ENVIRONMENT

Flourishing in a Healthy Environment

Alberta Liberals will reverse years of foot-dragging, and make Alberta a world leader in addressing environmental issues including climate change, water protection, and land stewardship.

Alberta Liberal Action Plan for the Environment

Climate change

• Establish an absolute cap on greenhouse gas emissions from all sources, to take effect five years after forming government, through an active partnership with the energy industry.
• Establish a Premier’s Strategic Council on Climate Change to create and implement a comprehensive climate change policy.
• Ensure that Alberta’s royalty system supports the protection of our air, land and water.
• Redirect the $250 million Natural Gas Rebate Program towards energy efficiency and conservation, such as home and business energy-efficient retrofits, to allow all Albertans to join in the fight against climate change.
• Improve building code standards to reduce energy use.
• Support increased use of public transportation, recycling and composting.
• Promote cleaner renewable energy sources, such as solar, wind and geothermal power.
• Implement appropriate financial and economic incentives to develop carbon capture and storage technology.

Water and wetlands

• Require mandatory watershed management planning for all major river basins, including wetland protection.
• Strengthen protections against interbasin water transfers by requiring full public consultation, and approval by the Alberta Water Council before introducing any special legislation.
• Require a provincial water inventory (surface and ground) and establish an effective monitoring program.
• Reduce, then phase out freshwater injection for deep well flooding. Stop issuing new licences for deep well flooding with fresh groundwater, and set strict timelines for the cancellation of existing water licences specifically for deep well flooding in settled areas of Alberta.

Coalbed methane

• Minimize the land area affected by coalbed methane development.
• Conduct an independent scientific analysis of the effects of coalbed methane drilling on groundwater quantity and quality, with priority on the Horseshoe Canyon region.
• Progressively reduce venting and flaring.
• Require Environmental Impact Assessments to assess the cumulative effects of large-scale coalbed methane developments.
• Ensure that any new regulations apply to existing operations.

Public lands management

• Establish and implement a provincial land use strategy.
• Halt the sell-off of public lands.
• Halt private hunting in Alberta.
• Limit clear-cutting and encourage wildlife protection in the forestry industry.
• Ensure that all industries work together to minimize the impact on our natural environment, especially in sensitive areas.
• Work with the forestry sector to explore and develop new opportunities for a broader, more sustainable base for the industry.
• Establish conservation offsets to balance lands impacted by development.
• Immediately review existing legislation to strengthen Alberta’s parks and protected areas.
• Increase the amount of protected park space. As a first commitment, establish the Andy Russell–I’tai sah kòp Park.

Waste management

• Implement a provincial waste management strategy, to better manage waste and reduce Alberta’s reliance on landfills.
• Set firm, province-wide targets for waste diversion, including recycling and composting.

Click here to download the Alberta Liberal Action Plan for the Environment in .pdf format.