Trade agreement could terminate B.C.'s climate plan

Gordon Campbell would like to think he's upstaging Arnold Schwarzenegger by proposing strict new environmental regulations. But a little-known trade agreement with Alberta could end up terminating any effort to fight climate change, says the Council of Canadians.

On April 1, 2007, the relatively unknown Trade, Investment and Labour Mobility Agreement (TILMA) between B.C. and Alberta will go into effect. “After that date, both provinces can be sued by corporations or individuals for exactly the kind of regulatory changes B.C. Premier Gordon Campbell is proposing in his new environmental plan,” says Carleen Pickard, B.C. spokesperson for the Council of Canadians.

TILMA, which was signed into law without public debate last April, is a legally binding agreement between Alberta and B.C. that gives businesses and individuals the right to sue either province when they feel that any regulation or other government policy “restricts or impairs” investment. B.C.’s plan for higher tailpipe emissions standards on new vehicles, anti-idling measures for transport trucks, new low-carbon fuel standards and stricter rules on methane-capture at private landfills will all impair investment and are therefore vulnerable to attack under TILMA.

“TILMA also forbids the introduction of new standards or regulations after April 1, 2007,” adds Pickard. “B.C.’s proposed climate plan is clearly incompatible with this new trade and investment agreement, which is a perfect example of why TILMA should never have been signed in the first place.”

“The Council of Canadians applauds any efforts to deal with climate change,” says Pickard. “But clearly the B.C. government is going to have to either scrap its new climate plans or scrap TILMA. Considering the overwhelming public support for environmental measures, Premier Campbell would be wise to scrap TILMA first.”