Ltr to Political Parties re Bill 2 Impacts on Landowners_Nov 4-2012

Wilson Briefing Re: Bill 2

Calgary Herald-Alberta energy bill criticized as train wreck Nov 09, 2012

Calgary Herald-Alberta’s Proposed energy bill would drive wedge between landowners and Industry Nov 09, 2012

Airdrie City News-Bill 8 doesn’t matter if it isn’t retroactive Nov 09, 2012

Airdrie City News-Proposed legislation could give control of transmission lines back to AUC Nov 09, 2012

Prof Fluker,Blog SF Bill2 landowner participation Nov 2012

Blog NV Bill2 Overview Nov 15 2012

Calgary Herald-Landowners, Lawyer predict Bill 2 will get a rocky reception in AB Nov 15, 2012

Calgary Herald-Premier Redford says critics of energy regulation bill are fear mongering Nov 16

Responsible Energy Development Act described by one group as ‘worst proposed legislation ever introduced in this province’

EDMONTON — Energy Minister Ken Hughes is embarking on a speaking tour to sell Alberta farmers and ranchers on the Tory government’s controversial one-stop shopping energy resource development bill — but landowners and lawyers say he could get a rough ride in some parts of the province.

Hughes told the Herald that over the next few weeks he wants to engage with Albertans about the benefits of Bill 2, the Responsible Energy Development Act.

“It is critical from an economic perspective to get Bill 2 through, that we create a new single regulator, because that governs most of the $300-billion economic engine that is Alberta,” he said.

Anticipating concerns from the public, he has introduced 15 amendments to the bill, which passed second reading in the Alberta legislature last week.

“What that demonstrates is that we’re a government that listens to landowner concerns,” he said. “I want to make sure personally that this is something that landowners can be comfortable with and that ensures also that we have an efficient and effective regulatory process for applicants.”

Hughes may be acting on the advice of his predecessor Ted Morton, who complained that the Conservatives faced a storm of undeserved criticism over several controversial land bills last year because they failed to explain the legislation to landowners.

“There was no timely response to bogus and misleading interpretations that were being given,” said Morton, just before he lost his seat to a Wildrose rookie in Chestermere-Rocky View last April.

Morton said the bills were also too technically written and not “user-friendly.”

Critics say the new bill — which Wildrose Leader Danielle Smith has dubbed Franken-bill — is even more complex and confusing.

Bill 2 has been described by one landowners’ group as “the worst proposed legislation ever introduced in this province” and members have expressed fears the new law could spark violence in the oilpatch.

Don Bester of the 1,400-member Alberta Surface Rights Group slammed the bill over its lack of an outside appeal mechanism.

Bill 2 also eliminates references from prior legislation that would require the energy development regulator to act in the public interest and gives it “extreme dictatorial powers,” he said.

Bester called the amendments tabled by Hughes “wordsmithing.”

“Those words that he changed were minuscule,” he said. “It was just a public relations appeasement to the other political parties.”

Bester urged farmers as well as urban dwellers to oppose the bill or lose any chance to stop energy development in their backyards.

He said it was disappointing for members of his organization that their input was ignored and none of the most controversial aspects of the bill were raised during the so-called stakeholder consultation.

He said a coalition of landowners groups is meeting later this week to plan their response to the bill. But he said he is concerned some landowners will take matters into their own hands if confronted by unwanted energy development.

Hughes has argued the bill gives landowners even greater rights to notification of developments than some of the existing acts it replaces, but land rights lawyers say it strips key existing landowner rights from the six conservation bills.

University of Calgary assistant law professor Shaun Fluker said the retraction of landowner rights in Bill 2 is “a colossal gaffe by the Alberta government” and a “substantial gift to political opponents of the governing Tories.”

“I think it is a colossal gaffe because the government doesn’t need to be stoking any fires by stripping away these rights,” he said. “It just seems to me they are going to anger a bunch of people that they really didn’t need to. If you are the leader of the Wildrose, you must be licking your chops on this.”

