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We have heard city council members say they have misgivings about EPCOR selling waste (grey) water to the oil up graders who will use billions of gallons of water in the process.
Grey water can be returned back to the river with minimum treatment.
There are different kinds of water use.
If the water is used as a cooler or a heat medium any steam produced would at some point escape back into the atmosphere. Because of this it will remain part of the water resource and be returned to earth as rain, snow etc.
If on the other hand it is being pumped down hole or used to flood coal methane wells it is lost for ever. There is nothing coming back from this. I have enquiries out to the upgrader companies asking for specifics on their water use. No replies yet.
John Clark
cyberclark@shaw.ca.
Thursday, August 30, 2007
Why I am excited about the power rate increases.
In answer to enquiries on Electricity rates:
The point of the increases is to ramp up charges so we will be used to paying California prices (highest in the world) for the electricity for our homes by the time the new generation comes on by Fording for Brooks Alberta and the Peace River power generation are ready to deliver.
The increases taken between now and completion of these plants will go to corporate profits; part of the exercise.
Lots of reasons for you to vote in the next election!
John Clark
cyberclark@shaw.ca
The point of the increases is to ramp up charges so we will be used to paying California prices (highest in the world) for the electricity for our homes by the time the new generation comes on by Fording for Brooks Alberta and the Peace River power generation are ready to deliver.
The increases taken between now and completion of these plants will go to corporate profits; part of the exercise.
Lots of reasons for you to vote in the next election!
John Clark
cyberclark@shaw.ca
Urban living pays for the power in this province.
Alberta is ramping up for massive export of Electricity. You will be expected to pay for this in the most part by increased charges to your power bills for electricity and transmission, the latter being hooked to electricity cost.
What is not covered by you directly will be covered out of the general revenues of this province.
There is a generating plant planned for Brooks Alberta to serve Calgary and Southern Alberta. Now, there is a facility being built in Peace River to Service northern Alberta. In addition to this the companies in the oil sands build their own generation facilities and have in the past, exported their power to California.
The costs of the plant generation go into start up costs and are paid for by the tax payer.
Because of Alberta’s rules that all transmission lines are paid for equally by all Albertans, the cost of oil sands and up grader power lines (specific for their use) will be paid for in the urban utility bills.
The Conservatives have allowed the cost of electricity to be increased, having nothing to do with generation or transmission charges. This does however have a lot to do with increasing the cost of electricity so that the new plants can remain profitable and be in a position to export some of the 7000 megawatts of power the US is going to be short.
Over the next couple of years the Enmax and Epcor people will pocket unusually huge profits. This keeps the City of Edmonton happy. They like windfalls when they happen.
A week after this post:
John Clark
cyberclark@shaw.ca
What is not covered by you directly will be covered out of the general revenues of this province.
There is a generating plant planned for Brooks Alberta to serve Calgary and Southern Alberta. Now, there is a facility being built in Peace River to Service northern Alberta. In addition to this the companies in the oil sands build their own generation facilities and have in the past, exported their power to California.
The costs of the plant generation go into start up costs and are paid for by the tax payer.
Because of Alberta’s rules that all transmission lines are paid for equally by all Albertans, the cost of oil sands and up grader power lines (specific for their use) will be paid for in the urban utility bills.
The Conservatives have allowed the cost of electricity to be increased, having nothing to do with generation or transmission charges. This does however have a lot to do with increasing the cost of electricity so that the new plants can remain profitable and be in a position to export some of the 7000 megawatts of power the US is going to be short.
Over the next couple of years the Enmax and Epcor people will pocket unusually huge profits. This keeps the City of Edmonton happy. They like windfalls when they happen.
A week after this post:
John Clark
cyberclark@shaw.ca
Sunday, August 26, 2007
Is there an alternative?
One question in the survey that tanked the Conservatives in the polls was “Do you think there is a viable alternative to the Conservatives?” My answer was “YES”!
Albertan’s all know the Conservatives are socially deficient, self serving and as close to organized crime as any elected body on the planet. However, it is not enough to complain. For that army of people who are ashamed by the Conservative it is time to think of the only alternative; The Liberals.
