Alberta UCP set to discuss abandoning net zero targets at upcoming AGM

Abandoning net zero targets, removing the designation of CO2 as a pollutant, and recognizing that carbon dioxide is the foundational nutrient for all life on earth.

That is a policy resolution set to be discussed at the UCP’s upcoming annual general meeting (AGM). The resolution also went on to advocate for even more CO2 and comes as the federal government is looking to hit net-zero emissions by 2050.

It was brought forward by two UCP constituency associations, Athabasca-Barrhead-Westlock and Red Deer South, to be discussed at the AGM next month.

“There’s nothing fundamentally wrong with carbon dioxide, it’s about where we are at now relative to where we used to be and what are there effects on the climate that it’s going to cause,” says Robert Tremblay, board co-chair with Calgary Climate Hub.

“We know that the effects that it will cause will be expensive and dangerous to humans everywhere, including here in Alberta.”

At Calgary’s annual climate symposium, Mayor Jyoti Gondek says while we are reliant on oil and gas in Alberta, progress has been made to make producing energy cleaner, contributing to reducing emissions.

She says stances like the one seen in the UCP policy resolution don’t help when Calgary is trying to make its case beyond our borders.

“I can tell you when we are trying to attract talent to our city, people are watching us,” says Gondek. “They are looking to see if we believe in sustainability and resilience. I don’t want to lose investment dollars because we are making unfortunate decisions.”

The policy resolution comes as Premier Danielle Smith is set to face a leadership review at the AGM.

In a statement to CityNews, Smith says UCP members “have ranked the policy resolutions that matter to them.”

“As leader, I respect the grassroots party process and look forward to the debate in November.”

Lori Williams is a political science professor at Mount Royal University and believe the premier is managing a tight-rope.

“They got to placate this further right-fringe of the party and at the same time try to maintain the support of those moderate voters,” she says. “I think that is going to be an increasingly difficult thing to do.”

Even though the resolution may have enough votes to form the UCP’s policies, they are non-binding on the government which means the resolution wouldn’t automatically lead to legislative change.

CityNews has reached out to both UCP constituency associations who brought forward the policy resolution for comment.

The UCP AGM is set for Nov. 1 in Red Deer.