Fluker said it really doesn’t help the landowner to be given notice of an energy development on their land because nothing appears to propel a public hearing until after the licence has been issued.

“It will only happen after the shovels hit the ground,” he said.

Fluker said there is nothing in the bill to ensure there is funding available to help landowners fight the project and it is unlikely the regulator will reverse decisions it has made when it hears its own appeals.

The bill eliminates appeals to the Environment Appeal Board and provides only narrow avenues of recourse to the court.

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© Copyright (c) The Calgary Herald

Alberta Government News Release – Alberta Utilities Commission
November 15, 2012

Calgary… Alberta’s independent utilities regulator has approved the Eastern Alberta Transmission Line (EATL). Landowner-generated and environmentally favourable alternative route selections affecting more than a third of the line’s length were developed, refined or introduced during the AUC proceeding, which included 13 days of public hearings in Stettler, Forestburg and Camrose in July and August 2012.

In Decision 2012-303, released today, the Alberta Utilities Commission found the application from ATCO Electric Ltd. to build the EATL project was in the public interest and met the need specified in law by the provincial government. The capital cost of the project was estimated by ATCO Electric at $1.6 billion. The EATL project, a proposed 500-kilovolt direct-current transmission line with associated converter stations and facilities, would extend approximately 500 km from the Gibbons area northeast of Edmonton to near Brooks. The need for the line was specified by the Alberta government as critical transmission infrastructure in 2009 in the Electric Statutes Amendment Act.

The AUC has approved portions of the route preferred by the applicant, and in several cases, portions of the route that the applicant submitted as alternative routing. In some cases those alternatives were developed from landowner suggestions. Overall, based on land-use, social, cost and environmental considerations, the route selected by the AUC was found to be both in the public interest and superior to other potential routes.

In its decision, the AUC lauded the positive contributions made by intervening landowners and landowner groups. “The Commission commends those parties who decided to participate in the process as the information that was presented at the hearing and through the submissions was valuable in informing the Commission about the impacts of the EATL project on individual landowners, groups of landowners, interested stakeholders and the environment,” the AUC said. “Furthermore, the Commission appreciates the participation of landowner groups at the formal hearing which generated a series of additional relevant and specific commitments by ATCO Electric. Had these intervener groups chosen not to participate, then the issues that generated the commitments may not have been raised.”

Approximately 175 km of the 500-km route that was approved aligns with landowner-generated alternatives or environmentally favourable route identification that took place during the proceeding. These portions include:

• The 35-km Royal Park alternative (known as the blue route). This was a landowner-originated alignment that has been approved.
• A 15-km amended route segment in the Forestburg area generated through consultation and ultimately designated as preferred by ATCO Electric and approved by the Commission as the preferred route segment.
• Through the 100-km Andrew-Mundare-Holden segment (which includes the Royal Park alternative), environmental concerns were acknowledged and maximum separation was achieved through the choice of alternate routing. This maximized the distance from nationally- and internationally-designated important bird areas at Whitford Lake and Beaverhill Lake, the latter a Ramsar Convention on internationally important wetlands-designated site.
• The 60-km South Holden-Forestburg segment. This alternative was chosen in part because landowners who had land on both the preferred and alternate routes favoured the alternate segment to ATCO Electric’s preferred segment.

Today’s decision marks the completion of an AUC review process that formally began in 2011, included many thousands of pages of documents, hundreds of exhibits and more than 75 witnesses. In recognition of the scope, nature and timeframe of the application, the AUC applied an enhanced process that included broad notification and provision of information, automatic standing for most parties, and multiple options for participation including community hearing sessions. The result was an open and transparent review that maximized the amount of preparation time for all participants. The application was originally received on March 29, 2011.

Today’s decision along with extensive additional information related to the EATL project application, and the AUC’s hearing process, can be found on the AUC’s website, at www.auc.ab.ca.