This is a group of well motivated, honest and serving people who don’t think they were born to the job.
It is time to vote for a group of people who will take the province interests to heart and look after this province as opposed to the present group who think it is their right to rip off this province at every occasion.
I will be personally attending a good number of election question and answer sessions this time.
If we don’t make the change now, there will be no recovery.
John Clark
cyberclark@shaw.ca
Albertan’s all know the Conservatives are socially deficient, self serving and as close to organized crime as any elected body on the planet. However, it is not enough to complain. For that army of people who are ashamed by the Conservative it is time to think of the only alternative; The Liberals.
This is a group of well motivated, honest and serving people who don’t think they were born to the job.
It is time to vote for a group of people who will take the province interests to heart and look after this province as opposed to the present group who think it is their right to rip off this province at every occasion.
I will be personally attending a good number of election question and answer sessions this time.
If we don’t make the change now, there will be no recovery.
John Clark
cyberclark@shaw.ca
Thursday, August 23, 2007
Stelmach to copy Ottawa success in selling public buildings.
As usual the Consevatives will pour billions into an upgrade and then, sell the property for 2 cents on the dollar to one of their "inside" friends.
Like the parks and camp grounds; Like the power lines; Like Calgary Hospital; Like the electricity and not to be left out like our drinking water!
From Alberta Short News:
Alberta to Spend 350 Million Dollars Upgrading Public Buildings
The government of Albert, Canada unveiled plans to $350 million to upgrade more than 100 facilities. The spending comes in light of a surplus to the province.
About $200 million will be spent on Education; more than $100 million of which will go to post-secondary education another $97 million will be alotted to elementary and secondary education.
Another $87 million will be pumped into health-care facilities and hospitals. The remainder of which will go towards buildings in other government departments.
John Clark
cyberclark@shaw.ca
Like the parks and camp grounds; Like the power lines; Like Calgary Hospital; Like the electricity and not to be left out like our drinking water!
From Alberta Short News:
Alberta to Spend 350 Million Dollars Upgrading Public Buildings
The government of Albert, Canada unveiled plans to $350 million to upgrade more than 100 facilities. The spending comes in light of a surplus to the province.
About $200 million will be spent on Education; more than $100 million of which will go to post-secondary education another $97 million will be alotted to elementary and secondary education.
Another $87 million will be pumped into health-care facilities and hospitals. The remainder of which will go towards buildings in other government departments.
John Clark
cyberclark@shaw.ca
Tuesday, August 21, 2007
As predicted Conservatives sell off the country!
a giveaway of colossal proportions:
Like Alberta the Feds sell stuff off with no regard to values their eyes only on brownie points for privitizing what ever moves.
Dig in for more if you elect these clowns again!
John Clark
cyberclark@shaw..ca
Like Alberta the Feds sell stuff off with no regard to values their eyes only on brownie points for privitizing what ever moves.
Dig in for more if you elect these clowns again!
John Clark
cyberclark@shaw..ca
Monday, August 20, 2007
Alberta courts offer major free rides!
The Conservative driven courts in Alberta are leading the province to Anarchy. Use what ever means is available to you to protect yourself and your property!
The Alberta courts are bundling 6, 8 and more offences for various thefts and break and enter cases. Once bundled, the courts will judge the lesser offences (2 or 3), dismissing the remained in order to get a quick guilty plea. This is driven by the crown prosecutors.
Big bucks are being spent on video cameras but the Conservative courts are asking for family members to identify the people caught in the videos before they, the court, will allow them entered as evidence. By this action courts have relegated surveillance video to an expensive hobby.
The Attorney General of this province would like to make it all Ottawa’s problem but, it is strictly the interest level of this government.
This Government is so busy trying to privitize absoluly everything they do not have the time or the will to enforce the laws unless of course, there is some coin for them involved.
John Clark
cyberclark@shaw.ca
The Alberta courts are bundling 6, 8 and more offences for various thefts and break and enter cases. Once bundled, the courts will judge the lesser offences (2 or 3), dismissing the remained in order to get a quick guilty plea. This is driven by the crown prosecutors.
