Kathleen Wynne addresses Calgary business leaders on environmental responsibility

It was a packed room full of a select group of the southern Alberta business world, as Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne addressed the Calgary Chamber of Commerce.

A speech that some thought might be centred around energy and Ontario’s priorities was instead chalk full of environmental responsibilities both provinces need to undertake.

“Whenever I travel to Alberta, I can’t help but reflect on how the dynamic of our relationship has evolved in recent times. For some of us, when we think back on the history of relations between Alberta and Ontario, we think of conflict and antagonism,” Wynne said.

“After I was sworn in as premier, my first meeting with another provincial leader was with the Premier of Alberta. That was no coincidence. As I said when I spoke here at the Chamber in 2013, I do not believe that Canadians buy into the artificial political rhetoric that attempts to put region and people against one another.”

Wynne referred to the relationship between both provinces as no longer adversarial and made mention of the partnership and what the two can achieve together.

“At the very top of that list is an undertaking that is ambitious as it is necessary – the fight against climate change and the pursuit of economic growth that is both farsighted and sustainable.”

“When I became Premier, our government made a choice. We put a priority on creating jobs and advancing our economy while, at the same time, protecting our environment. We rejected the false notion that we needed to choose between economic prosperity and environmental responsibility. We can have both. And, frankly, if we want to thrive in the global marketplace, we must pursue both.”

“By capping oil sands emissions, phasing out coal, implementing a price on carbon and drawing more energy from renewables – Alberta has paved the way for further progress on the Canadian Energy Strategy. We have a shared interest in this progress, and Ontario will continue to work with and support Alberta as it implements its plan.”

Both governments plan on sharing clean technology in hopes of limiting emissions in the years ahead while creating conditions to spur innovation.

Wynne added progress on this front requires a “buy-in” from provinces and premiers across the country.

“In Ontario, our emissions are going down. Our economy is growing. There are of course massive differences between our two provinces when it comes to the specific challenge of educing greenhouse gases. Alberta is Canada’s energy leader. The task here is more complex. And Premier Notley deserves tremendous credit for taking on the challenge,” she said.

She also boasted some of Ontario’s own success in the area of helping people and conceded there have been costs to it.

“Even in hard times, both continue to abound. Alberta remains a leader within the Canadian federation – a province capable of showing the way, of using its maverick spirit to forge a path to a new and better way of blending energy production, economic growth and environmental progress.”

At the conclusion of her speech, Calgary Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Adam Legge pledged to continue their work with Ontario and the Ontario government for the betterment of businesses in both provinces.