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Climate Change, Environment, and Disaster Readiness

Resource exploitation and the climate crisis is putting the health and wealth of all Albertans, especially those belonging to marginalized communities, at risk.

The Green Party of Alberta will ensure that corporate polluters are required to pay for the damage they cause to human life and our natural environment. We will also create and enforce a framework for a fair energy transition that prioritizes workers and Indigenous communities, in accordance with the guidelines set out in the IPCC Synthesis Report.

The Green Party of Alberta will:

  • Protect our drinking water
    • Guarantee water resources remain in public hands, rather than privatized for corporate gain
    • Strengthen regulation of the fossil fuel and agricultural industries to prevent contamination and hold polluters accountable
    • Prioritize remediation of contaminated sources, especially in Indigenous communities which are disproportionately affected
  • Stop habitat loss and preserve biodiversity
    • Enforce and strengthen regulations protecting natural areas and wildlife corridors, and support restoration of degraded habitats
    • Promote urban density and sustainable land use
    • Encourage polyculture farming and sustainable forest harvesting
    • Restrict the use of pesticides and herbicides that harm pollinators, including bees and butterflies, which are essential to the reproduction of many plants
    • Identify, monitor, and act on expert recommendations to conserve the habitats of keystone species such as wolves and grizzlies
  • Protect our parks
    • End immediately coal exploration in Alberta and particularly in the Eastern Slopes to protect our watershed from selenium contamination.
    • Make provincial parks accessible by removing user fees, such as the controversial park pass in Kananaskis County for day-use activities
  • Respect Indigenous peoples and address environmental harms
    • Recognize that climate change and environmental degradation have disproportionately affected Indigenous peoples in Alberta
    • Include Indigenous people are included and influence government decision-making through affirming the sovereignty of Indigenous Nations, the government's duty to uphold treaty obligations, and the importance of traditional land practices
    • Require the full consent of impacted Indigenous communities in development and natural resource projects, and subject projects to revenue-sharing and co-management with these communities
    • Partner with Indigenous communities in preserving and protecting watersheds, natural environments, and prime agricultural lands
  • Strengthen Alberta's wildfire response
    • Reinstate the Rapattack program, a rappelling program that was a proven effective tool for fighting wildfires
    • Reopen and expand lookout positions, essential for detecting fires early
    • Add to Alberta's fleet of air tankers, reversing the trend of aging and decreasing stock despite the increased wildfire risk
    • Restore funding to rural firefighters, including the provincial training grant and allocating additional funding to rural departments to acquire tools and equipment
  • Shore up wildfire prevention practices
    • Stop spraying glyphosate, a harmful and counterproductive practice which kills fire-resistant aspens
    • Enhance prescribed burning, an effective way of reducing fuel loads and controlling wildfire spreads, using Indigenous traditional knowledge to guide and enhance our application of enhanced burning
    • Promote safer forest harvesting, regulating practices better to require removal of leftover debris
  • Cut GHG Emissions to Net-Zero by 2040; peak emissions by 2025
    • In line with the recommendations from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), reach peak emissions by 2025 and reduce to 60% of 2019 levels by 2034
    • No new approvals for oil, gas, or coal projects across Alberta and institute a ban on hydraulic fracturing (fracking)
    • Launch a just transition away from an economy based high emitting industries, with a focus on ensuring energy workers receive assistance to retrain and reskill
    • Decarbonize electricity production by replacing coal ans gas power plants with low carbon sources like solar, wind, and green hydrogen
    • Promote active and public transportation alternatives while continuing the transition from internal combustion engines to electric equivalents
    • Mandate sustainable construction and fund retrofits to improve the energy efficiency of existing building stock
    • Expand Level 3 charging for electric vehicles (EVs) into rural Alberta, tourist destinations, and provincial parks
  • Promote drought resilience and water conservation
    • Work with farmers to introduce and spread sustainable agriculture practices and tools, such as regenerative farming and water-saving technologies
    • Support and provide emergency funding to farmers impacted by drought
  • Support local food production
    • Increase support to smallholder farmers, including through government institutions like schools and hospital making purchasing commitments and mandating a larger portion of the price of a food item goes to farmers
    • Foster urban agriculture such as community gardens and protect agricultural land from development