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Bill Commented On: Alberta’s Bill 77: Municipal Government (Restoring Tax Accountability) Amendment Act, 2021, 2^nd Session, 30^th Legislature

Alberta’s Bill 77: Municipal Government (Restoring Tax Accountability) Amendment Act, 2021 (2^nd Session, 30^th Legislature) is moving towards becoming law. This post describes what Bill 77 would do, explains the connection between oil and gas companies’ unpaid municipal taxes and Alberta’s orphan well problem, and describes some reasons why Bill 77 will be ineffective.

Preliminary Reflections on COP26 and the Glasgow Climate Pact, Part 2

By David V Wright

On November 17, 2021

In Climate Change, Environmental

By: David V. Wright

PDF Version: Preliminary Reflections on COP26 and the Glasgow Climate Pact, Part 2

Matter Commented On: COP26 (Twenty-sixth Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change) and the Glasgow Climate Pact (Decision -/CMA.3)

Developments in UNFCCC & Paris Agreement Implementation

This post is Part 2 of two posts presenting preliminary reflections soon after the conclusion of COP26 in Glasgow. In this part, I present and briefly discuss notable developments (or lack of) within the formal negotiations process with respect to the implementation of the Paris Agreement and United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC).

A key objective for this particular conference was to finalize the rulebook for implementation of the Paris Agreement (see this helpful background document on the Paris Agreement and rulebook). This did indeed happen, and most would agree that this constitutes a success even if there is discontent with some of the final features. It is a particularly significant step forward as there was a risk that Parties would not reach an agreement on the rulebook entirely, resulting in further delay in implementation (on top of losing a year due to a pandemic-induced postponement last year) and loss of confidence in the basic structure and approach of the Paris Agreement. The following discusses several of the notable developments on the rulebook front, as well as several other (but not all) matters.

Preliminary Reflections on COP26 and the Glasgow Climate Pact, Part 1

By David V Wright

On November 16, 2021

In Climate Change, Energy, Environmental

By: David V. Wright

PDF Version: Preliminary Reflections on COP26 and the Glasgow Climate Pact, Part 1

Matter Commented On: COP26 (Twenty-sixth Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change) and the Glasgow Climate Pact (Decision -/CMA.3)

This is the first of two posts that discuss several notable developments from COP26, some of which took place within the formal negotiations process (e.g. market mechanism rules, financial assistance), and some of which took place in parallel (e.g. Global Methane Pledge, US-China bilateral announcement). This post is focused on the latter parallel developments, which primarily emerged in the first week of the conference. My next post will focus on the former, which largely materialized in the second week.

Overall, the stakes were particularly high at this COP because the parties needed to reach an agreement on final elements of the rulebook containing details of how the Paris Agreement would be implemented, many parts of which will be the most important and consequential as implementation unfolds in years to come. Additionally, a number of long-standing issues remain unresolved, including with respect to long-term financial assistance for the most vulnerable countries to reduce emissions and respond to the impacts of climate change. Overall, COP26 was a key juncture for ensuring that party commitments would add up to keeping within reach the overarching goal of keeping global mean temperature rise to below 1.5 degrees. It was these high stakes that led some to characterize this COP as “now or never” and a “last-chance saloon” scenario.

Alberta Heads the Wrong Direction with Bill 79 – the Proposed Trails Act

By Shaun Fluker

On November 8, 2021

In Environmental

By: Shaun Fluker and David Mayhood

PDF Version: Alberta Heads the Wrong Direction with Bill 79 – the Proposed Trails Act

Bill Commented On: Bill 79, the Proposed Trails Act, 2^nd Sess, 30^th Leg, Alberta, 2021

On November 2, 2021, the Minister of Environment and Parks (Jason Nixon) introduced Bill 79 – the proposed Trails Act – into the legislative assembly for first reading. Initial public reactions varied significantly from the positive endorsements given by recreational trail user groups (such as those quoted in the government’s media statement) to the critical assessments on social media (see here) and environmental groups (such as the Alberta Wilderness Association). One thing Bill 79 does not implement is the trail permit fee on off-highway vehicle (OHV) users which the Minister previously indicated was forthcoming. This omission not only further highlights the glaring absence of the McLean Creek area from the access fee imposed by the Kananaskis Conservation Pass, it also reinforces the view that OHV users have the Minister’s ear on policy development. In this post, we critically examine the actual content in Bill 79 and explain why the proposed Trails Act will result in further damage and destruction to public lands in Alberta.

The 2020/2021 Year in Access to Justice on ABlawg

By Drew Yewchuk

On November 4, 2021

In Access to Justice

By: Drew Yewchuk

PDF Version: The 2020/2021 Year in Access to Justice on ABlawg

Event Commented On: Access to Justice Week 2021

The Canadian Bar Association’s annual Access to Justice Week in Alberta ran from October 25-31, 2021. This post is the annual look back at the past year of access to justice posts on ABlawg. The blog focuses on important cases that changed the law rather than programs that provided access to justice for underserved communities – the access to justice blog covers several of those initiatives, and some other changes not covered on ABlawg.

Bill 77, Unpaid Municipal Taxes, and the Connection to the Inactive and Orphan Wells Problem

Preliminary Reflections on COP26 and the Glasgow Climate Pact, Part 2

Preliminary Reflections on COP26 and the Glasgow Climate Pact, Part 1

Alberta Heads the Wrong Direction with Bill 79 – the Proposed Trails Act

The 2020/2021 Year in Access to Justice on ABlawg