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Epoch Times
27-05-2025
- Business
- Epoch Times
Carney Says He's Willing to Support Pipeline Creation if ‘Consensus' Is Reached
Pipelines could contribute to Prime Minister Mark Carney's vision of transforming Canada into an 'energy superpower,' but only if there is a 'consensus' for their development, he says. Exporting more oil and gas is 'an element' of Carney's plan to make the country an energy power house, but it is not 'the element' that will make it happen, he said during a May 13 interview with CTV News. Carney said becoming a superpower requires a mixture of both alternative and conventional energies, and that that oil and gas alone is not enough. 'That in and of itself, doesn't make us an energy superpower,' he said. 'We have all the components in nuclear, in hydro, potentially in carbon capture and storage, which is going to be one of the determinants of competitiveness and productivity in a number of sectors.' When Carney was asked by reporters whether he would support pipeline construction, he answered in the affirmative. 'First off, I've said repeatedly: yes, first point.' he replied. 'Secondly, because I understand the need for that consensus, I'm a prime minister who can help create that consensus.' Related Stories 5/13/2025 5/7/2025 Carney stated his support for pipelines during the May 13 interview, but his comments on the topic were not always clear during the federal election campaign, according to Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet. Blanchet accused Carney during the April 16 federal leaders' French language debate of lacking consistency on the pipeline issue, saying that he simultaneously claimed he would 'push pipelines through Canada' and then asserted he would not. Carney told Radio-Canada last month that new pipelines would 'not necessarily' be prioritized by his government. 'We have to choose a few projects, a few big projects, not necessarily pipelines, but maybe pipelines,' he said in French during the April 13 interview. 'We'll see.' When questioned during the May 13 interview about his evolving views on various environmental policies, particularly the consumer carbon tax that he removed as prime minister after initially endorsing it, Carney reiterated his support for a pipeline. 'If you want a simple answer on 'Will I support building a pipeline?' Yes. That's the simple answer. I've given that multiple times,' Carney said. 'But it's not enough. It's not enough to make Canada an energy superpower. It's not enough to build our full potential.' Former Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault, who now holds the heritage portfolio, told reporters during a May 14 that fighting climate change continues to be a cornerstone of the Liberal government's agenda. 'It was a central element of our platform, and we will make good on our commitments,' he said. When questioned about building a new pipeline, Guilbeault referenced Canada's Trans Mountain Pipeline, which he said is running at only 40 percent capacity. The Trans Mountain Pipeline transports crude oil and refined petroleum products from Edmonton to the West Coast. 'I think before we start talking about building an entire new pipeline, maybe we should maximize the use of existing infrastructure,' said Guilbeault. 'Right now, there are no companies that are saying that they want to build an East-West pipeline. And as you know, these things are built by companies, not government.' Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has blamed the federal government for the lack of proposals from industry to construct new pipelines. She told CTV's Vassy Kapelos during a May 8 interview that the federal government has created 'a chaotic investment environment' and said its Ottawa's job to 'create an environment where the private sector will come to the table.' Carney on Emissions Smith and Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe have both been vocal about their concerns that federal environmental policies are hindering the economic growth of their provinces. Included in these policies is the for the oil and gas sector to bring emissions to 35 percent below 2019 levels and the Impact Assessment Act, the 2019 statute that alters the environmental review framework for specific energy projects to incorporate environmental and social considerations in the decision-making process. Carney his intention during the election campaign to both of the policies established by predecessor Justin Trudeau's administration, saying his proposed 'one window' approval process would hasten 'large-scale, national-interest infrastructure projects.' During the May 13 interview, Carney said he would 'change things at the federal level that need to be changed in order for projects to move forward.' When asked if those changes could include the Impact Assessment Act and the emissions cap, Carney replied it 'absolutely could include both.' 'But do it conceptually. Do it on specifics. Do it for moving forward. And that's the point,' he said. Smith has the emissions cap as 'an intentional attack by the federal government on the economy of Alberta and the financial well-being of millions of Albertans and Canadians.' Moe has also condemned the cap, saying it and other regulations will have 'serious economic impacts on Canadians and limit our sustainable Canadian energy products from producing heat and electricity to the world.' Both Alberta and Saskatchewan have criticized various federal mandates over the past few years, maintaining that Ottawa is overstepping with the rules it is putting in place to reach net-zero emissions by 2050. The carbon tax was another policy on which Ottawa and the two provinces disagreed. Carney the consumer carbon tax to zero percent when he became leader in March, but pledged to replace it with a new system that would reward Canadians for making lower-emission choices. He noted during his May 13 interview that he was willing to get rid of the carbon tax for consumers because they make up only 6 percent of the country's carbon emissions. 'We can do much better with different approaches, including collaborative approaches, which is what I'm looking to do,' Carney said. He has the industrial carbon tax will not be repealed, despite for its removal by the energy industry. Both premiers have adopted a wait-and-see approach since the Liberals won a fourth mandate last month, saying they are hoping for changes that will boost industry in their provinces. The prime minister told CTV he has had 'constructive' conversations with both Moe and Smith since his election and added that he intends to work with all of the provinces on improving the economy. He is slated to meet with premiers at the first ministers conference in Saskatchewan on June 2.
