21st century economy focused on sustainable
economic development. The amount of natural gas in BC’s offshore
could produce the same amount of electricity as installing 75 megawatts
of wind power.
Programs to promote energy conservation and efficiency mean that we
will use less energy, save money and create more jobs than we would
through investments in oil and gas.
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