Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
The Hansard isn't out from the last committee meeting, so the questions I have require a bit of background information for the witnesses today, Mr. Chairman.
I'd like to say from the outset that I believe environmental groups are necessary, that they perform a very important function in ensuring that our environment is taken care of and that large corporations that are taking our natural resources from the air, the ground, etc., are doing so in a respectful way that is not going to cause harm to people.
What puzzled me last day was that when I quite innocently asked a question as to how one of the witnesses received their revenues—that was Environmental Defence—she was very defensive and suggested that I go to her website. So I did, and to understand how the environment works and what's really at play here, even the reason why we have the oil sands as an unconventional source of oil as our subject matter, this does come into play.
What I learned was that one of the donors for Environmental Defence is called Tides Canada. I had never heard of Tides Canada, so I looked up a bit about Tides Canada and found out that Tides Canada is actually funded through the U.S. Tides Foundation, of California, and that its Canadian counterpart has paid millions to at least 36 campaign organizations. Tides U.S. isn't alone; they have other charity bases as well, in California and New York, and they have had $50 million since 2003 specifically for campaigns against Alberta oil and against oil tanker traffic and pipelines through British Columbia.
The purposes for these grants are clearly outlined in the tax filings. For example, Tides U.S. received U.S.—