ACTIVIST CLAIM: Activist doctor group sends letter to government ministers calling for ban on oil and gas related advertising for contributing to public health issues.
THE FACTS: We should be promoting our best in the world Canadian oil and gas and emissions-reducing innovations such as carbon tech to replace bad actors with lower environmental standards.
THE SOURCES:
Fossil Fuel Advertising is Fuelling a Public Health Crisis: An Open Letter from Health Professionals in Canada
Here’s some facts and sources to have a reasoned conversation about Canadian oil and gas:
- Canada is already a leader in hydrocarbon production in terms of technology and ESG. A recent report from a global consulting firm, Wood Mackenzie, shows Canada is leading in carbon tech as well. This will reduce emissions and turn them into useful products.
https://www.mining.com/canada-a-global-leader-in-carbon-capture-report/
https://www.woodmac.com/reports/energy-markets-canadian-carbon-capture-credentials-504389
- Hydrocarbons have been responsible for improvements in life expectancy, health, reduction in infant mortality, education, equality over the past 200 years. Our objective should be to keep these benefits while we reduce the impacts.
https://www.humanprogress.org/celebrate-the-industrial-revolution-and-the-fossil-fuels-which-drove-it/
https://www.energy.gov/sites/prod/files/2020/10/f79/Natural%20Gas%20Benefits%20Report.pdf - Energy use and fossil fuel consumption is directly linked to an increased quality of life and a higher GDP.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/judeclemente/2015/03/15/the-true-link-between-carbon-based-fuels-and-quality-of-life/#12808be1628a
- The International Energy Agency notes that when oil and gas are produced with carbon tech it can be net-zero or even carbon negative.
https://www.iea.org/commentaries/can-co2-eor-really-provide-carbon-negative-oil
- Oil and gas literally saves lives. Plastics made from natural gas liquids, such as ethane, have helped revolutionize healthcare and preventative medicine.
https://www.energy.gov/sites/prod/files/2020/10/f79/Natural%20Gas%20Benefits%20Report.pdf
Stories that get it right
Gwyn Morgan: Hard facts puncture anti-fossil fuel fantasies
The marvellous Christmas movie Polar Express, starring the inimitable Tom Hanks, ends with the words “anything is possible, if you only believe.” Except, as adults understand, many things aren’t possible, not even if some people do believe them. An obvious example is the fantasy that the 84 per cent of global energy supplied by oil and gas can be replaced.
