Newsletter: Climate report: gloom and doom. But not for LNG

There were scary headlines around the world this week as the United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released a new report.

It said global temperatures are set to rise by 1.5 degrees Celsius over the next 20 years, and pinned much of the blame on burning coal, oil and natural gas as “the main human influence on the climate.”

The document is a “code red for humanity,” said Antonio Guterres, secretary-general of the United Nations. “This report must sound a death knell for coal and fossil fuels before they destroy our planet.”

IPCC called for “immediate, rapid and large-scale reductions in greenhouse gas emissions.”

But there have been numerous predictions from market-watchers that world demand for LNG and natural gas will grow steadily for decades.

And Tim McMillan, CEO of the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers, said: “The global demand for energy, and with it the demand for natural gas and oil, is growing and will likely surpass pre-pandemic levels within two years and is expected to grow for decades to come.”

What will world governments do about the new IPCC report? We may find out more at the world climate summit, COP26, in Scotland Oct. 31-Nov. 12.

But 196 nations signed the Paris Agreement on climate change in 2015 — and only  two have actually met their Paris targets: Morocco and The Gambia.

Canada withdrew from the Kyoto Protocol of 2002, failed to meet its targets under the Copenhagen Accord of 2009, and has not met its 2015 Paris targets.

Ottawa now aims to slash greenhouse emissions by almost half by 2030. The Climate Action Tracker doubts that will happen. The government also promises to achieve Net Zero emissions by 2050. But the Climate Action Tracker notes: ‘It has yet to enshrine that target into law or release a plan to achieve it.”

  • Canadians led the world in concern about climate change, at 32%, in a poll taken in July, before the IPCC report. But the global average was only 14%: http://ow.ly/LL1x50FOmfW

Stand by for our event Sept. 22

We’ll soon announce the topics for discussion at our next online outreach session.

The Alliance’s third outreach session, on 29 July, drew participants from BC and Alberta, and focused on local governments’ roles in economic reconciliation with First Nations. Read the panelists’ comments

BC LNG projects respect environment

The Nisga’a-led  Ksi Lisims LNG project plans to be Net Zero within three years, and notes:

“The environmental benefits of the Project are extensive. Exporting LNG from Canada provides foreign consumers with a reliable, responsibly produced energy source that helps governments to meet climate targets, satisfy energy demand growth and supports the use of renewables by offsetting intermittent renewable energy (e.g., solar, wind, etc.).

“In Asia, coal and oil currently supply over 70% of primary energy demand. Replacing coal with LNG exported from the Project results in a reduction of global carbon emissions by over 45 million tonnes per year, or 1.3 gigatonnes over a 30-year period, which is equivalent to offsetting nearly two years’ worth of total carbon emissions from Canada.”

And the Haisla Nation’s Cedar LNG project says, among other things: “Over the last decade, global demand for LNG has steadily increased in Asia and Europe. According to British Columbia’s Natural Gas Strategy, this growth is expected to continue as countries pursue alternatives to diesel and coal to support cleaner electricity generation, heating, and transportation requirements. . . .

“The Project will help meet the increasing demand, connecting plentiful natural gas resources in the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin with markets worldwide to reduce global air pollution and greenhouse gases (GHGs).”

“Cedar is committed to developing the Project in a manner that utilizes the maximum amount of electrification possible whilst not introducing further environmental and/or operational risks.”

Also in the news

  • What court victory for Blueberry River First Nations means for Indigenous rights and resource development: http://ow.ly/euah50FMM8h
  • TC Energy hopes for quick resolution of dispute over ballooning costs for Coastal GasLink: http://ly/CXKK50FJ0VC
  • Toronto editorial got it wrong. LNG is being used to displace coal, and Canada can contribute: http://ow.ly/kBi050FLSdP
  • Natural gas/LNG will help bring down world emissions, and infrastructure can then be repurposed for low-carbon fuels in the long term. http://ow.ly/QcWU50FKd6z
  • Petronas (25% partner in LNGCanada) eyes $1.3-billion project in Alberta to export hydrogen to Asia: http://ly/C7UJ50FJOx5

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First Nations LNG Alliance Newsletter