It has been a while since I have posted to my blog, but when I saw this article on yet another ignorant attack on Alberta’s oil sands, I had to say something. I don’t know much about James Cameron, but it is clear that he doesn’t know very much about the energy sector and Alberta’s oil sands. To be fair, though, I have to point out that he is not the first to make criticisms in the media against the oil sands with little or no knowledge of the industry. It is unfortunate that we continually have to set the record straight, but we will continue to do so.

I first want to talk about Cameron’s assertion that we should not be investing in the “dead end paradigm” of fossil fuels and investing the “billions” into wind turbines instead. This has to be the most humorous and uneducated statement on the oil sands yet. First of all, does he realize that he is comparing apples to oranges? Wind turbines generate electrical energy that is fed into the grid, where as crude oil generated from the oil sands is mostly refined into transportation fuels. So, to suggest that we should be investing in one over the other simply underscores his utter lack of knowledge about the energy sector.

This leads me to my second comment: of course we could be heading towards a no-carbon future and transitioning away from the traditional combustion engine. But does Mr. Cameron know how many wind turbines would be required to meet this transition? Energy resource transitions happen over time and investment in new and green technologies requires a strong economy here and in the US, both of which depend on the oil sands. Furthermore, one of the major allegations leveled against the oil sands is that of destruction and degradation of the natural landscape. Has Mr. Cameron ever seen a wind farm? I can tell you that disturbance from oil sands mining dwarfs that of the number of wind turbines that would be required if we were to adopt this new “paradigm” that Cameron suggests.

Also, I would assume that this transition would take several decades, if not more, as I doubt the average citizen or business is going to instantly drop their current mode of transportation for the more expensive electric option. Individuals and businesses make long-term capital investments in current technologies and transitions do not happen overnight. Where does Mr. Cameron think that the North America will get it transportation fuel from over the next several decades that will facilitate this transformation while supporting our economy and current quality of life? Thirdly, investment in the oil sands comes largely from individuals and publically traded companies. Last time I checked, these entities are free to invest in whatever projects they desire that provides the best return for their bottom line and shareholders. I wonder how Mr. Cameron would feel if someone decided to dictate what movies he should be making.

Cameron goes even further in demonstrating very little about the issue by making this statement: "Those same areas are a great wind belt and we could be generating ... wind energy out of the same place. Why aren't we doing that?" It is no mystery that the “Wind Belt” is in south-western Alberta, the opposite corner of the province from the north-eastern oil sands. Cameron can’t be serious when he claims that he has been studying this issue for 20 years - if he has, he deserves a failing grade.

When you don’t think his comments could get worse or more comical, he then goes on to indicate that he plans on learning more about the issue when he meets this weekend with the Secretariat of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues. This hardly represents an honest attempt at actually learning about the industry.

Obviously, I am not a fan of these celebrity drive-by smears on our economy.  I know some are going to say they are concerned about the environment, but I have come to learn very fast that what is “environmental” is also economic in nature. I’ve also learned in my 2 years as MLA that, just because someone wants to stick a microphone in your face, does not mean that you are important. My advice to these two individuals: stick to what you do know, whether it be blockbuster movies or, perhaps, “inventing the internet”.