NEW – Federal: CPA files comments on federal discussion paper

On September 30, the CPA filed its comments regarding the federal government’s People-Centred Just Transition discussion paper.

The government had requested commentary regarding the themes of the discussion paper which focused on “economic, environmental and social policy that aims to create an equitable and prosperous future for workers and communities as the world builds a low-carbon economy”.

Among the objectives of the paper is that “no worker or community can be left behind, so government action must focus on these workers.”

Submitting comments on behalf of the CPA, Sr. Vice-President of Government Affairs, Allan Murphy, noted that Canadians deserve real energy choice if all communities are to prosper in the future.

For example, many Indigenous and remote communities in Canada continue to rely on diesel for heating and power generation. This presents a variety of environmental, economic, technical, and social challenges, including air and noise pollution, the risks of fuel spills/leaks, high cost of energy, supply issues and capacity constraints. These issues can immediately be resolved by replacing dirty fuels such as diesel with propane.

Rural communities that are currently off the natural gas grid and face the high cost of electricity are also challenged by the lack of incentives for affordable and cleaner energy choices. Propane can be an important part of that transition both as a primary source of energy but also as a co-primary energy source in support of renewable energy options such as wind and solar which provide intermittent energy.

Murphy noted that propane is “a much lower emission energy option compared to carbon-intense fuels such as oil, gasoline and diesel. Our industry provides well-paying jobs to Canadians and historically, propane is a very affordable energy option.

With the advances in technology that will allow propane to become an even cleaner energy option, propane will continue to be an important transition fuel as Canadians make choices that will help fight climate change and provide for a fair and just transition to a low-carbon future.”