The Alberta Utilities Commission is an independent, quasi-judicial agency of the province of Alberta. As part of its mandate the Commission has jurisdiction over the siting of facilities deemed to be critical transmission facilities, as well as other transmission facilities, electric power plants and natural gas transmission pipelines. The AUC regulates the utilities sector, natural gas and electricity markets to protect the social, economic and environmental interests of Alberta where competitive market forces do not.

-30-

Media inquiries may be directed to:
Jim Law
Director, External Relations, Alberta Utilities Commission
Phone: 403-512-3417
Email: [email protected]

Geoff Scotton
Senior Communications Advisor, Alberta Utilities Commission
Phone: 403-650-5774
Email: [email protected]

Background

The Eastern Alberta Transmission Line (EATL) is one of six facilities incorporated in four projects deemed to be critical transmission infrastructure by the government of Alberta in the Electric Statutes Amendment Act, 2009.

Key features
Project proponent: ATCO Electric Ltd.
Project cost: $1.6 billion.
Length: Approximately 500 km.

Technology:

• Two 500-kilovolt alternating current/direct current converter stations; one in the Redwater-Gibbons area northeast of Edmonton (Heathfield 2029S), another in the Brooks area (Newell 2075S).
• A 500-kilovolt direct-current transmission line connecting the Redwater-Gibbons-area converter station to the Brooks-area converter station.
• Associated facilities. (500-kV alternating-current transmission lines, 240-kV alternating current transmission lines, optical repeater sites, fibre optic cables, etc.)

Need: Determined by the government of Alberta in the Electric Statutes Amendment Act. 2009. Confirmed in Report of the Critical Transmission Review Committee.
Application received: March 29, 2011.
Decision rendered: November 15, 2012

AUC proceeding facts:
Number of pages in evidence: Close to 20,000.
Exhibits: More than 820.
Witnesses: More than 75.

AUC information sessions held: Five. Vegreville, Lamont, Forestburg, Brooks, Hanna. (March 8 to 16, 2011.)
AUC process meeting days held: Two. Hanna (May7, 2011) and Tofield (May 20, 2011).
AUC public hearing days: 13 (Stettler, Alberta)
AUC community hearing sessions: Three. Forestburg (July 24, 2012) and two in Camrose (July 25, 2012).
AUC process: In recognition of the scale and magnitude of the proposed EATL project, the Alberta Utilities Commission employed an enhanced process to provide early opportunities for participation in the Commission’s preparations for and consideration of the application. This enhanced process included flexible options for interested parties to participate formally or informally, deemed early standing for landowner interveners (with consequent early access to intervener funding), early process meetings to identify key issues and  community hearing sessions.

 Chronology
November 15, 2012. AUC issues Decision 2012-303, approving the EATL project. In total, the decision is more than 380 pages.
August 20, 2012. Record of proceeding closes.
August 10, 2012. Public hearing concludes.
July 25, 2012. Community hearing session held in Camrose.
July 24, 2012. Community hearing session held in Forestburg.
July 23, 2012. Public hearing begins in Stettler, Alberta.
May 1 and 3, 2012. ATCO Electric files amendments to application adjusting and amending preferred route.
February 24, 2012. AUC issues letter to all participants notifying it is resuming consideration of application.
February 23, 2012. Government of Alberta requests the AUC resume its examination of EATL application.
February 13, 2012. Report of the Critical Transmission Review Committee is released, confirming need for reinforcement of north-south transmission as soon as possible, reasonableness of two north-south lines and improved efficacy of direct-current lines.
October 21, 2011. The AUC suspends its consideration of the EATL application at the government’s request. The government launches an independent review committee to examine the need for EATL and the Western Alberta Transmission Line, use of direct-current technology and related matters.
September 2011. ATCO Electric amends its application twice, and files related application for fibre-optic cable ajnd back-up generators at the converter stations.
May 31, 2011 EATL process decision is issued in AUC Decision 2011-237
May 20, 2011. Process meeting is held in Tofield, Alberta.
May 7, 2011. Process meeting is held in Hanna, Alberta.
April 11, 2011. AUC issues notice of application of the EATL application with proposed dates and locations and proposed proceeding schedule.
March 26 to 29, 2011. ATCO Electric Ltd. filed Eastern Alberta Transmission Line project application with the AUC. The application is more than 1,000 pages.
March 8 to 16, 2011. AUC public information sessions held in Vegreville, Lamont, Forestburg, Brooks and Hanna.
February 10, 2011. In anticipation of the application, AUC launches enhanced public process for the EATL project application with information sessions scheduled in March for Vegreville, Lamont, Forestburg, Brooks and Hanna.
January 31, 2011. ATCO Electric announces its preferred and alternate routes for the EATL project.

