Thank you, Madam Chair and members of the committee.
I am pleased to be here, along with my colleague Christine Siminowski, to represent Natural Resources Canada, together with colleagues from other federal departments.
Natural Resources Canada seeks to enhance the development and use of Canada's natural resources and the competitiveness of Canada's natural resource products. NRCan develops policies and programs and conducts innovative research in our facilities across the country. Our CanmetENERGY laboratory in Devon, located near Edmonton, has decades of expertise in the development of cleaner fossil fuels, refining, and related environmental technologies. Close to 130 scientists, engineers, technologists, managers, and support staff generate knowledge to help provide solutions to industry and advice to government policy-makers and regulators. This was the case when NRCan was called upon by Transport Canada last year to assist in developing this moratorium legislation.
More specifically, NRCan provided input on the chemistry, properties, and classes of hydrocarbons associated with petroleum production and their analysis. This was used to support the legislation's definition of “crude oil” and the products in the accompanying schedule that were designated as persistent, and hence banned for transport.
As mentioned, scientists and engineers at CanmetENERGY at Devon conduct research to understand and improve the production of fossil fuels, while reducing the environmental impacts of that production, and in particular heavy oil production. For example, this includes research on oil spill behaviour, including how a spill of diluted bitumen compares to a spill of conventional crudes, which complements the work carried out by our colleagues at Fisheries and Oceans Canada and Environment and Climate Change Canada, representatives of which join us today.
NRCan continues its work to ensure that the development of natural resources remains a source of jobs, prosperity, and opportunity for investment in Canada, while at the same time protecting the environment.
Canada is open to investment and remains one of the most globally competitive energy producers, including in the oil and gas sector. The government's approval last November of the Line 3 replacement and of the Trans Mountain expansion oil pipeline projects is expected to meet increasing demand for Canadian oil in North American markets as well as open new markets for Canada's producers on the Pacific coast and in Asia. Moreover, possible future exports of liquefied natural gas or propane, for example, would both be permitted under the moratorium.
We wish to thank the committee for this opportunity and are ready to answer your questions.