CALGARY, AB — Chris Severson-Baker, spokesperson for the Pembina Institute, made the following comments in response to TransAlta’s announcement that the Pioneer Carbon Capture and Storage project will not proceed:
“Today’s announcement means that a new coal-plant in Alberta will be operating without emissions limits until at least 2056. Conventional coal-fired electricity plants are the dirtiest possible source of power, and new plants without carbon reduction technology have no place in today’s energy mix given that there are abundant opportunities to reduce that pollution.
“The reason for this failure is clear. Until the federal or Alberta governments implement policies that incentivize companies to capture their emissions or switch to cleaner sources of energy, those companies will continue to pollute with coal. TransAlta pointed to the insufficient price on carbon as the main reason that the project is not going to proceed.
“Just yesterday, the International Energy Agency’s annual progress report showed that the world is on track for six degrees of warming because of inadequate climate change policies. TransAlta’s announcement shows how much work Canada needs to do if it wants to help avoid that catastrophic scenario.”
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Contact:
Chris Severson-Baker
Spokesperson
Cell: 403.899.7423
Kevin Sauve
Communications lead
Cell: 604.354.2628
Background:
Go here to learn more about the International Energy Agency's progress report.