Suncor Energy’s pit expansion proposal is “unacceptable” in its current form, says federal Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault..Suncor had proposed expanding its Northern Alberta oil base mine. The project would not increase production, but move existing operations over as the current site is exhausted. .Guilbeault also said Suncor’s request to extend submission of their impact statement by nine months is approved. .But the current proposal would produce an estimated three million tonnes of carbon-dioxide-equivalent annually, Guilbeault wrote in a letter to Suncor Chief Executive Mark Little, published on the Impact Assessment Agency of Canada (IAAC) website. .“Emissions at this level may not align with the pace and scale of emissions reductions required to achieve our targets, and this would hinder Canada’s international commitments in respect of climate change,” Guilbeault wrote..In an email to the Western Standard, Suncor said the project is still progressing. The energy group is working with regulatory agencies to improve the proposal based on feedback from indigenous communities and other stakeholders, and to meet additional requirements set out over the past year, said spokesperson Sneh Seetal..“On Tuesday, we sent a letter to IAAC to indicate that we were requesting some additional time in the regulatory process,” Seeta said in an email. ‘This is something we’ve done previously and is somewhat standard when developing projects of this size.”.Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) says Canada’s oil and gas sector has a critical role to play in meeting Canada’s climate objectives..“To remain competitive in a global market that is moving away from fossil fuels combustion to address climate change and enhance energy security, new Canadian oil production subject to federal impact assessment will have to meet even higher standards,” says an April 6 agency news release..“New projects would have to deliver emissions performance — the amount of greenhouse gas pollution it takes to produce a barrel of oil or cubic metre of natural gas — that is best in class, and all future oil and gas projects would have to be net-zero by 2050.”.The Liberals, meanwhile, approved the Bay du Nord Development Project from the Norwegian company Equinor, which will install and operate a floating offshore oil and gas production facility in the Atlantic Ocean near St. John’s. The project will be in operation for 30 years with potential for additional wells..The project is subject to the “strongest environmental GHG condition ever,” says the agency, which found that it’s “not likely to cause significant adverse environmental effects when mitigation measures are taken into account. The project is therefore allowed to proceed with strict measures to protect the environment.”.Rachel Emmanuel is the Edmonton Bureau Chief for the Western Standard
