Victoria mayor coming to tour Alberta oilsands with ‘open mind’

Two months before the Victoria mayor comes to northern Alberta’s oilsands, Lisa Helps’ goal in her visit to her neighbouring province is “to learn.”

“I have a responsibility to keep an open mind,” mayor Helps told The Morning News on 770 CHQR. “I have a responsibility to gain a wider perspective, and that’s why I’m coming. I don’t necessarily know if I’ll change my mind or not, but I’m certainly coming with an open mind. And understanding other people’s perspectives in this role is really important.”

Helps is coming at the invitation of Calgary’s Ward 1 Coun. Ward Sutherland and will tour the steam-assisted gravity drainage oilsands project near Fort McMurray, Alta.

“I’m in the hands of the fine folks in Calgary to show me what they think I need to see,” the Victoria mayor said.

“One of the things that I’ve heard from Albertans and others is about the sustainable nature of oil and gas extraction in Alberta. I’m looking forward to learn more about that.

“I’m looking forward to learn the perspective of the workers in particular. I know that there’s a lot of unemployment right now and fears about that, so I want to learn more about that. That’s obviously a concern for me when any workers would be losing work.

Part of the Calgary city council’s push to advocate for Alberta’s oil and gas industry, the Victoria mayor’s trip is encouraging to the Calgary councillor.

“I think if we would have just been confrontational all this time, she wouldn’t be making this trip,” Sutherland told Ryan Jespersen on 770 CHQR Friday.

“As soon as you are confrontational with someone, they put up a wall and they don’t listen to at all. If you don’t have that wall and you start talking about the things they’re concerned about, people start listening.”

LISTEN: Victoria Mayor Lisa Helps joins Gord and Sue on The Morning News to discuss her upcoming trip to Alberta’s oilsands

Alberta oil and gas advocacy group Canada Action is helping organize Helps’ April 26 trip.

A vocal opponent of the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion in the past, Helps would not say whether she expects the visit to change her opinion of the oil and gas industry or the pipeline project.

“It’s a very complicated question for me,” the Victoria mayor said. “I’m very driven by facts and evidence and that’s why I’m coming to see it. I know that the world is not going to stop using oil tomorrow.

“I also know the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change last October when it was released was a real wake up … essentially 700 scientists around the world have told us that we need to move to significantly reduce carbon pollution by 2030 and then basically phase off of carbon pollution by 2050.

“I know that can’t happen overnight but I’m going to be hard pressed to see why increasing oil production anywhere in the world is a good idea in light of the current climate crisis.”

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The two-term Victoria mayor said she has no interest in putting up a legal challenge to the pipeline expansion if approved by the federal government. But Helps recognized the moral dilemma at stake.

“What’s more important for the national interest — is it orcas or is it oil? I wish we didn’t have to make those kind of choices.”