Map

A stylized map of the approved route has been produced to show the basic details of the landowner-generated and AUC-approved route segments. Exact details of the routing approved by the AUC may be found in the decision itself.

By James Wood, Calgary Herald November 15, 2012 3:03 PM

CALGARY — Premier Alison Redford said Thursday she’s hoping for an open conversation with Quebec after that province’s environment minister threatened roadblocks to Alberta oil.

Daniel Breton said this week there are environmental risks to projects proposed around existing infrastructure that are intended to bring western Canadian oil, including bitumen, to Montreal refineries.

The Parti Quebecois cabinet minister said Quebec would have final say over the pipeline plans by Enbridge Inc. and TransCanada Corp no matter the position of the National Energy Board.

Redford — who has made interprovincial cooperation in a Canadian energy strategy a cornerstone policy of her Tory government — said Alberta energy provides a significant economic spinoff across the country, including Quebec.

“The first thing to do is be able to have dialogue with respect to what the economic benefits are,” she told reporters in Edmonton.

“One of the issues that as I understand it was important in the Quebec election was economic growth … we’ll continue to dialogue and make sure that we’re supporting wherever we can the information that might help people to make those decisions.”

Redford said she has spoken briefly to Quebec Premier Pauline Marois since she took office in September. The two are planning to meet in about a week-and-a-half, said Redford.

Enbridge is planning a significant expansion of its pipelines that carry crude from the oilsands and the Bakken shale oilfield to refineries in Central Canada and the U.S. Midwest. The plan, called Eastern Access, involves reversing and maybe expanding a 240,000 barrel-per-day pipeline now carrying imported oil from Montreal to Sarnia, Ont.

TransCanada’s plan is centred on converting parts of its underused Canadian Mainline system from natural gas to oil transportation. It could see up to a million barrels of oil a day shipped to eastern markets starting around 2017.

If Quebec digs in its heels over the projects, it would be the second province to fight a pipeline for the oilsands. British Columbia Premier Christy Clark has laid out five conditions for approval of Enbridge’s proposed Northern Gateway pipeline, including a “fair share” of the economic benefit of the projects.

Redford has flatly refused to share any energy royalties Alberta would derive from Northern Gateway.

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© Copyright (c) The Calgary Herald

The Canadian Press

Published Monday, Nov. 12 2012, 3:21 PM EST

Last updated Monday, Nov. 12 2012, 4:24 PM EST

Alberta’s Wildrose leader says Premier Alison Redford does not have the mandate to take the province back into debt and needs to hold a referendum on it.

Danielle Smith says there was no mention in the spring budget or in the April election campaign to have the government go into debt to pay for roads, schools and hospitals.

• Alberta’s Tories willing to borrow for infrastructure
• Alberta PCs reduce direct ties with Harper’s Tories over Wildrose
• Redford goes after the Wildrose Party at PC convention

Ms. Smith calls it a major repudiation of a party platform that saw Alberta’s $23-billion net-debt wiped out under former Progressive Conservative premier Ralph Klein.

On the weekend, Ms. Redford and Finance Minister Doug Horner said the province will take on debt to pay for the projects while making sure the government stays in the black on day-to-day spending.

Mr. Horner says it’s a fiscally sound approach and a necessary one, given population growth.

Derek Fildebrandt of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation says if Ms. Redford had campaigned on this platform in the spring general election, she would have lost.

