Sunday, October 10, 2010
The Editor
The Lethbridge Herald
P.O. Box 670
Lethbridge, AB, T1J 3Z7
We are hearing less about global warming and climate change these days. That lull in the news does not mean the issue has gone away. Governments around the world are still locked in discussion to determine what kinds of action should be taken. Hundreds of billions of dollars are being spent on that dialogue.
Here in Alberta, our government is betting our dollars on a technology known as Carbon Capture and Sequestration (CCS). The idea is that carbon dioxide from power plants and oil sands processing facilities can be collected and pumped underground, rather than simply being exhausted to the atmosphere per current practice. Our government has currently ear-marked some two billion dollars for pilot projects and research to see if the process will really work as anticipated.
The process will be very expensive. If implemented tens of billions of dollars annually will be added to the cost of producing electricity and oil in Alberta. This is bound to have profound financial implications to Albertans.
Professor Don Lawton, of the University of Calgary, will be speaking to this important issue during the regular Southern Alberta Council on Public Affairs (SACPA) lunchtime session on Thursday, October 14. He will tell us about current projects underway in our province and the research he is involved in to evaluate the process.
Professor Lawton is bringing two colleagues. Dr. Edna Einsidel is studying public interest and concern about new technologies. Amanda Boyd, her Ph.D. student, is focusing on public reaction to the CCS process. They are seeking first-hand input from our audience.
Additional background information is available from the newly refurbished SACPA website. Please check it out and make room in your schedule to gain insight to your future and make the most of an opportunity to have your concerns heard.
Yours truly,
Duane Pendergast