When our unions first started appearing regularly before the National Energy Board, believe it or not, the board in it's decision on Keystone I said that the evidence we gave on job creation as a benefit was not relevant to the public interest. Believe it or not, that's the case. Because we appealed to the cabinet, the next time the NEB dealt with a hearing, the union was there and they did consider job creation to be part of the public interest. But at the first hearing in 2006—it's there in black and white—they said that jobs were not relevant to the public interest considerations of the board. So in the economic area, we're dragging them kicking and screaming to look at these things.
In the environmental area it's much worse. Simply put, climate change is a non-issue before the National Energy Board. It's not a factor. They do an environmental impact study. The environmental impact that they do on any pipeline project is whether the pipes are solid, what's going to be the impact on groundwater, important things. Environment Canada produces a report to the board on every pipeline assessment.
But the impacts of that project on overall development, on greenhouse gas emissions and Canada's ability to meet its international commitments are not considered at all. In our marketplace, in the United States, when they're asking whether they're going to consider Keystone XL, those are exactly the issues that are before the EPA and the Department of State, and those are the very issues they're arguing about today.
We've been asking the board, appealing to the board, to broaden its concept of environmental assessment. We've also been appealing to cabinet and to the government to fill in the policy vacuum and to connect energy strategy in Canada with our climate change goals. Until we do that, we're going to have continuing problems in our marketplace. It's only going to get worse and all the lobbyists in the world aren't going to change that.
I would end on this point. Ambassador Jacobson pretty much said that to us last February when he linked the Keystone debate in the United States with Canada's performance on greenhouse gases. I don't know how much blunter they can be, and I don't know when Canada's going to really listen to what our American market is saying.