Winter
2016
grainswest.com
41
to climate change, then-auditor general Fred J. Dunn said
Alberta’s Environment Department needed to “strengthen
its offset guidance and put a process in place to ensure the
Alberta Emissions Offset Registry performs the work the
Department needs.”
The government, Dunn said, also needed to “assess the risk
of offsets applied in Alberta having been used elsewhere in the
world,” and develop a means to ensure “the offsets used for
compliance are valid.”
The types of records being used as proof of practice—
particularly for the retroactive conservation cropping
protocol—were inadequate, Dunn said. “In our opinion, the
level of evidence defined as acceptable by the Department
falls below that which is necessary to provide assurances that
the offset credits actually existed,” his report reads.
Those criticisms returned in 2011, in a followup audit by
auditor general Merwan Saher and his team. Again, the auditor
general said evidence collected by aggregators on behalf of
the Environment Department was insufficient.
“The [tillage] protocol allows a certain number of passes
and width of equipment openers for both no-till and reduced-
till practices,” the report reads. “None of the evidence the
verifiers collected to verify individual offset claims was sufficient
to prove the number of passes or the width of equipment
openers used.”
Saher also raised concerns about the future fairness of the
offsets system. “Without ensuring that all protocols conform to
the same standards for protocol development, the Department
cannot ensure that it provides a level playing field for offset
project developers,” the report reads.
Still, despite all the criticism, Jungnitsch insisted the offsets
market is “something to watch for and seems to be an up
and coming thing”—a message he’s repeatedly passed on to
producers. “The offset has always been part of a much bigger
pollution-control picture,” he said.
Conversations around climate change are not new to
Alberta, where the province’s carbon footprint has routinely
dominated headlines and sparked more than a few criticisms
from environmentalists around the world.
Alberta produces 37 per cent of all Canadian emissions, or
267 megatonnes, the majority of which are produced in the
energy and gas sector. Statistics Canada estimates that number
will be even higher by 2020, with Alberta responsible for 39
per cent of the country’s emissions.
Environment Minister Shannon Phillips has repeatedly
insisted the province’s economic future is dependent on
an Alberta-made climate strategy. “The future of Alberta’s
energy economy depends on getting this right,” she wrote in
an August 2015 discussion document. “The old approach of
talk without meaningful action has not worked. Doing more
of the same would be the worst thing we could do for our
environment and our economy.”
Yet, the energy sector isn’t the only industry to be targeted
by the international community for its environmental footprint.
Agriculture, too, has been put under the microscope.
Globally, agriculture is the third-largest contributor to global
greenhouse gas emissions by sector—behind only power
generated by fossil fuels and transportation. Most of those
emissions come from deforestation, Smith said, which isn’t a
large issue in Alberta. “In fact, we have forests encroaching on
our pastures,” he said.
According to Alberta Agriculture and Forestry, agriculture
accounts for nine per cent (a total of 22 megatonnes) of
all emissions produced in the province. Of that, nearly 50
per cent comes from cattle via methane produced during
digestion. Nitrous oxide, from fertilizer, manure management
and tillage, accounts for another 30 per cent.
Still, despite their relatively small emissions total, the Alberta
government sees both agriculture and forestry as industries
where greenhouse gas production can be reduced, largely
because of sequestration options.
Then there’s the shifting global conversation on global
warming and the environment, which is dominating political
discussions at the local, provincial, federal and international
levels.
“Whatever your view on climate change, it’s clear the world
is looking for ways to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and
that is driving new initiatives around the globe,” the Alberta
Agriculture and Forestry website reads. “Alberta is taking steps
to do its part and in fact is helping to lead the way.”
One of those steps included the creation of the five-member
Climate Change Advisory Panel, chaired by University of
Alberta associate professor Andrew Leach. It was tasked with
reviewing Alberta’s current climate change policies, engaging
with Albertans on the subject via public meetings and providing
advice “on a comprehensive set of measures to reduce green
house gas emissions.” Hearings took place last summer and
fall, with several agriculture stakeholders from the livestock and
crops sectors invited to take part.
Among the Panel’s recommendations was the adoption of a
broad-based, economy wide carbon price, capped at $30 per
tonne by 2018. The province, the panel urged, must also phase
out its dependency on coal-powered electricity by 2030, and
reduce methane emissions from oil and gas by 45 per cent.
Purple gas and purple diesel are exempt from the proposed
carbon tax plan, officials have confirmed.
Going forward, both Banack and Smith insist it is imperative
that the government continues to recognize agriculture’s
environmental stewardship.
“We’ve made significant improvements in the efficiency
of our production; that, in turn, has reduced our emissions,”
Smith said. “As we raise cattle more efficiently, there’s been a
reduction in our greenhouse gas production.”
Banack agrees. “That’s the bigger thing here, the
recognition—the recognition that we’re doing the right thing
for both our farms and for the environment.”
