“Let me be clear – Albertans didn’t want or invite this fight,” Rachel Notley tweeted on Tuesday, Feb. 6, the same day she announced an immediate boycott on B.C. wines. Her province’s latest salvo in the escalating conflict over the proposed expansion of the Trans Mountain pipeline was brought on by B.C. Premier John Horgan’s suspension of additional shipments of bitumen until further studies of increased bitumen transmissions on B.C. waters are done.
While it seems ironic to see two NDP premiers going head to head on the expanded pipeline, make no mistake that arguably the biggest issue is the political future of both.
When Notley and the NDP won the election in 2015, it was a first for Alberta after years of Conservative rule, a major coup for the feisty leader. Right from the start of her mandate, the defeated, outraged conservation population had the knives out for her. When Jason Kenney, a Conservative star MP under former Prime Minister Stephen Harper, became leader of the newly formed United Conservative Party of Alberta last year, Notley’s chances of re-election suddenly seemed dim. However, by taking such a tough stance with B.C. she’s managed the almost impossible – Kenney’s support, tweeted in precisely that word.
Horgan too is in a precarious position. He has already angered the died-in-the-wool NDP faithful with his decision to continue with the Peace River Site C dam. By ordering more studies of the effect of bitumen in B.C. waters, he’s not only bought his government time with the environmental faction of the party, but he’s also managed to take some of the wind out of the Greens’ sails. The 2017 B.C. election brought about an uneasy alliance between the NDP and Andrew Weaver’s Green party. Weaver, a would-be king maker, regularly extracts his pound of flesh in return for his support. By defying the federal government’s support of the expanded pipeline and Notley’s pressure, Horgan has regained some needed support from the environmentalists.
Where will it all end? Right now it would appear the federal government needs to bring the two provinces to the bargaining table. In the meantime, Notley’s threat to not use future power from the Site C dam and her ban this week of B.C. wine imports is troubling. And while the social media pundits may tongue-in-cheek urge their minions to drink more B.C. wine, the potential loss of $70 million revenue to B.C.’s wine producers is no joke. I can only hope this doesn’t escalate to the point where we’ll need visas to visit family in Alberta. It’s time for cooler heads to prevail.