Big bucks are being spent on video cameras but the Conservative courts are asking for family members to identify the people caught in the videos before they, the court, will allow them entered as evidence. By this action courts have relegated surveillance video to an expensive hobby.
The Attorney General of this province would like to make it all Ottawa’s problem but, it is strictly the interest level of this government.
This Government is so busy trying to privitize absoluly everything they do not have the time or the will to enforce the laws unless of course, there is some coin for them involved.
John Clark
cyberclark@shaw.ca
Thursday, August 16, 2007
Conservatives set up to privitize (give away) Alberta Heritage Trust fund.
Conservatives start their program to privatize Alberta Heritage Trust Fund. This article sites poor performance of the fund which in truth is the draw down of earned profits by the Conservatives. They take any profits from the fund and use them in General Revenues. This keeps the picture poor.
As usual they destabilize a working unit then, reach for privatization to fix the problem where in truth, all it takes is a change in Government.
John Clark
cyberclark@shaw.ca
As usual they destabilize a working unit then, reach for privatization to fix the problem where in truth, all it takes is a change in Government.
John Clark
cyberclark@shaw.ca
Alberta Ropyalities will drop.
Excellent article in the Edmonton Sun.
Alberta's oil royalties could drop: report
Critic says government full of 'suckers'
By JEREMY LOOME, Legislature Bureau
Alberta’s share of oil royalties could decline while the federal government’s take increases under a new royalty option for the oil sands proposed by the provincial government, says one of the world’s top oil consultants.
It’s more evidence the Alberta government is full of “suckers,” said NDP Leader Brian Mason.
He said the same report shows Alberta is losing potentially hundreds of millions of dollars annually in revenues it should collect. “They have lost sight of the interests of the people of this province,” he said.
In his study for Alberta Energy, Calgary-based consultant Pedro van Meurs said the proposal – which would allow companies to calculate royalty payments on a choice of either the finished synthetic crude product or the tar-sands bitumen from which it is extracted – could lead to two significantly different outcomes.
The companies being offered the new plans, Suncor and Syncrude, have until this year to decide which to opt into.
If the companies opt for royalties based on synthetic crude, Alberta’s royalty rates will be 8% higher than if it opts for a rate based on unprocessed bitumen, says Van Meurs.
If Alberta allows them to choose the latter, recent changes to federal tax laws mean the federal take will increase while Alberta’s take decreases, he indicates.
“It is very obvious that Alberta is faced with a very high level of royalty reduction, when under the Suncor and Syncrude terms companies opt for a switch to bitumen values from SCO values,” he notes.
He said the switch “will result in a drop of about 8% in the overall government take. However, that drop is only experienced by Alberta, the federal share actually goes up, since royalties are now deductible for tax purposes.”
The government isn’t commenting on the report, over concerns it might bias the ongoing review of royalty rates.
But Liberal opposition critic Hugh MacDonald said Albertans don’t want to hear that their own government is allowing more revenue from Alberta oil to head to Ottawa.
“The results of this study are damning with respect to this government’s handling of a resource that belongs to the people of Alberta,” he said.
“Under an Alberta plan, we could actually get less. It’s astonishing, and it’s more clear evidence this government has been operating without any real plan for the last 10 years.”
The study, first reported in yesterday’s Sun, also suggests Alberta is being taken to the cleaners compared to other jurisdictions, receiving between 15% and 30% less overall revenue from companies here, or as much as $2 billion since the rates were set in 1996.
jeremy.loome@sunmedia.com
Alberta's oil royalties could drop: report
Critic says government full of 'suckers'
By JEREMY LOOME, Legislature Bureau
Alberta’s share of oil royalties could decline while the federal government’s take increases under a new royalty option for the oil sands proposed by the provincial government, says one of the world’s top oil consultants.
It’s more evidence the Alberta government is full of “suckers,” said NDP Leader Brian Mason.
He said the same report shows Alberta is losing potentially hundreds of millions of dollars annually in revenues it should collect. “They have lost sight of the interests of the people of this province,” he said.
