Alberta criticizes federal push to curtail oil and natural gas use at COP28 summit

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said she was encouraged by the success of her province and Saskatchewan to push back “against the voices of those obsessed” with phasing out oil and natural gas at the COP28 climate summit held in Dubai by the United Nations.

Smith, one of just two Canadian premiers of provinces attending the talks between nearly 200 countries, and Rebecca Schulz, Alberta's environment minister, on Wednesday in a statement criticized federal environment minister Steven Guilbeault "and other radical activists" at the meeting, saying they were promoting "an approach that would consign the world to energy poverty and economic stagnation by focusing only on ending all fossil fuel use."

"That extreme position was defeated at COP28 by a growing alliance of thoughtful world leaders that well understand we can indeed grow our economies, develop our natural resources and ensure energy and food security for the world while simultaneously reducing emissions through technology and multilateral cooperation," Smith and Schulz said in the statement.

Their critical remarks came as the countries attending COP28 agreed to move away from planet-warming fossil fuels — the first time they've made that crucial pledge in decades of U.N. climate talks though many warned the deal still had significant shortcomings.

The agreement was approved without the floor fight many feared and is stronger than a draft floated earlier in the week that angered several nations. But it didn't call for an outright phasing out of oil, gas and coal, and it gives nations significant wiggle room in their transition away from those fuels.

Guilbeault hailed the "monumental" deal, saying Canada played a “leading role in solidifying the deal.”

“The deal sets the tone for the next few years as we continue our efforts in tackling the climate crisis,” he wrote in a statement posted on social-media platform X, formerly Twitter.

The agreement approved in Dubai was welcomed by some observers as a historic turning point in global climate negotiations and stronger than a draft floated earlier in the week. That draft prepared by the COP presidency made no mention of a fossil fuel phase down or phase out, instead calling for countries to reduce “consumption and production of fossil fuels, in a just, orderly and equitable manner.”

But many warned of what they saw as loopholes and distractions in the agreement that could undermine the action needed to meet the global commitment to keep temperature rise to 1.5 degrees above pre-industrial times.

The 21-page agreement calls on countries to transition away from fossil fuels in energy systems, “accelerating action in this critical decade, so as to achieve net zero by 2050.”

The document is a central part of the 2015 Paris accord, which mandated countries to periodically assess their commitments to limit warming to the 1.5-degree threshold to avoid some of the most catastrophic climate change impacts. The summit in Dubai marked the end of the first “global stocktake” process under the accord.

So far, the world has warmed by an estimated 1.2 degrees since the mid-1800s and scientists expect this year to be the hottest on record.

The federal government made several announcements during the two-week summit, unveiling its emissions cap for the oil and gas industry and draft regulations to drastically cut methane emissions from the sector.

With files from The Canadian Press and The Associated Press