Pipeline agreement includes new target of 75 per cent cut in methane emissions

An agreement between Ottawa and Alberta that could clear the path for a new oil pipeline to the Pacific will also require a 75 per cent cut in methane emissions over the next decade, a source tells The Canadian Press.

Prime Minister Mark Carney is expected to unveil today a memorandum of understanding with Alberta on a possible new oil pipeline to the coast.

A source with knowledge of the agreement, who is not authorized to discuss details before they are made public, says the agreement will stipulate that no pipeline can go forward without the Pathways Alliance carbon-capture project.

The source also said the agreement will include a strengthened industrial carbon pricing system in Alberta.

The Pathways project is a proposed $16.5 billion carbon capture and storage network planned for northern Alberta.

Asked Wednesday whether he told Alberta that Ottawa would repeal its ban on large tankers off the northern B.C. coast — a necessary precondition for building a pipeline — Carney said he would make that clear today.

Picture Courtesy: THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette