Federal and provincial relations have hit new heights in our backyard with the creation of the largest carbon capture project in the world.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Premier Brad Wall made the joint announcement at the end of March to create a new carbon dioxide capture and storage venture. The spirit of co-operation between Saskatchewan and Ottawa is alive and well.

The prime minister has a great deal of faith in our province as a nation-builder: “Saskatchewan is the fast-rising star of the new West,” he said in a recent speech in Estevan. “Both our governments are committed to economic growth and environmental protection. It’s an important issue here in Saskatchewan because the province is a growing prairie powerhouse of energy and resource production.”

Our province is already connected to a pipeline carrying carbon dioxide from a North Dakota gasification plant. Piping CO² to the Weyburn-Midale demonstration project is the world’s largest experiment in carbon storage to date. The carbon dioxide is injected into a partially depleted oilfield near Weyburn instead of releasing it into the atmosphere. Test results and computer simulations show that the CO² will remain safe for at least 5,000 years sealed deep underground. The federal and provincial governments are prepared to develop the cutting-edge technology to limit environmental damage and create a profitable source of income at the same time.

The new project announced last month will be a commercial venture to collect CO² emissions from oil sands operations and coal-fired electrical plants. It will reduce Canada’s greenhouse gas emissions and could potentially store up to half of the annual emissions from the entire country by 2050. A partnership between the federal and provincial governments with Sask Power is in place to take on the project at the Boundary Dam power station in Estevan. The federal government will contribute $240 million once legislation is passed and Sask Power will provide $758 million.

Carbon capture and storage technology, combined with our dynamic energy sector, is poised to make Canada a greener energy superpower. In addition to drastically reducing our CO² emissions, the technology could be an important export destined for other countries. It will be a proud day for us all when Saskatchewan is internationally recognized as a pioneer in reducing CO² emissions.

The federal government has found a new friend in the recently elected Government of Saskatchewan. Prime Minister Stephen Harper is proving to the entire country that good federal-provincial relations can move mountains. With our provincial population finally increasing again and our new designation as a “have” province, the people of Saskatchewan have plenty to celebrate.

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The audio version of Garry's April 7, 2008 op-ed column can be heard by clicking here