By Keith Gerein and Sarah O’Donnell, Edmonton Journal November 10, 2012

CALGARY – Premier Alison Redford suggested Friday her government is increasingly pursuing public-private partnerships and other private investment strategies to build Alberta’s roads, schools and health centres, casting doubt on her promise to balance all of the provincial budget by 2013-14.

Redford has said previously that she would keep her commitment to balance both the operating and capital infrastructure parts of the budget next year. But on Friday, shortly after her speech to the party’s annual general meeting in Calgary, she appeared to backtrack on part of that promise.

“We have always said we would balance our operating budget; we have also said we would have a long-term, transparent infrastructure plan,” the premier told reporters. “(Finance Minister) Doug Horner has made it very clear we need to fully finance that plan. I think that’s what Albertans have asked to do, and as long as we can do that in a way the ensures we don’t go into debt, then we are doing exactly what we committed to do.”

Asked to clarify how her government will do that, Redford said she will ensure the infrastructure plan is fully financed, but that could mean going to capital markets. She specifically noted the twinning of Highway 63 to Fort McMurray, a project the province has said it will consider borrowing for to complete as fast as possible.

“If you take a look at what were doing with Highway 63, we’ve made it very clear if everything we do right now is funded fully with cash in the bank, then we are never going to build anything more in this province,” Redford said.

“We know it’s going to be possible to use P3 approaches and to talk to people that want to make investments in this province and help us to build infrastructure. It’s been a successful model we’ve used before and it has really allowed us to make the long-term investments that are going to allow generations to continue to succeed.”

The government will soon roll out a new plan to create 140 family care clinics, which should all be operational by the end of her first term in 2016, she said.

Redford’s comments came after she launched a passionate defence of Progressive Conservative values to her political family, contrasting her party’s vision with the “backward” Wildrose party.

“This year, we will all remember the people of Alberta faced a clear choice between two radically different plans for the future,” she said.

“The choice was clear between a party that was stuck firmly in the past — or as Doug Horner likes to call them, the ‘SoCred Retreads’ — or our party, a party who bets on the people of Alberta knowing we can meet an ever-changing world head-on,” Redford said.

Alberta made a forward-looking choice, she said.

But Redford’s speech also was heavy with references to the past.

After an event that began with tribute to Peter Lougheed and thanks from his daughter, Pam Lougheed, for the support and tributes her family received after her father’s Sept. 13 death, Redford talked about the need to honour Lougheed’s legacy.

Redford has often expressed an affinity for Lougheed and his policies. But she also paid tribute Friday to the PC premiers who followed.

“Through the difficult times in the mid-’80s, premier Getty wasn’t about to stand idle while everyday Albertans suffered,” she said. “He invested in the priority services that mattered to the people of this province.”

She described premier Ralph Klein’s “difficult decisions” in the face of budget deficits, saying those efforts to balance the budget achieved “what others in Canada can only dream of: A debt-free province that remains the envy of the nation.”

The Governor General’s decision to award Klein the Order of Canada next week is something many have been waiting a very long time for, she said as the crowd applauded the news. “This is great news for a very deserving, very deserving Albertan.”

Premier Ed Stelmach earned Redford’s praise for steering Alberta through a global economic crisis, remaining focused on “protecting Alberta’s interests, investing in needed infrastructure and creating jobs across the province.”

Afterwards, Redford said she felt it was important in her first speech as leader to the party’s membership to pay homage to those premiers.

“From my perspective I wanted to pay homage to an awful lot of incredible men who I think have done tremendous things to build this province,” she said.

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© Copyright (c) The Edmonton Journal

CP  |  By The Canadian Press Posted: 10/30/2012 3:05 pm EDT Updated: 10/30/2012 3:46 pm EDT

EDMONTON – Alberta’s Opposition Wildrose party is asking the government to shelve any talk of new perks and pay hikes for politicians until the budget is balanced.

Party Leader Danielle Smith says that with the price of oil below expectations and the province facing a $3-billion budget deficit, now is not the time to hike pay.