In his study for Alberta Energy, Calgary-based consultant Pedro van Meurs said the proposal – which would allow companies to calculate royalty payments on a choice of either the finished synthetic crude product or the tar-sands bitumen from which it is extracted – could lead to two significantly different outcomes.
The companies being offered the new plans, Suncor and Syncrude, have until this year to decide which to opt into.
If the companies opt for royalties based on synthetic crude, Alberta’s royalty rates will be 8% higher than if it opts for a rate based on unprocessed bitumen, says Van Meurs.
If Alberta allows them to choose the latter, recent changes to federal tax laws mean the federal take will increase while Alberta’s take decreases, he indicates.
“It is very obvious that Alberta is faced with a very high level of royalty reduction, when under the Suncor and Syncrude terms companies opt for a switch to bitumen values from SCO values,” he notes.
He said the switch “will result in a drop of about 8% in the overall government take. However, that drop is only experienced by Alberta, the federal share actually goes up, since royalties are now deductible for tax purposes.”
The government isn’t commenting on the report, over concerns it might bias the ongoing review of royalty rates.
But Liberal opposition critic Hugh MacDonald said Albertans don’t want to hear that their own government is allowing more revenue from Alberta oil to head to Ottawa.
“The results of this study are damning with respect to this government’s handling of a resource that belongs to the people of Alberta,” he said.
“Under an Alberta plan, we could actually get less. It’s astonishing, and it’s more clear evidence this government has been operating without any real plan for the last 10 years.”
The study, first reported in yesterday’s Sun, also suggests Alberta is being taken to the cleaners compared to other jurisdictions, receiving between 15% and 30% less overall revenue from companies here, or as much as $2 billion since the rates were set in 1996.
jeremy.loome@sunmedia.com
Thursday, August 09, 2007
The October Election; rednecks won't take it all!
The October election:
This will be a great shift away from the Conservative bandits. Remember they were elected this last time by just 23% of Alberta. That would be mostly the rural vote.
The multi thousands of people who have moved here from other provinces can vote and, most do not have the mentality of blindly voting as their fathers did. I predict the much celebrated Alberta bigoted, red neck, pee in the bush before your dog does; will be mellowed by more reasonable thinking.
For years, young people have been disgusted with the political system mostly because they have seen what this Government has done crooking the Rural Urban split in the vote in their favor and feel there is simply no use in voting. Instead they pull out a Green Party vote as a protest vote, not because of the platform. This plays into the hands of the Conservatives; fracturing the already delicate vote pool.
This time, one vote will make a very big difference!
If you have never voted in your life, now is the time. On the course Stelmach has outlined in the press no one except the very richest of families will be able to live in this province. Your utilities can run up to 200 percent of what you are now paying as you add in the now necessary air conditioning. It takes more electricity than does heating.
A change can be made in the direction of this province!
For those of you who live in Edmonton: The city of Edmonton owns EPCOR. Ask your councilors what they are going to do to protect you. Don’t accept the statements that they have no control over this, which is a lie.
VOTE!
John Clark
cyberclark@shaw.ca
This will be a great shift away from the Conservative bandits. Remember they were elected this last time by just 23% of Alberta. That would be mostly the rural vote.
The multi thousands of people who have moved here from other provinces can vote and, most do not have the mentality of blindly voting as their fathers did. I predict the much celebrated Alberta bigoted, red neck, pee in the bush before your dog does; will be mellowed by more reasonable thinking.
For years, young people have been disgusted with the political system mostly because they have seen what this Government has done crooking the Rural Urban split in the vote in their favor and feel there is simply no use in voting. Instead they pull out a Green Party vote as a protest vote, not because of the platform. This plays into the hands of the Conservatives; fracturing the already delicate vote pool.
This time, one vote will make a very big difference!
If you have never voted in your life, now is the time. On the course Stelmach has outlined in the press no one except the very richest of families will be able to live in this province. Your utilities can run up to 200 percent of what you are now paying as you add in the now necessary air conditioning. It takes more electricity than does heating.
A change can be made in the direction of this province!
