Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
is required to incorporate intermittent energy lows into the grid—more
backup capacity or additional generating capacity is required. Although
strategies have emerged in electricity system engineering to attenuate the
stochastic lows of wind power systems, support for fossil fuel generation
systems still perpetuates.
8.6 POLITICAL INFLUENCES ON POLICY
8.6.1 National Political Structure
Canada is a federal parliamentary democracy that consists of 10 provinces
and three territories. he motive for adopting a federal system arose from
the challenge of trying to unify the culturally distinct provinces of Ontario
(Anglophone-dominated) and Québec (Francophone-dominated). Without
guaranteeing a degree of autonomous regional representation that is mani-
fest in the federal system, it is likely that Canada would not have gelled as a
nation.
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In fact, many political experts would likely agree with the conten-
tion that Canada's separation of powers has been instrumental in prevent-
ing national breakup.
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he concept of separation of powers is the core of Canada's federal sys-
tem. Constitutionally, political power is divided between a central federal
government and provincial legislatures. In relation to energy, provincial leg-
islatures possess exclusive authority over natural resource governance and
electricity generation. his explains why Canada does not have a national
electricity generation policy; the central government has no constitutional
right to design such a policy.
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In practice, this means that Canada has 10
provincial energy ministers, who get together periodically with the one fed-
eral energy Minister to discuss collaborative policy.
Although the provinces enjoy considerable autonomy in regard to elec-
tricity system development, the federal government has at least four strat-
egies that it could adopt to inluence provincial energy policy. First, the
federal government has the right to raise funds through taxation and to
exercise broad discretion in regard to how it uses these funds (Section 91(3)
of the Constitutional Act).
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hese powers underpinned the Petroleum Gas
Revenue Tax in the 1980s which, as described earlier, attracted so much ire
from Alberta.
Second, the federal government is constitutionally authorized to enter
into treaties with foreign powers and upon doing so, establish policies to
compel provincial authorities to comply with the terms of the treaty. In
short, it has the power to force the provinces to contribute in an equitable
fashion to achieving Canada's emission reduction targets under the Kyoto
