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Alberta’s environment minister expressed little concern that European countries are taking steps toward tariffs on natural gas imports linked to high methane emissions as she promotes the province’s role as an energy ally in Washington.
Rebecca Schulz said there have been few conversations about the emerging export issue as she visits the US capital this week.
“That hasn’t really been an issue that has been brought up specifically,” Schulz said in an interview with The Canadian Press on Thursday.
European Union countries approved a law earlier this year to set methane emission limits on oil and gas imports from 2030. Importers who do not meet the limit could face a financial penalty.
Some experts say the new European regulations are a sign of things to come for the global energy market and should send a message to producers to take methane reduction more seriously.
Methane is known as a “major pollutant” of the climate and other jurisdictions, including the United States, are also moving towards stricter targets and placing limits on the concentration of methane on gas imports. That could affect the Alberta market in the future.
The Biden administration has taken ambitious steps to limit greenhouse gas emissions, announcing a methane reduction plan at a global climate conference. President Joe Biden has also promised to eliminate carbon pollution from the electricity sector by 2035 and across the economy by 2050.
The United States is Alberta’s largest trading partner. In 2023, Alberta exported more than $156 billion in goods to the United States.
However, Schulz said he is not worried about the change in regulations in the energy market, referring to Alberta’s action on the environment. He said Alberta has reduced emissions by 45 per cent, meeting that target three years ahead of schedule.
“We did that by working with industry and making sure we set up policy, regulation and incentives,” Schulz said.
The way Alberta measures methane emission reductions has faced scrutiny, with several studies concluding that the industry’s emissions projections are underestimated by anywhere from 50 to 150 percent.
Schulz stands by the numbers.
“We are very confident in our methodology.”
This report was first published by The Canadian Press on June 20, 2024.
— With files from The Associated Press
(Except translation, this story has not been edited by achinews staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
source link https://calgary.ctvnews.ca/alberta-environment-minister-unworried-by-movement-toward-methane-tariffs-1.6935226