Smith says she will introduce a motion at a meeting next week of an all-party committee debating changes to the pay structure.

The Tory majority on the committee voted earlier this month to have taxpayers make the full yearly RRSP contribution for all 87 politicians.

Wildrose says that works out to an eight per cent pay hike.

Members of the legislature make a base salary of $134,000 a year with more to caucus leaders and cabinet ministers.

First posted: Thursday, November 08, 2012 10:39 PM MST | Updated: Thursday, November 08, 2012 10:52 PM MST

Friday, November 09, 2012 8:24 AM

Friday, November 9, 2012

By Kelly Cryderman, Calgary Herald
CALGARY — Bill Smith has been president of Alberta’s Progressive Conservative party through three tumultuous years that saw former premier Ed Stelmach resign, an underdog candidate win an exhausting eight-month leadership race, and no end of daily political controversies.

Smith also helped lead the long-governing party through this year’s wild provincial election, where the Tories trailed the Wildrose in polls through most of the campaign but managed to keep a 41-year political dynasty alive.

The lawyer and former city firefighter will bow out of the volunteer job this weekend following the party’s annual general meeting in Calgary, where members will select his replacement.

But the 49-year-old Calgarian won’t depart without giving the new president a few lessons he’s learned from the battlefield: listen to your members, recognize your mistakes and fix them quickly.

Smith said there’s no doubt voters were angry in the early days of the spring campaign, especially over an initial decision that Tory MLAs wouldn’t give back all of the money earned for sitting on a legislature committee that hadn’t met for almost four years.

Falling in the polls, Premier Alison Redford reversed the decision the first week of the campaign.

“I think as we neared the end of the election, Albertans said, ‘yeah, we’ve delivered the message. We’ve heard from Premier Redford and the rest of the MLAs that … they’re going to do better,’ ” Smith said.

Opposition parties say the Tory election win came because the Redford Tories made billions in spending promises. But the contentious, socially conservative views of two Wildrose candidates also surfaced near the end of the campaign and gave the Tories new momentum.

“Did they make some mistakes? My opinion is yeah, they did. And I’m grateful for it,” Smith said of his opponents.

“Could they have played a couple of things differently and would that have changed the outcome? It could have.”

Still, Smith said he spoke to the Conservative caucus one week after election day and told MLAs, “OK, we’re going to give you four more years. Don’t screw it up.’”

At this weekend’s convention, MLAs and party members will debate another thorny issue, motions to delete the automatic inclusion and voting rights for federal Conservative MPs and officials at Alberta PC conventions.

“The Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta should be a distinct entity from the Conservative Party of Canada,” states a motion from the Calgary-Glenmore riding association.

“During the last election we saw several federal cabinet ministers and their staffs actively support ‘other party’ candidates. This does not bode well for the future of Alberta.”

Speaking to reporters Thursday, the premier called it a “really interesting” resolution. Redford said just because she’s a member of the PC Alberta party, that doesn’t entitle her to attend and vote in federal Conservative conventions.

“I don’t think there should ever be any assumption that there will always be that sort of crossover,” Redford said.

“We see that politics in Alberta has been getting quite interesting and we know that during the provincial election, that there were people who had all sorts of memberships in all sorts of parties working on different campaigns.”

On Saturday, party members will also choose one of two longtime Tories battling to succeed Smith — one hailing from Calgary and another from a rural area northwest of Edmonton.

Candidate Jim McCormick said he has the time to devote to the job after selling his Calgary-based oil and gas company earlier this year.

He wants to strengthen constituency associations and modernize the party’s operations.

“We have to make the break between government and party,” he said.

Lorne Olsvik, a former Alberta Urban Municipalities Association president, said he’s running for president because he believes the party needs to confront its “vulnerabilities.”

“When you look at the party, we have orphan constituencies when we’ve never had orphan constituencies before,” Olsvik said. “We’ve experienced close races where we’ve never experienced close races before.”

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© Copyright (c) The Calgary Herald