The Supreme Court determined that where federal and provincial responsibilities overlap, each order of government should stay in its own lane, related to its heads of power, and they should work together through co-operative federalism to achieve their goals. This doesn't only make constitutional sense. It also makes practical sense, especially for complex systems like electricity under very diverse conditions.
Regulations and funding programs that don't consider the realities on the ground will be counterproductive. There's much to be gained through true co-operation, but to be sure, consultation is not the same thing.
Second, if we consider interprovincial interties as an example of an area within federal jurisdiction, a map of electricity generation and emissions across the west suggests an obvious idea: Ship zero-emission hydroelectricity from the bookends of B.C. and Manitoba to Alberta and Saskatchewan. However, as your committee studies the system in more depth, you will find that B.C. and Manitoba simply don't have spare ongoing baseload electricity to send to Alberta and Saskatchewan.
In 2023, B.C. actually imported more electricity from the U.S. and Alberta than it exported. Even with Site C coming online at the end of the year, B.C. will soon face supply shortages. Manitoba is also facing somewhat similar situations due to the drought, and it, too, has issued a call for major new renewable generation. You will also discover that Alberta provided 92% of Canada's new renewable storage capacity in 2023. Since Alberta doesn't have its own major hydroelectricity resources or consistent supply from B.C., wind and solar have developed precisely because the resources exist and because there is natural gas to provide baseload power.