Evidence of meeting #43 for Natural Resources in the 40th Parliament, 3rd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was water.
A recording is available from Parliament.
4:35 p.m.
Tar Sands Campaigner, Indigenous Environmental Network
There is a transition that's happening with RAMP. I'm not too sure what phase it's in.
4:35 p.m.
Conservative
Dick Harris Conservative Cariboo—Prince George, BC
Is it the Alberta government? Is it a regulatory body? Is it the companies themselves? Who is it?
4:35 p.m.
Tar Sands Campaigner, Indigenous Environmental Network
This is the inherent problem of jurisdiction in Canada. If it's the fish in the water, then it's the feds who are responsible. If it's the actual water itself, then it is the provincial entities that are responsible.
4:35 p.m.
Conservative
4:35 p.m.
Tar Sands Campaigner, Indigenous Environmental Network
Well, that's what's being debated at this point.
4:35 p.m.
Conservative
Dick Harris Conservative Cariboo—Prince George, BC
This is important, because if you're telling me that you don't know if anybody is doing it, that's a real concern to me. They're either doing it or they're not. If no one is monitoring the water, I can accept your valid claim that—
4:35 p.m.
Tar Sands Campaigner, Indigenous Environmental Network
Let me put it this way: RAMP has not been doing their job.
4:35 p.m.
Tar Sands Campaigner, Indigenous Environmental Network
And that is why first nations have acquired their own independent research, led by Dr. Schindler and Dr. Timoney, to basically prove or to validate the concerns of elevated levels of contaminants within the watershed and to link those elevated levels to industry's footprint.
4:35 p.m.
Conservative
Dick Harris Conservative Cariboo—Prince George, BC
I wonder, could you do us a favour and send the committee members a list of your specific concerns about RAMP insofar as their not doing their job? Specifically, not rhetorically. I'd really appreciate that.
If that's a real problem, then we should be looking at that.
4:35 p.m.
Tar Sands Campaigner, Indigenous Environmental Network
I will say that I did read the protocols for submissions, and just to respect the point of order, I don't know if I have the capacity for translation on that. That would be on your end.
4:35 p.m.
Conservative
Dick Harris Conservative Cariboo—Prince George, BC
Well, we can do that. If we get them in English, we can translate them.
4:35 p.m.
Tar Sands Campaigner, Indigenous Environmental Network
Then I'd be happy to do that for you.
4:35 p.m.
Conservative
Dick Harris Conservative Cariboo—Prince George, BC
I'd appreciate that, because I'm interested in that.
4:35 p.m.
Conservative
Dick Harris Conservative Cariboo—Prince George, BC
Mr. Schmidt, could you just tell the committee a little bit about your company's role as corporate citizen, some of the things you are involved in, in the communities in which you operate?
4:40 p.m.
President and Chief Executive Officer, Laricina Energy Ltd.
We do what is expected, I think, of every company, and every company does their best to meet those goals. In Calgary, for example, in particular we focused on research in the University of Calgary. In the community of Wabasca, we've been active in working with the community and its areas of focus.
The areas we've focused on begin with sport, because it's an opportunity to work with the kids, and access to schools, like career days and opportunities to create job-shadowing, to show people not only what the opportunity is but what it's really about. I know when I started in engineering I actually didn't know. We provide that opportunity physically with time but also with capital.
So there are specific initiatives. The community guides us. We don't tell them. They tell us what makes the most sense and then we make those investments.
4:40 p.m.
Conservative
Dick Harris Conservative Cariboo—Prince George, BC
Many resource companies, of course, like to share their profits, their revenue, with worthy charities. I'm assuming your company is counted among those.
4:40 p.m.
President and Chief Executive Officer, Laricina Energy Ltd.
When we have profit.
The interesting thing—and we have this discussion with the board as part of our program—is we have no production. We're like an R and D company, notwithstanding the amount of capital. But we look at investment not just as hard dollars in a project, but in people, the discussion about how we invest in and grow our staff, but also in the community, what can we do. So we answer it with investments, whether it's scholarships, whether it's supportive research, or whether it's investment in charitable donations in different programs.
4:40 p.m.
Conservative
Dick Harris Conservative Cariboo—Prince George, BC
All right. Thank you.
Mr. Chair, could I just take a moment to address Mr. Thomas-Muller again?
The question I asked you was a sincere question, because I am concerned about that. I wasn't trying to trip you up or anything like that. Could you really clarify that for me...? If it's as you say it is, then we, as a committee, should be taking note of that.
4:40 p.m.
Tar Sands Campaigner, Indigenous Environmental Network
Sure, and I think things got rather confused by the recent release of the Royal Society of Canada report, which disputed a lot of this and really made the discourse a very polarized one. So for sure, we'd be happy to provide some clarification on our plan.
4:40 p.m.
Conservative
Dick Harris Conservative Cariboo—Prince George, BC
Yes. We want to get that and have a good, close scrutiny of it. And we'll go from there.
4:40 p.m.
Conservative
Dick Harris Conservative Cariboo—Prince George, BC
Mr. Schmidt, again, could you tell me why the light hydrocarbons are added into the SAGD process?
4:40 p.m.
President and Chief Executive Officer, Laricina Energy Ltd.
It thins out the oil. The oil is viscous, and the way to reduce viscosity is.... There are two methods. Heat it up; temperature will thin the oil, so that it can be produced. The other method is to add a component that reduces the viscosity naturally, and light hydrocarbons will do that.