Yahoo
20-05-2025
- Yahoo
1 dead after retaining wall collapses at construction site in Blainville, Que.
One person died when the walls of a construction site in Blainville, Que., collapsed on Tuesday, sending parked cars and other material falling into a pit. Images from the scene showed that one of the walls of a construction pit, where workers had been building the foundation for a new commercial and residential development on Michèle-Bohec Boulevard, collapsed inward around 11 a.m. Multiple vehicles that had been parked near the lip of the pit fell into it as the wall collapsed. Emergency services, including firefighters and multiple ambulances, rushed to the scene. Blainville police told Radio-Canada that in addition to the death, three people had been injured. One of them was treated on site, another was transported to the hospital with a leg injury and one person who had to be rescued from the pit was also transported to the hospital to be treated for shock. It was not immediately clear if there were more injuries. Quebec's workplace safety board, the CNESST, has opened an investigation into the collapse. General contractor Syscomax was co-ordinating the work on the development, which is called Liria. According to Syscomax's website, Liria is to feature residential buildings, commercial space and a hotel. But the website also notes that the work involves "several challenges, such as excavating the 3-storey underground parking lot in complex soil conditions."
Yahoo
20-05-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
RM of Piney residents to return home after wildfire evacuation order lifted
Southern Manitobans who were forced out of their town because of an out-of-control fire will now be able to return home. An evacuation order in the rural municipality of Piney was lifted Monday afternoon after Manitoba Wildfire Services confirmed there were no concerns about the fire along the perimeter, the community said in an update Monday afternoon. The rural municipality said the the nearly 9,000-hectare blaze is no longer out of control, and is being contained. Around 300 people were evacuated in the town of Woodridge in the rural municipality last week. Earlier Monday, officials with the town urged residents to be patient. "Everybody's getting anxious and wanting to lift [the evacuation] and they're wanting to come home," Wayne Anderson, reeve of the RM of Piney, said Monday. The reeve said the rural municipality received 15 millimetres of rain at the end of the week, which helped firefighting efforts. Woodridge resident Mason Hildebrand has been staying in Steinbach. He told Radio-Canada before the order was lifted most evacuees he's with were "already sick" of being stuck at a hotel, and wanted to go back home. "It's a little bit discouraging not being able to be in town in our own homes," he said. "But at the same time at least we're all safe." The evacuation order has been lifted in the towns of Woodridge, Carrick, St. Labre, Badger and surrounding areas, as well as the south side of Whitemouth Lake Road near the townsite of Florze, the update said. Lac du Bonnet fire no longer out of control There are currently 13 active wildfires in Manitoba, and there have been 81 fires so far this year. The average for this time in the province is 61. The 4,000-hectare fire which killed two people in the RM of Lac du Bonnet is no longer ruled to be out of control. About 150 people displaced by that fire were allowed to return home Sunday. The provincial fire map still showed the Piney fire as out of control as of 5 p.m. on Monday. Two other out-of-control fires remain: a fire in Ingolf, Ont., that's spread into Manitoba, and the fire in Nopiming Provincial Park, which is the largest. The province said Monday the Nopiming fire was 101,000 hectares in size and about a kilometre away from Bird River. It said 20 properties around Beresford Lake — which is north of the fire — have been damaged. B.C. firefighters redeployed from The Pas to Nopiming In northern Manitoba, officials are still monitoring a wildfire that was first detected on May 3 and has since grown to more than 42,000 hectares. That fire was no longer out of control as of Thursday. B.C. Wildfire Service says 21 out of the 42 crews sent out to The Pas to help fight the fire have been redeployed in Nopiming, but the rest still remain in northern Manitoba. At least 290 residents were forced out of their homes in RM of Kelsey because of the fire, with crews counting more than 90 evacuees from the Clearwater Lake Provincial Park area. They began returning home last week. Lori Forbes, emergency services co-ordinator for the rural municipality, said the fire destroyed three homes as well as some livestock. Manitoba Wildfire Services "are doing aerial with helicopters, they do infrared checking for hotspots just to ensure everything is out and cool. So those have been happening in the early mornings," Forbes said. "All evacuees from what I know would have returned home this weekend. So that's very good news."
