Study: Climate change policy caused hardship for Canada’s oil industry

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A new study by IHS Energy, led by Kevin Birn, has discovered why different climate change policy choices made by Canada and the US point to continued hardship for Canada’s top oil producing province.

The experts claim that the two countries are focusing on different areas for greenhouse gas reductions and are using different policy tools because of their unique conditions.

While the USA focuses on shale gas and thus the policies go easy on and even benefit there, it comes down hard on the Canadian oilpatch, concentrated in Alberta.

“This is a concern for Canada’s large oil and gas sector, which competes globally for investment and export markets,” says the report. “Unilateral climate policy adds cost that could move investment, activity, and associated emissions from Canada to regions with less-stringent policies, with little or no net reduction in global emissions.”

According to the Alberta government’s fiscal update, non-energy investment has also declined as the oilpatch recession influences other spheres as well: such as housing, retail activity, labour markets and manufacturing.