(PHOTO Dave Mowat addresses group gathered at Thursday’s public engagement session. Sept. 17, 2015. Sarah Anderson. REPORTER)
Roughly 40 people attended Thursday night’s public engagement session at Keyano College on Alberta’s Royalty Review Process and peppered panel chair Dave Mowat with questions he agreed were tough and direct.
“I think people are nervous, like, it’s difficult times and, you know, I think they’re really looking, and I know what I felt I don’t know about you, but I felt they’re really looking for assurance of what we’re trying to do, how quickly is it going to be done, you heard that question, so I think that’s completely fair,” he said.
“If I was in their shoes I’d ask exactly the same questions. I’m encouraged that people actually asked them. Sometimes you’ll get it all polite when no one asks the question, so that’s the way a discussion goes and that’s the whole thing we’re trying to do, you know, come here talk to us and stay with us,” he said, adding that if people continue to engage throughout this process they will get more information as the panel learns more.
Still, the fact Mowat didn’t have concrete answers was frustrating for some. Faces reddened, arms were crossed, hands were shoved deep into pockets, as the conversation intensified.
“There was a level of frustration because the Royalty Review adds another layer of complexity to an already complex industry,” said one man who asked not to be named to protect his job.
He also asked about concerns he had about bias of the members of the panel and said he felt his questions weren’t dealt with directly.
Specifically, he asked Mowat about whether he prescribes to Al Gore’s line of thinking regarding climate change.
Mowat responded by saying that he had attended a talk by Gore but had also attended a Maple Leafs hockey game and is not a Maple Leafs fan.
Other questions were directed to the panel chair that directly dealt with the impact here in Fort McMurray on people’s jobs and livelihoods.
Mowat doesn’t have the numbers and doesn’t know the answer to exactly how the royalty program will change if, in fact, it changes at all. The panel is still early in its review process.
“You never have all the answers and especially in a process like this where we’re just really starting it’s natural we don’t have the answers but I think I know in my heart and I know all my panel members, we’re going to do a good job, you know we hear people,” he said.
“There isn’t an easy question in the whole bunch but what we think we’ve got is the right process to get people looking at the very difficult problems and we’ve got a process for Albertans to establish the principles and I think when you put the two of those together I don’t know exactly what the result will be but I’m very confident it will be a good result,” said Mowat.
Darren Lane, a resident of Fort McMurray, was one person who did feel his concern was heard, even if his question wasn’t directly answered.
“I could see that Dave took the gulp and I think he understands and I think he acknowledged that,” said Lane. He said he was trying to convey the human element of the potential impact of changing the royalties program.
Mowat said he did hear that loud and clear.
“You need to think of those things. It’s not a world in isolation. You can talk about royalties and oil sands but there’s real live people that work here, live here, and that try and make it a great community,” he said.
There were some people who expressed concern that the royalties as they operate now don’t go far enough. They spoke about the fact the resources are owned by the entire province, every Albertan, and that the revenues from the sale of those resources should benefit the people who own them.
One man spoke about the need to fund health care and education to prevent people from drawing more heavily on the costly social services system and argued one way to do that is to increase royalties to pay for nurses, teachers, educational assistants and other important service providers.
Another person argued that instead of reviewing royalties the government should be looking at specific incentive programs.
Still, the overwhelming sentiment was that any changes to the royalty program must be made with the impact on jobs and people’s livelihoods kept front of mind.
Mowat agreed and said even though he doesn’t have the answers to every question now he will have them at the end of the review process, which is slated to wrap up at year’s end.
The NDP government has promised not to implement any of the recommended changes until 2017.
