Thank you very much, Mr. Chair. It's great to see everyone this afternoon. I apologize for the late start. I had technical difficulties, as is the way as we deal with some of these issues through the pandemic. I applaud each and every one of you for having these meetings and forming this committee.
I represent Canada's Building Trades Unions, part of North America's Building Trades Unions. We represent 14 international construction unions with offices in Washington, D.C. and Ottawa. Combined membership of our two organizations is three million unionized construction workers across the U.S. and Canada, including 600,000 members in Canada.
Canada-U.S. trade relations and energy policy have a direct effect on our workers on both sides of the border. The potential closure of Line 5 has the full attention of our leadership in the United States and in Canada, and it is being raised at the highest levels of elected and government officials. Discussions are also taking place to dissuade potential implementation of buy America policies to be recast as buy North America to the greater benefit of both of our countries.
We encourage, in the strongest terms possible, the Canadian government and all elected officials to do everything in their power to prevent the closure of Line 5, and, if the closure becomes a reality, to invoke the 1977 transit pipelines treaty.
You are familiar with the cataclysmic effects such a closure would cause—potential loss of 25,000 jobs and increased prices for gas, propane, and petrochemical products used in manufacturing.
The closure would not end our demand for petrochemical products and fuel but would result in the industry workarounds that you heard about previously from Mr. Mancinelli, which would require upwards of 2,000 trucks a day or 800 railcars and increase the number of barges carrying oil on the Great Lakes.
The environmental impacts of closing the pipeline would be greater than those of continuing to safely operate the pipeline until the new Great Lakes tunnel for the pipeline is built. We must do everything in our power to keep Line 5 operational and fight like hell if the courts allow for the easement to be cancelled.
However, at the same time our unions are progressive enough to realize that the greening of the economy is inevitable and necessary, but we need to be smart about it. We need to operationalize the recently agreed-to U.S.-Canada road map, elevate the discussion, and create a bilateral U.S.-Canada energy policy that addresses our cross-border energy needs and secures the energy future of both the U.S. and Canada. This transition is not turnkey, and it needs to address the thousands and millions of American and Canadian jobs affected.
CBTU recommends that the government establish a task force to examine the future of energy jobs. This task force would focus on developing a bilateral energy policy with the United States; coordinating the new technologies to power our energy future, such as carbon capture and storage, renewable methane technology, small modular reactors, and hydrogen; greening our infrastructure; and, for our members, supporting workers through the transition. This task force would communicate and work in conjunction with the newly formed U.S. Office of Energy Jobs.
To support workers, we recommend higher labour standards and collective bargaining for renewable jobs, like wind and solar projects; a skilled trades workforce mobility tax deduction; the adoption of private member's bill C-275, which would create fairness for workers and support worker mobility; a dedicated visa program that allows skilled trades workers to travel more easily between Canada and the U.S.; and of course government support for retraining energy workers.
Line 5 is crucial to our economy and is an issue we will continue to advocate for. Line 5 needs to be part of a long-term vision that focuses on building the energy future of the United States and Canada so we will not be faced with the same hurdles—fighting to save projects or pipelines—time and time again.
We need a bilateral energy policy to secure both our nations' energy futures and a transition for workers at the same time.
Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.