This article originally appeared in the National Post.
By Stephen Buffalo, December 10, 2024
The hits to First Nations oil and gas producers keep coming from Ottawa. The first hit was the “greenwashing” bill, which tries to silence those who speak out in favour of oil and gas production. Now, the government is threatening an emissions cap that will likely further suppress investment in new oil production, especially on Indigenous lands.
Just when First Nations had a chance to enjoy real prosperity, to finally get out from the paralyzing poverty that is destroying our communities, this next clampdown hits. The current government is happy if we, indigenous peoples, grow marijuana and run casinos, but not if we participate in the resource sector that is foundational to Canadian prosperity.
There are many First Nations in British Columbia, Alberta, and Saskatchewan that are invested in the oil and gas sector, taking part ownership of pipelines and production facilities, and benefitting from the revenue that comes from the extraction of fossil fuels. For most of us, it’s the one thing that has been able to generate revenues in a meaningful way so that we are not dependent on the inadequate handouts from Ottawa.
The federal government talks a good game about reconciliation with Indigenous peoples, but the follow through has been dreadful. When it comes to policy priorities, their radical climate agenda, well out of step with the current Biden administration in the USA and in a different universe than president-elect Donald Trump’s plans, comes before reducing poverty on reserves every time.
Since its passing in June, Bill C-59, the greenwashing bill, has silenced many of the members of the Indian Resource Council (which I lead). But the impact of the bill goes beyond preventing industry from speaking about their emissions reduction goals.
Bill C-59 is an amendment to the Competition Act. Its stated purpose is to “tackle greenwashing, which refers to the misleading portrayal of environmental practices. This includes unsubstantiated claims about products or a company’s sustainability efforts.” In short, greenwashing is when a company exaggerates their sustainability practices.
First Nations in Saskatchewan, Alberta, and British Columbia have spent thirty years creating space for themselves in the energy sector. In recent years, they have purchased equity in pipelines and storage facilities, established hundreds of companies that work in the field, and trained thousands of young men and women to participate in what is often the only substantial economic activity in their traditional territories. All this work, and the hopes of dozens of First Nations and Metis communities for economic renewal and Indigenous prosperity are not threatened by regulations that will scare away billions of dollars in investment and return the dark pall of poverty and hopelessness.
The 2024 legislated cap, a favourite of Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault, restricts greenhouse gas emissions in accordance with the 2030 Emissions Reduction Plan. The action could reduce emissions to 40 per cent below 2005 levels by 2030, and a goal of net-zero by 2050. All emissions would be independently verified and could involve using credits of support for decarbonization efforts. Oil and gas production would continue, but the expansion that Indigenous groups counted on to bring prosperity to the communities would be severely curtailed. We are not taking this lightly.
I’ve watched with concern as some environmental activists and politicians have taken to calling First Nations involvement in oil and gas production, or industry-Indigenous collaboration in the sector, “red washing.” This condescending and insulting suggest that we are all being used by industry, and that we cannot think for ourselves when it comes to advocating for policies that will benefit out communities.
The implication is that Indigenous participation in the oil and gas sector is superficial and illegitimate. To some people, we are only allowed to be one of two things: victims of rampant resource development or puppets of an environmental exploiter. the thought that some Indigenous peoples conscientiously participate in the resource economy of their own free will is apparently unfathomable to some.
This pejorative term implies that Indigenous participation in the oil and gas sector is superficial and illegitimate. To some people, we are only allowed to be one of two things: victims or the puppet of an environmental exploiter. The thought that some indigenous peoples conscientiously participate in the resource economy of their own free will is apparently unfathomable to some.
I have participated in the oil and gas sector for decades, as did my father before me. My nation Samson Cree Nation has been producing oil from the Bonnie Glen field near Pigeon Lake, Alberta, since the 1950s. Dozens of communities and hundreds of First Nations people are involved in the sector through partnerships with TC Energy, Suncor, Cenovus, IPC Canada and many other energy companies. We have contributed in many ways to the prosperity it has brought to Canadians and have used the revenue to lessen our reliance on government transfer payments and move to eliminate our welfare dependency.
Implying that we are all being used by industry, and that we cannot think for ourselves when it comes to advocating for policies that will benefit our communities, is insulting and wrong-headed.
Dismissing our participation as red-washing hurts our hearts and is both condescending and patronizing in the extreme. The emissions cap will affect our stomachs, will force some communities back into poverty; our communities will suffer immediately and deeply. Government transition payments are no substitute for economic independence and participation in an industry that, like it or not, is foundational to national prosperity.
Despite the obvious impact on our communities, no one in government has meaningfully consulted us or listened to our concerns in developing the emissions cap policy. This consultation is required by law and is well-established in government practice. It seems like Ottawa is engaged, attentive and supportive only when Indigenous people want to stop oil and gas development, even when those critics represent only a small minority in their communities.
For example, the government of Canada and the government of British Columbia went so far as to fund and support indigenous critics of the Coastal Gas Link pipeline, despite the fact that the communities directly involved repeatedly voted in favour of the project. When we support oil and gas, there’s no government support to be seen.
Both governments and industry players have conducted analysis to assess the impact of the emissions cap on the economy and on energy production, using big firms like S&P Global, Deloitte, Navius, and the Conference Board of Canada.
But, I haven’t seen any analysis of how the emissions cap will impact Indigenous nations who produce oil, or who have taken equity positions in pipelines, tank farms, gas plants and LNG facilities over the past few years. Why are we, after years of advocacy and engagement, still so invisible and unimportant to decision-makers?
In the impact assessment process, the federal government requires proponents to do exactly this kind of work. They must assess the socioeconomic and other impacts on Indigenous peoples of any substantial project before it can be approved.
Yet, for a staggeringly consequential and damaging policy that will likely affect the economic development of probably over one hundred Indigenous communities no assessment has taken place. We invite the prime minister and his ministers to visit our First Nations and learn about the houses that will not be built, language programs that will be shut down, elders who will have to make do without additional financial support, and the many other initiatives sustained by revenue from energy projects that will go by the wayside.
Before the cap is implemented, we deserve to know what this emissions decision means for us. When the Canadian oil and gas sector is capped and forced to shrink, which projects will be cut first? How much revenue will be lost and how quickly? Experience tells me that it’s the small Indigenous-owned developments and production on reserves that will be first on the chopping block.
First Nations are trying to get out of poverty and pave their way to self-determination and sustainable prosperity. The federal government keeps putting up roadblock after roadblock along what has become a very long road. We are frustrated and tired. More than anything, we are gobsmacked that a prime minister who once described the government’s relationship with Indigenous peoples as his highest priority has taken such a destructive measure without the decency to even discuss this issue with the people most affected by the policy.
Indigenous peoples deserve better. We are hurt.
Stephen Buffalo is the CEO and president of the Indian Resource Council and a senior fellow at the Macdonald-Laurier Institute.
