About 70 Albertans turned out on Tuesday night to reveal their concerns over a “fundamental problem with how democracy is being practiced in Alberta right now” and to call on a group of MLAs to repeal certain bills infringing on property rights.
People drove from as far as Sturgeon County to attend an open house at the Westlock Inn, the fourth of 10 such sessions occurring around the province from Jan. 9-17.
Although the event was styled as an “open house,” the evening unfolded more like a brainstorming session with the participants being split up into four groups.
Each group was led by a facilitator who transcribed the concerns of attendees. Members of the Property Rights Task Force listened in one each discussion.
At the end of the session, one of the facilitators — Catrin Owen — read out a lengthy list encapsulating all that had been brought forward that night.
That included worries voiced over land-use legislation like Bill 24 (the Carbon Capture and Storage Statutes Act), Bill 36 (the Alberta Land Stewardship Act) and Bill 50 (the Electric Statutes Amendment Act).
“You said the following things about these bills: you said they’re unclear, there’s confusion about their content, there’s a distinct lack of clarity, and you also said the consultation on these bills should have happened prior to them being drafted,” she said.
“The bottom line here is that you feel the bills take away your rights and they centralize decision-making with too few elected officials.”
Owen’s summary acknowledged that many people were concerned over the secretiveness of the provincial government.
“You said you’re not sure right now in Alberta who’s making the decisions. You know that they’re happening at a political level but to you it feels too secretive and as if it’s happening behind closed doors. You asked the question ‘Who’s really calling the shots?’”
She said the message from the open house participants was clear: dispose of the bills that threaten Albertans’ property rights and start fresh.
“You said it right at the beginning of the session: repeal the bills. Start over. Make sure there are some basic rights in place — the rights to compensation and the rights to appeal.”
Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development Minister Evan Berger said one of the things he heard loud and clear at the Westlock open house were concerns over the rules around abandonment of pipelines and their effect on agriculture.
“We’ve heard that before, but not in these sessions … that was something that’s been different from everywhere else,” he said.
Minister of environment and water Diana McQueen, who is co-chairing the task force with Berger, said they had some really good feedback that night and people were very comfortable with providing their input and possible solutions.
“Generally, a lot of it is the same, but then when you get to different communities, you get a different flavour as well,” she said.
McQueen acknowledged that access to the courts, proper consultation before introducing such bills and compensation for land that is expropriated are the most common concerns being voiced to the task force.
When asked whether the report will reflect people’s desires to repeal certain legislation, McQueen said the report will include everything that is said during these open houses.
However, she stressed that it’s still really too early in the process to guess what the report will recommend.
“It wouldn’t be fair to the other communities not to wait to hear what they have to say,” she said, declining to comment further.
Athabasca-Redwater MLA and infrastructure minister Jeff Johnson, who is also a member of the task force, said he was happy with the turnout that night and at the other open houses.
“Anything’s feasible. We’re here with a clean slate, to listen. Diana is going to head up creating that report for the premier, and the premier has no handcuffs on her. I think she’s shown … that she’s willing to wipe the slate clean.”
Johnson noted that he believed there is a real challenge with a lack of understanding of the land-use bills and why they were created. For example, he noted that the Alberta Legislature had already amended Bill 19 earlier this fall but there were still people unaware of that fact.
“There are people who aren’t aware those actions have already been taken,” he said.
Four open houses now remain: two sessions will be hosted in Brooks and Hanna on Jan. 16 and two more will be held in Medicine Hat and Lethbridge on Jan. 17.
If anyone would still like to have input on Alberta property rights, they may still participate in the online survey located at www.propertyrights.alberta.ca.
