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Share Alberta reversed course on its plans to allow for surface coal mining in the eastern slopes of the Rockies earlier this week, but that doesn t mean the region won t face any pressure from coal developments. Photo: Shutterstock
Explainer
9 things that haven’t changed since Alberta’s about-face on coal mining policy
The United Conservative Party was backed into a corner on its decision to open up the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains to open-pit mines. But it hasn t completely abandoned its push to allow more coal projects in the province 9 min read
let’s-see-if-we-can-slip-this-one-past-them coal policy change last May.
Share An aerial view of a Rocky Mountain coal mine in B.C. s Elk Valley near the B.C.-Alberta border. This past summer the Alberta government opened up much of the eastern slopes of the Rockies to similar coal mines but reversed course after significant public backlash. Photo: Callum Gunn
In-Depth
How a public uprising caused a province built on fossil fuels to reverse course on coal mining
Country music stars, conservationists and tens of thousands of Albertans came together to roll back plans for mountaintop-removal mining in the Rockies 10 min read
Last May on a Friday afternoon before a long weekend Alberta’s United Conservative Party government quietly announced it was rescinding a policy that dated back to 1976.
Jason Kenney was pissed.
On Jan. 20, the Alberta premier walked into a press conference at the legislature in Edmonton, making a beeline to a podium that bore a sign reading “Standing up for Alberta.” Wearing a dusky navy blue suit and matching tie, Kenney was responding to breaking news that U.S. President Joe Biden had just cancelled the Keystone XL pipeline, which was to carry oil from Alberta to Nebraska.
“This is a gut punch for the Canadian and Alberta economies,” said Kenney. “Sadly, it’s an insult directed at the United States’ most important ally and trading partner.” The premier said up to 2,000 unionized workers had just lost their jobs and if the Biden administration was unwilling to discuss the matter, “it’s clear the government of Canada must impose trade and economic sanctions” against the U.S.