(Ottawa) The federal government is open to the idea of pushing back the date from which all power plants that run on natural gas must be equipped with technology to capture their emissions.
This was stated on Tuesday by the federal Minister of Energy, Jonathan Wilkinson, who specified that discussions in this direction were taking place before the Premier of Alberta, Danielle Smith, announced her intention to invoke the law on the sovereignty of its province.
According to Mme Smith, this law allows Alberta to avoid legislation adopted in Ottawa regarding the transition to green energy.
The federal Minister of the Environment, Steven Guilbeault, believes that this law is only a symbolic political gesture that has no legal basis or in the Constitution of Canada.
Wilkinson said he was baffled by the situation, as Ottawa has made clear it understands the province’s concerns about how some newer gas plants could become useless assets if regulations are not adjusted. .
The draft regulation that was tabled this summer by the federal government stipulates that any power plant that generates greenhouse gas emissions will have to close or install a system to reduce its emissions by 2035.
But gas plants that are built and start operating before 2025 can operate without this constraint for 20 years from their opening date, and Mr Wilkinson argued that the government is considering extending this period to address the concerns of some provinces.