Yahoo
18-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Fire forces Puvirnituq, Que., to declare state of emergency as water shortage continues
As people in Puvirnituq, Que., continue to struggle with a worsening water shortage, a fire has prompted the small village in Nunavik to declare a state of emergency. The fire, which began Saturday at around 3 p.m., destroyed two housing units in the village of 2,100 people. No injuries were reported but the firefighters' inability to deal with the fire quickly due to a limited supply of water is what led to a state of emergency being declared, according to Radio-Canada. Access to water has been limited since a pipe that connects the pump station to the treatment plant froze in mid-March. In recent days, patients have had to be flown south due to the limited water supply in hospitals and there have been growing concerns about sicknesses like gastroenteritis (stomach flu) spreading rapidly because of many people are unable to wash their hands. CBC News is reaching out to local authorities in order to get a better sense of what a declaration of a state of emergency entails. "I feel for our community," Puvirnituq Mayor Lucy Qalingo wrote on Facebook late Saturday night. "I don't know what else to say." Earlier that day, hours before the fire started, the mayor had also taken to Facebook to say that "both governments should stop ignoring the high needs of everything in Nunavik" and issued an urgent call for help, writing: "Please don't fail us." "If we don't see changes from the result of the crisis we are going through, we are definitely nothing to them. What we are going through right now happens in third world countries," Qalingo wrote in the Facebook post. "We don't have to beg for water. We are also Canadians. Forgotten Canadians." CBC News also has reached out to the office of Ian Lafrenière — Quebec's minister responsible for relations with the First Nations and the Inuit — as well as the office of Canada's new Indigenous Services Minister Mandy Gull-Masty. Earlier this week, Lafrenière said he had been in touch with the Kativik Regional Government and the Nunavik Regional Board of Health and Social Services for the past three weeks and that his government was ready to provide assistance. Two planes loaded with water left Montreal for Puvirnituq on Friday morning. The province's ministry of public security said three more water deliveries were scheduled over the weekend, though weather conditions could affect those operations.
Global News
14-05-2025
- Politics
- Global News
Quebec's Parti Québécois party defends candidate over leftist past, arrest
The Parti Québécois is defending its candidate in an upcoming byelection northeast of Montreal after criticism of his far-left, militant past. Alex Boissonneault was arrested in 2001 in Quebec City for being part of a group that had plotted to penetrate the security perimeter at a free-trade meeting called Summit of the Americas. Get daily National news Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day. Sign up for daily National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy He was held in pretrial detention for 41 days but was subsequently sentenced to community service and eventually pardoned in 2011. Boissonneault, 46, a former journalist with Radio-Canada, told reporters today he hopes voters in the Arthabaska riding will look past his choices as a young adult. Conservative Leader Eric Duhaime is also running in the riding and has spent the week attacking Boissoneault over the candidate's political past. Premier François Legault has several more months to call the byelection in the riding, which was left vacant after CAQ member Éric Lefebvre resigned in March to run in the April 28 federal election.
