Canada: Real Economic Prosperity - America: Politics Tragically Trumps All

Reprint Wall Street Journal Opinion Page January 18, 2012

A Tale Of Two Pipelines

Oh, for the bad old days, when Americans could poke fun at Canada for its economic policies. Nowadays, Canada has it all over the U.S.


Take the contrasting political reaction to proposed pipelines to carry oil from Alberta's oil sands. In the U.S., the Obama Administration has sat on a permit for the $7 billion Keystone XL pipeline that would create thousands of jobs, break a supply logjam in Cushing, Oklahoma, and carry the oil to refineries along the Gulf Coast. President Obama may soon kill the Keystone XL now that Congress is forcing him to finally make a decision.

Then there's Canada, where private companies want to invest $5.4 billion to build a Northern Gateway Pipeline that would carry Alberta oil to ports in British Columbia. Joe Oliver, Canada's Minister of Natural Resources, recently blasted the "radicals" trying to block the project.

Mr. Oliver said the green movement's "goal is to stop any major project no matter what the cost to Canadian families in lost jobs and economic growth. No forestry. No mining. No oil. No gas. No more hydroelectric dams." He said the greens "attract jet-setting celebrities with some of the largest carbon footprints in the world to lecture Canadians not to develop our natural resources." These groups are willing to "sue anyone and everyone to delay the project even further" to the point it becomes "economically unviable." Sounds right, if a tad understated.

Canadians are at least as environmentally sensitive as Americans, but they realize the economic folly in failing to exploit abundant their national energy resources. They also realize it's possible to balance energy production for economic growth with environmental protections.

The Northern Gateway Pipeline is especially important for Canada given Mr. Obama's hostility to the Keystone XL. If the U.S. shuns Alberta oil, apparently preferring imports from Venezuela, then Canada needs to reach export markets in Asia. "I think it is essential," Prime Minister Stephen Harper said recently, "based on what's happened with Keystone XL." Whoever thought the day would come when Ottawa would be more pro-growth than the U.S. government?