For those of you who live in Edmonton: The city of Edmonton owns EPCOR. Ask your councilors what they are going to do to protect you. Don’t accept the statements that they have no control over this, which is a lie.
VOTE!
John Clark
cyberclark@shaw.ca
Monday, August 06, 2007
Secret deal between Alta and BC guarantees profits for Companies.
MEDIA RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 2, 2007
Saskatchewan Says BC-Alberta Trade Deal is Flawed: Province Will Not Join TILMA
Vancouver - After months of debate, the Saskatchewan government decided yesterday that it would not join the Trade Investment and Labour Mobility Agreement (TILMA) with BC and Alberta. Citing the agreement's broad scope and unanswered questions, the government assessed that signing on had too many risks for the province.
TILMA was signed by the premiers of Alberta and BC, without public consultation or legislative debate, in April 2006.
The agreement allows corporations and individuals to sue provincial governments for any provincial or municipal government measure they feel "restricts or impairs" their investment. Under TILMA, even measures designed to protect the environment and public health are vulnerable to attack from corporate lawsuits with compensation penalties as high as $5 million.
Saskatchewan's announcement comes as Colin Hansen, BC's Minister of Economic Development attempts to justify TILMA's far-ranging implications to municipalities. The Ministry is scrambling to 'consult' with municipalities, dozens of whom have raised serious questions about the agreement's impacts on local autonomy and will vote on excluding municipalities from the agreement in early fall at the Union of BC Municipalities AGM.
"Once elected officials get the chance to read through TILMA, they realize that it is more like a corporate bill of rights than an agreement to enhance trade and labour mobility," says Carleen Pickard, BC/Yukon Regional Organizer for the Council of Canadians.
"Unlike in British Columbia and Alberta, the government of Saskatchewan actually consulted academics, experts and citizens and concluded that TILMA is a bad deal. It is time for Minister Hansen to accept that, stop forcing it on BC's municipalities, and withdraw from the Agreement."
For more information, contact:
Carleen Pickard, 604.340.2455; cpickard@canadians.org.
For more information about TILMA, visit Canadians.Org.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 2, 2007
Saskatchewan Says BC-Alberta Trade Deal is Flawed: Province Will Not Join TILMA
Vancouver - After months of debate, the Saskatchewan government decided yesterday that it would not join the Trade Investment and Labour Mobility Agreement (TILMA) with BC and Alberta. Citing the agreement's broad scope and unanswered questions, the government assessed that signing on had too many risks for the province.
TILMA was signed by the premiers of Alberta and BC, without public consultation or legislative debate, in April 2006.
The agreement allows corporations and individuals to sue provincial governments for any provincial or municipal government measure they feel "restricts or impairs" their investment. Under TILMA, even measures designed to protect the environment and public health are vulnerable to attack from corporate lawsuits with compensation penalties as high as $5 million.
Saskatchewan's announcement comes as Colin Hansen, BC's Minister of Economic Development attempts to justify TILMA's far-ranging implications to municipalities. The Ministry is scrambling to 'consult' with municipalities, dozens of whom have raised serious questions about the agreement's impacts on local autonomy and will vote on excluding municipalities from the agreement in early fall at the Union of BC Municipalities AGM.
"Once elected officials get the chance to read through TILMA, they realize that it is more like a corporate bill of rights than an agreement to enhance trade and labour mobility," says Carleen Pickard, BC/Yukon Regional Organizer for the Council of Canadians.
"Unlike in British Columbia and Alberta, the government of Saskatchewan actually consulted academics, experts and citizens and concluded that TILMA is a bad deal. It is time for Minister Hansen to accept that, stop forcing it on BC's municipalities, and withdraw from the Agreement."
For more information, contact:
Carleen Pickard, 604.340.2455; cpickard@canadians.org.
For more information about TILMA, visit Canadians.Org.
Conservative platform being leaked!
Conservative candidates are told to promise changes in the royalty number if they are elected again! In preparation for this Stelmach as dropped many of our royalties below 25%.
