Carbon emissions rose 3 per cent in 2018 and look set to keep rising in 2019. The amount of renewable energy we produce is growing quickly, but global demand for energy is growing faster. Just a quarter of the rise in energy demand in 2017 was met by renewables, according to the International Energy Agency, the body predicting an upcoming 100 million barrels per day oil-consumption milestone.
That is, we're going to use more oil before we use less. This is applicable to Canada, as we're doing it backwards here. In fact, Canada officially views oil as a sunset industry, and is trying to rein in oil production now, without doing very much at all to develop post-carbon alternatives.
I propose an entirely different path. We should instead view oil as a transitional technology, still in increasing use. Those are the facts. Thus, Canada should continue to develop its oil industry, especially to get oil from Alberta to the east and to export more of it.
My plan (1) makes Canada more energy independent (why are we importing Saudi oil to Eastern Canada, rather than developing Alberta oil and shipping it eastwards by the safest possible method --- pipeline?); and (2) greatly increases tax revenues and Canadian jobs, and thus Canadian wealth.
WIth more money and more jobs, we can then afford to invest much more in post-carbon technologies, meaning that (1) Canada can be a more important oil-producing nation (why leave this to the Saudis?); and (2) Canada can be a more important post-carbon nation, developing more post-carbon energy technologies, putting them into use sooner, and selling them to the world as an innovation leader.
How about a serious fusion power initiative in Canada, funded by increased oil revenues?
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