Western Newsletter: Premiers to meet in Saskatchewan among growing split over energy, carbon taxes

Good morning, it’s James Keller in Calgary.

Alberta Premier Jason Kenney will continue rallying support for the energy industry at a meeting with provincial and territorial premiers in Saskatoon that begins today.

Mr. Kenney, who has made the energy file his top priority since he was elected in April, has been laying the groundwork for weeks. He met with Western and territorial premiers in Edmonton two weeks ago, where they agreed to press for more resource development. And earlier this week, Mr. Kenney hosted several prominent conservative premiers in Calgary, where they discussed their opposition to the carbon tax and opposition to the Trudeau government.

The Alberta Premier blames the Prime Minister for the failure to get the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion started.

Open this photo in gallery:

Yesterday, a number of premiers visited the Big River First Nation in Saskatchewan to meet with the national chief of the Assembly of First Nations, Perry Bellegarde.

Mr. Bellegarde acknowledged the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion is divisive but said his group isn’t taking a position. Instead, he says his top priority is that every affected Indigenous community is consulted.

The meeting also happened the same day new polling was released that shows broad public support for the Trans Mountain project across the country.

The Nanos poll conducted for The Globe and Mail found 68 per cent of respondents across the country said they either support or somewhat support the decision, while 27 per cent were opposed. That support was the highest in the Prairies, where 84 per cent of respondents were in support, but there was also clear support in British Columbia (61 per cent) and Quebec (56 per cent), where provincial governments have opposed new oil pipelines.

This is the twice-weekly Western Canada newsletter written by B.C. Editor Wendy Cox and Alberta Bureau Chief James Keller. If you’re reading this on the web, or it was forwarded to you from someone else, you can sign up for it and all Globe newsletters here. This is a new project and we’ll be experimenting as we go, so let us know what you think.

Also: Dozens sent to hospital after carbon-monoxide leak in Winnipeg hotel

A leak in a boiler room emitted dangerously high levels of carbon monoxide into a Winnipeg hotel, sending dozens of people to hospital after many felt light headed, became nauseous, or were vomiting. Most people have been released from hospital and everyone is expected to survive. The level of carbon monoxide was 15 times higher than the limit for short-term exposure but well below the amount that would be considered fatal.

ALBERTA ENERGY REGULATOR: The Alberta Energy Regulator is bracing for steep cuts and other changes as part of a government-wide austerity program. The interim CEO of the industry-funded group told staff in an email that one of the problems is that struggling oil companies can’t afford to pay their mandatory levies that finance the agency.

TRANS MOUNTAIN: A group of B.C. First Nations has launched a new legal challenge of the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion, adding a new threat to the project after it was re-approved by the federal government last week. The Tsleil-Waututh First Nation, which was the main Indigenous plaintiff in a lawsuit that blocked the project, and several other First Nations argue the federal government’s decision was biased because it now owns the pipeline. Earlier in the week, environmentalists filed a separate lawsuit focused on how the project would affect southern resident killer whales.

ENVIRONMENTALISTS: The B.C. Civil Liberties Association says newly released documents from CSIS show the agency was working with the oil industry to spy on environmentalists who were protesting pipeline projects. But CSIS insists it didn’t get any “actionable” info.

FLOODING: Ranchers in B.C. are asking for provincial help after flooding on the Chilcotin River left them underwater. Five consecutive days of rain totalling 100 millimetres have created conditions of a once-in-a-200-year flood situation.

GAY-CONVERSION THERAPY: The federal government is pressing provinces, territories and municipalities to ban gay-conversion therapy – something that has become an issue for Alberta’s United Conservative government. The province has said there’s no need for a ban after the Opposition NDP complained that the government cancelled a working group formed under its government. Earlier this week, city councillors in St. Albert, a bedroom community northeast of Edmonton, voted to create their own ban.

NHL IN CHINA: A B.C-born animator is working with the NHL to make a hockey-themed version of his popular Chinese cartoon to promote hockey among children in China. Super BOOMi, which first aired in China in 2017 and has become one of the most popular animated series in the country, follows a tech-loving and adventurous superhero bear BOOMi. The new online spinoff follows BOOMi and his friends as they learn hockey.

Opinion

Gary Mason on Alberta’s inquiry into environmentalists: “This inquiry is designed to serve one purpose only: to show Albertans Mr. Kenney is prepared to fight on their behalf, even if it’s against imaginary enemies. The fact is, Mr. Kenney, more than anyone, has helped ensure that environmental activists begin their attacks on the oil sands all over again.”

The Globe and Mail Editorial Board on the Alberta inquiry: “Perhaps the inquiry will discover the shocking truth that supply, demand and Mideast countries influence oil prices, or that environmentalists oppose pipelines. Maybe it will learn, from reading news reports, about how the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion was delayed by a failure to fully consult with Indigenous groups. Or how several export pipeline plans have been hamstrung by U.S. regulators.”