This leaves them room to increase 1 or 2 percentage points after being elected, leaving us below the 25%
This means personal income tax will go up, city and town utilities will go up. The costs will be about 200.00 per month to the average home owner.
Considering they have told us we will be paying California prices on our gas and power it means only the oil people can afford to live in this province. I have to believe it is a Conservative plan to run every body that is making less that 100,000 a year, out of the province leaving their life dreams behind to be picked up by people associated with the oil industry.
If that is not their plan; it will end up like that never the less!
The only way to stop this crew is at the ballet box!
John Clark
cyberclark@shaw.ca
This leaves them room to increase 1 or 2 percentage points after being elected, leaving us below the 25%
This means personal income tax will go up, city and town utilities will go up. The costs will be about 200.00 per month to the average home owner.
Considering they have told us we will be paying California prices on our gas and power it means only the oil people can afford to live in this province. I have to believe it is a Conservative plan to run every body that is making less that 100,000 a year, out of the province leaving their life dreams behind to be picked up by people associated with the oil industry.
If that is not their plan; it will end up like that never the less!
The only way to stop this crew is at the ballet box!
John Clark
cyberclark@shaw.ca
Friday, August 03, 2007
Election call!
The Conservatives figure they have no opposition so, most are staying on to run, still again.
Points to remember:
Stelmach is making deals now to privatize our water system, still allowing obscene amounts of drinking water to go down hole to flush out oil and gas. All this use remains free.
They have shown how they plan on treating us when they do privatize the water. Same as they treat us on the oil and gas!
Moving utilities to “market value” as Stelmach has promised to do will leave us receiving the lowest royalty in the world for our resources while we as citizens of this province will pay the highest rates in the world for using gas, electricity and soon, water. The energy “market” in the west is California prices!
The Conservative organization declared their intention to export bulk water when they appeared before the Government committee on NAFTA. (Copies of that available upon request.)
Yes folks the Conservatives are facing the same game they faced in the last election over health care. Yet they quietly moved a large portion of the system into private hands under the guise of health regions. AON is still active, on Government payroll, doing what?
They have cured the tent cities by turning them into virtual prisons. This is a good thing to do in their political philosophy.
Remember that this Government as is Harpers are driven by the Fraser Institute an organization made up of retired Conservatives and Republicans who find Alberta a soft target as compared to other states in North America. Much of their membership is made up of company representatives from the USA, many who hold dual Canadian and US citizenships.
Don't forget his annoucement to turn the Heritage Savings and trust over to a private company by first turning it into a Crown Corporation then, selling the Corporation. If this was tried in most other countries they would be in Jail!
If you vote, you can change this course of events and may even be able to recover some of our losses.
John Clark
cyberclark@shaw.ca
Points to remember:
Stelmach is making deals now to privatize our water system, still allowing obscene amounts of drinking water to go down hole to flush out oil and gas. All this use remains free.
They have shown how they plan on treating us when they do privatize the water. Same as they treat us on the oil and gas!
Moving utilities to “market value” as Stelmach has promised to do will leave us receiving the lowest royalty in the world for our resources while we as citizens of this province will pay the highest rates in the world for using gas, electricity and soon, water. The energy “market” in the west is California prices!
The Conservative organization declared their intention to export bulk water when they appeared before the Government committee on NAFTA. (Copies of that available upon request.)
Yes folks the Conservatives are facing the same game they faced in the last election over health care. Yet they quietly moved a large portion of the system into private hands under the guise of health regions. AON is still active, on Government payroll, doing what?
They have cured the tent cities by turning them into virtual prisons. This is a good thing to do in their political philosophy.
Remember that this Government as is Harpers are driven by the Fraser Institute an organization made up of retired Conservatives and Republicans who find Alberta a soft target as compared to other states in North America. Much of their membership is made up of company representatives from the USA, many who hold dual Canadian and US citizenships.
Don't forget his annoucement to turn the Heritage Savings and trust over to a private company by first turning it into a Crown Corporation then, selling the Corporation. If this was tried in most other countries they would be in Jail!
If you vote, you can change this course of events and may even be able to recover some of our losses.
John Clark
cyberclark@shaw.ca
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