much more work was required on its plan to mine new ground, and 225,000 barrels of bitumen a day, in the oil sands in 2030, as old mines tap out.included hefty climate-heating emissions of three megatonnes of carbon a year – about 12 times that of Bay du Nord. Ottawa told Suncor the plan would likely be rejected; Suncor asked for more time to come up with a smarter, lower-emission plan.
Ottawa’s response to Suncor and Bay du Nord – an openness to new oil projects, if they meet reasonable yet top-tier climate standards – is the right approach. This is the bargain and the reality: Canada can only affect demand within its borders. That’s the basis of international climate deals from Kyoto onward. We need to hammer down domestic use of fossil fuels, but so long as global demand continues, Canada should have no qualms about capturing an ever greater share of it – while aiming to make this country’s oil the world’s least polluting., the world will use a quarter of the oil it does today, and half the gas. The industry will shrink.
Picture this: It’s 2035, and Canada uses barely any fossil fuels at home and still exports a bunch of oil and gas. And the oil sands are five years – not 15 – away from net zero.
This would have been a good idea 20-30 years ago. It’s too late now.