Making Federalism through Law: Regulating Socio-economic Challenges of Energy Development, a Case Study of Alberta’s Oil sands and the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo ...

• Main Author: Thompson, Chidinma Bernadine
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Graduate Studies 2013
• Subjects: Law; FOS Law; oil sands; Legislative; Regulatory; Socio-economic; Federalism; Energy; Oil and Gas; Municipal; Government; Policy; Intergovernmental Partnership; Infrastructure; Non-centralization; Workforce; resource development; Alberta; Canada; Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo; Wood Buffalo
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.11575/prism/26816; https://prism.ucalgary.ca/handle/11023/1216

Socio-economic challenges of large scale oil and gas development, especially oil sands, within municipal boundaries are not given adequate attention in Alberta’s oil and gas development regulatory framework. There is no forum in the framework that allows a thorough consideration and proactive resolution, by responsible governments, of socio-economic challenges of large scale energy development prior to, or at the time of, project approvals. The jurisdiction of municipal authorities to regulate such development is highly circumscribed. None of the recently adopted initiatives by the province seems to have closed this gap in the regulatory framework. The gap exists because Alberta’s oil and gas regulatory framework adopts the unitary model of governance. Given the critical role of public infrastructure and services in energy resource development, the thesis recommends a reform of Alberta’s legislative and regulatory framework for energy development using federalism and its underlying principle of ...