Ottawa’s attempts to stop what it calls ‘greenwashing’ by oil and gas companies has Alberta Premier Danielle Smith seeing red — again.And Smith made it clear her government will sue the Liberal government if it implements Bill C-59, which would preclude the oil industry from touting its environmental performance in advertising, or face criminal prosecution.“Well, maybe I'll be the first person prosecuted… because I can tell you that our oil and gas industry is has got a better environmental record than any anywhere in the world and I'm going to continue to celebrate that,” she said at a media briefing in Calgary on Tuesday..“Well, maybe I'll be the first person prosecuted…Alberta Premier Danielle Smith.Not only is it an unconstitutional violation of free speech, it fails to recognize the environmental accomplishments of the Canadian energy industry — read, Alberta’s — which she said has the best environmental performance record in the world.And Smith reiterated plans to double oil and gas production, not curtail it.“And I'm going to support them every step of the way, whether it's through carbon capture, utilization and storage or the adoption of small modular nuclear or working on direct air capture. And so I will not stop promoting our industry.”That’s not all.“Let me just say one more thing. There's a there's another constitutional challenge in the works here,” she stated unequivocally.“Free speech is guaranteed chartered right and energy companies as well as provincial politicians have the right to be able to talk about their their products and to be able to sell it to the world, so I think they've gone way way over their skis on this one. Ultimately, if it lands in court, that's where we're going to have to settle this out.”“We have a multitude of court actions against the federal government for stepping out of its constitutional jurisdiction. This is just one more example and we'll fight them. We've won a couple and I think we'll win more.”.But C-59 backer Environmental Defence said in a statement that “requiring companies to be able to prove their green claims is not a gag order, it is a commitment to telling the truth.”“We’re not buying it. Greenwashing is a pervasive issue, and there should be consequences for companies lying about their green credentials. Alberta should not be siding with big polluters over the public.”Not surprisingly, industry associations have sided firmly with the premier even as they move to implement emissions reduction policies. That won’t stop, said Tristan Goodman, president and CEO of the Explorers and Producers Association of Canada (EPAC).“Unfortunately this is another situation where our sector is being unfairly targeted by some politicians. The truth of the matter is that Canada’s oil and gas producers are showing actual leadership and lowering emissions as shown in the federal government’s own data, while producing more of the energy, jobs and economic benefits that Canadians need.”
