The Guardian reports, “Britain has given its clearest signal yet that it wants to allow European countries to import carbon-intensive tar sands oil from Canada. Leaked papers seen by the Guardian show that in EU negotiations on laws intended to encourage the use of low-carbon transport fuels, the UK has rejected language that would class tar sands oil as more polluting than conventional crude or other fuels. …Previously the UK left open the possibility that it would abstain.”
The leaked papers were released by Greenpeace. Charlie Kronick, senior climate campaigner at Greenpeace, says, “Labelling oil from tar sands as highly polluting would strongly discourage tar sands imports into the Europe and possibly other markets.”
The Council of Canadians has been working to counter the Harper government’s efforts against the European Fuel Quality Directive since July 2010. This month, the Globe and Mail reported, “Canada threatened on (May 8) to take the European Union to the World Trade Organization over its plans to label Canadian oil sands as dirty, but promised not to delay a bilateral trade pact (the Canada-European Union Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement). …Canadian Natural Resources Minister Joe Oliver, on a week-long lobbying trip to Europe, accused the EU of breaking international trade rules and discriminating against Canadian exports.”
There are concerns that TransCanada’s Energy East pipeline from Alberta to New Brunswick could be used to ship oil from the deep water port in Saint John to refineries and markets in Europe.
For more, please read:
UK signals support for EU import of Canadian tar sands oil
NEWS: Saint John mayor boasts of Energy East pipeline export options in the Bay of Fundy
NEWS: Harper government threatens to take EU tar sands directive to WTO
NEWS: UK, Netherlands reportedly backing Canadian opposition to the European Fuel Quality Directive
NEWS: British prime minister calls for quick signing of CETA, more tar sands
