Alberta could use nuclear power. Canada’s current economic engine is like one of those carbureted big-block V-8s from the 1970s: impressive power, but lousy fuel economy and lots of emissions. This is because Alberta’s electricity sector is mainly fossil-fired, and…
Category: Hydrogen
The new age of low-carbon hydrocarbons: a rude surprise as the three Rs go big time
Gasoline, diesel, and heating oil are all hydrocarbon fuels. Almost every drop of them available on the planet today comes from petroleum. But that isn’t written in stone. Each of these fuels is, at bottom, a different combination of hydrogen…
Guessing between the lines: how will Canada-U.S. energy and environment policy take shape?
After weeks of speculation about how Canada and the U.S. will respond to the converging pressures on the economy and environment, last week’s Ottawa meeting between the president and prime minister produced a few hints. Stephen Harper and Barack Obama…
Alberta’s route to massive carbon reduction: a winnable war
Fighting the climate change war in Alberta is a two-front proposition. There’s power generation and there’s the oilsands. Both are the biggest emitters of their kind in Canada (see article). And unless there is progress in both, or at least…
Nuclear power in Alberta: prospects and challenges
Alberta is Canada’s biggest emitter of greenhouse gases (GHGs). Most emissions come from two activities: power generation, and oilsands mining and processing. Combined they emitted over 102 million tonnes of GHGs in 2004—43 percent of the provincial total, and over…