OTTAWA - The oil sands could be brought into compliance with Kyoto emissions-cutting targets at a cost of about $1 per barrel of oil produced, a Commons committee was told Tuesday.
The estimate, contained in a Kyoto-compliance plan put forward by the Pembina Institute, suggests that greenhouse emissions from the sands could be curbed without compromising their profitability.
"Our proposal is based on the principle that polluters pay their full share,'' said Matthew Bramley, the environmental think-tank's climate change director, testifying before the committee studying the Clean Air Act.
A spokesman for Suncor Energy, a major oil sands producer, did not contradict the estimate, but said he would need more time to study the Pembina figures.
"The devil is in the details,'' said Gord Lambert, Suncor's vice-president of sustainable development.
Lambert said it costs $20 to $30 per to produce a barrel from the oil sands. Oil is selling at around $60, and Suncor earned $2.97 billion in profit last year, up from $1.168 billion in 2005.
Bloc Quebecois MP Bernard Bigras asked why the company could not afford to curb its emissions.
Lambert replied that it takes more than financial capacity to curb emissions, that inefficient facilities cannot be replaced overnight.
The Pembina plan, supported by 20 environmental groups, calls for a fixed cap on emissions. Industry could get credit for investing in domestic or international emissions-cutting projects.
Lambert said his company prefers an intensity target and consultation on further steps. Suncor also wants access to international trading under the Kyoto system.
"Access to the Kyoto mechanisms and purchase of international reductions would be absolutely essential as an element of a plan of that type (recommended by Pembina).''
The government has dismissed the idea of international emissions trading, saying it would amount to spending billions of dollars abroad for no environmental benefit.
The government has not said whether it would allow Canadian companies to engage in Kyoto trading on their own, without government involvement or public money.
Lambert suggested that new technology, especially carbon capture and storage, is the key to curbing emissions, but government funding would be needed for implementation.
He declined to say when emissions from the oil sands might begin to decline in absolute terms, suggesting the objective should be to "bend the curve'' -- slowing the rate of growth.
He said investors will bail out of the project if the government imposes a "punitive model'' on oil sands producers, but Lambert would not define what he means by punitive.
Bramley said the government has been consulting industry about greenhouse emissions for years, and it's time for action.
Liberal MP Francis Scarpaleggia said industry seems to be reluctant to be proactive on the climate issue.
"I hear that everything's going well, the market's strong, profits are good, but just leave us alone. That's the message I hear from a lot of industry sectors and especially the oil industry.
"It's like we can't do anything unless we're giving you money to develop technology.''
