With the January 18, 2012 decision by U.S. President Obama to deny its presidential permit, the proposed Keystone XL Pipeline has been back in the news. And in Canada, the Joint Review Panel for the proposed Enbridge Northern Gateway Project began conducting community hearings on January 10th. Although most opposition to both pipelines focuses on environmental damage, the promise of job creation is a powerful factor behind the debate. With the release on January 26th of a confidential policy document of the federal government, Greenpeace Canada has called into question the neutrality of the Canadian government and the National Energy Board in this environment/jobs debate.

LINKS:

“Federal documents spark outcry by oil sands critics” (Jan 26, 2012) in the Toronto Globe and Mail at:

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-investor/federal-documents-spark-outcry-by-oil-sands-critics/article2316087/

https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&pid=explorer&chrome=true&srcid=0B_0MqnZ4wmcMYjY0NjY4Y2MtOWQzMi00NmU0LThhNWMtNzExN2EwYWI5N2Ex&hl=en_US&pli=1

LINKS:

Cornell University Global Labour Institute website, with links to other Keystone Pipeline documents, at:

http://www.ilr.cornell.edu/globallaborinstitute/research/Keystonexl.html

Pipedreams? Jobs gained, jobs lost by the construction of Keystone XL at:

http://www.ilr.cornell.edu/globallaborinstitute/research/upload/GLI_KeystoneXL_011912_FIN.pdf

Transcanada Inc. website is at:

http://www.transcanada.com/economic_benefits.html

The Perryman Report, formally The Impact of Developing the Keystone XL Pipeline Project on Business Activity in the US: An Analysis Including State-by-State Construction Effects and an Assessment of the Potential Benefits of a More Stable Source of Domestic Supply is available at: http://www.transcanada.com/docs/Key_Projects/TransCanada_US_Report_06-10-10.pdf

Keystone XL Pipeline archive of stories and related documents at the New York Times website at: http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/subjects/k/keystone_pipeline/index.html

LINKS:

Enbridge’s Northern Gateway website at:http://www.northerngateway.ca/economic-opportunity/benefits-for-british-columbians/ provides an overview of the company’s estimates for job creation, or

See Socio-economic Fact Sheet at:

http://www.northerngateway.ca/assets/pdf/Environment%20Protection%20and%20Socio-Economic%20Assessment/NGP-FS-06-004_Socio-Economic%20Benefits.pdf

National Energy Board website for the Enbridge Northern Gateway Review Panel at: http://gatewaypanel.review-examen.gc.ca/clf-nsi/hm-eng.html.

(See the Public Registry for all official documents and submissions at:

https://www.neb-one.gc.ca/ll-eng/livelink.exe/fetch/2000/90464/90552/384192/620327/customview.html?func=ll&objId=620327&objAction=browse&sort=-name&redirect=3).

CBC Northern Gateway Pipeline: benefits vs. concerns January 10, 2012, with links to related documents at:

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/story/2012/01/10/f-northern-gateway-pipeline.html

A new report from the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy provides case studies of workplace programs to reduce energy use, by changing employees’ attitudes and behaviours.  Of the five case studies, three are Canadian: B.C Hydro, University Health Network (Toronto) and the British Columbia Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resource.  The other two case studies are of the Empire State Building in New York and the U.S. House of Representatives.

LINKS: 

Greening Work Styles: An Analysis of Energy Behavior Programs in the Worplace (January 2012) is available at:

http://www.aceee.org/sites/default/files/publications/researchreports/b121.pdf

LINKS: 

Job Creation and Economic Development Opportunities in the Canadian Hydropower Market is available at:

http://www.globe-net.com/articles/2011/december/27/hydropower-investment-could-create-a-million-canadian-jobs/

The Pembina Institute has released a fact sheet and a backgrounder which describe and advocate the potential of municipalities to encourage renewable energy and reduce energy consumption. Clean Local Energy Available Now (CLEAN) contracts, known as feed-in-tariffs in Europe, have not been implemented in any Canadian cities yet, although a Renewable Energy Task Force in Edmonton, Alberta has examined the idea, and U.S. and German examples are named. Regarding jobs, the Fact Sheet states: “A FIT provides durable and predictable market conditions, essential to attracting infrastructure investment and developing local manufacturing capacity. The economic benefit of any clean energy project is directly related to the degree to which materials, components and labour can be locally sourced”.

LINKS:

Leveraging State Clean Energy Funds for Economic Development was released by the Brookings Institute at:

http://www.brookings.edu/~/media/Files/rc/papers/2012/0111_states_energy_funds/0111_states_energy_funds.pdf

In a follow-up to U.S. President Obama’s 2012 State of the Union address on January 24th, the White House released an economic statement which includes a section on creating clean energy jobs. “The President called on Congress to build on our success in positioning America to be the world’s leading manufacturer in high-tech batteries and reiterated his call for action on clean energy tax credits and a national goal of moving toward clean sources of electricity by setting a standard for utility companies, so that by 2035, 80% of the nation’s electricity will come from clean sources, including renewable energy sources like wind, solar, biomass, hydropower, nuclear power, efficient natural gas, and clean coal. Because Congress has not yet acted on this and other key steps to achieve a clean energy economy, the President announced that the Department of the Navy will make the largest renewable energy purchase in history – one gigawatt. In addition, the President is directing the Department of Interior to permit 10 gigawatts of renewables projects by the end of the year, enough to power three million homes.”

LINKS:

Blueprint for an America Built to Last economic statement at:

http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/blueprint_for_an_america_built_to_last.pdf

The International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) put forward its 5 principles for world economic recovery: Job creation, Social protection, sustainable demand and decent work, Financial regulation, Fair and progressive taxation, and Climate action. Its climate change goals include reducing emissions of industrialised countries by 25-40% by 2020, implementing a green climate fund, and ensuring a just transition for workers and communities.

LINKS:

Global 100 press release, January 25, 2012 is at the Corporate Knights website at: http://www.corporateknights.ca/sites/default/files/Global100Release_Final_Jan25%281%29.pdf

For details on the research and methodology of the rankings, as well as current and past lists of companies, go to: http://global100.org/index.php

Labour’s five demands for jobs, growth and equity is at:

http://www.ituc-csi.org/IMG/pdf/l20.pdf

While reaffirming its support of Ontario’s Green Energy Act, the Ontario Federation of Agriculture on January 20 released a new position statement, calling on the Ontario government to suspend industrial wind turbine development. The OFA states that the issue is seriously polarizing rural communities and preoccupying the rural agenda. This controversy comes as a new wind energy installation built by the CAW at its Family Education facility at Port Elgin, Ontario is about to become fully operational. A letter from CAW President Ken Lewenza to the local Member of Parliament makes clear that the union has encountered local opposition to its clean energy initiative. Read the OFA Position statement on Industrial Wind Turbines at:

http://www.ofa.on.ca/uploads/userfiles/files/ofa%20position%20statement%20on%20industrial%20wind%20turbines.pdf
CAW Clean Wind Energy website at: http://www.caw.ca/en/10744.htm and the letter from President Ken Lewenza to MP Ben Lobb at: http://www.caw.ca/assets/pdf/lobb-wind_turbine.pdf

Policy Horizons Canada has published a thought piece based on the key question: “What are the federal policy implications of increasing interest in reconciling economic growth, environmental sustainability and prosperity?”. Factors considered were environmental pressures, consumer values, population growth, technological change, and supply and demand of natural resources. The four scenarios developed and explained in an appendix are: 1) Muddling through 2) Gradual progress 3) Slow decline, and 4) Transformation. Leading the Pack or Lagging Behind: A Foresight Study on Environmental Sustainability and Competitiveness is available at: http://www.horizons.gc.ca/doclib/2011-0092_eng.pdf.

At a Trades Union Congress conference in the U.K. in January, The New Green Team was released. Researched and written by the Association for Public Services Excellence (APSE) for UNISON, the report was based on extensive interviews with local authorities. The research found “there is potential for huge expansion in new jobs and skills include Green Finance, Green Law, Architecture, Research and Development, Engineering, Assembly Technicians, Installation Technicians, Carpentry, Plumbing and Repair and Maintenance jobs”. The document is available at: http://www.apse.org.uk/page-flips/2011/the-new-green-team/index.html.

The Climate Change Risk Assessment (CCRA), released on January 25, 2012 , is a 1,000 page document examining over 700 potential impacts of climate change in a UK context. Detailed analysis was undertaken for over 100 of these impacts across 11 key sectors. The report identifies the huge economic risks that will result from climate impacts, including spiraling insurance costs and increasing difficulty in obtaining mortgages as flood risk increases. The report cites tourism as one of the UK sectors likely to benefit, but warns that “the threats outweigh the opportunities”. The Climate Change Risk Assessment (CCRA) and supporting documents are available at the website of the U.K. Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs at: http://www.defra.gov.uk/environment/climate/government/risk-assessment/