'Bold and ambitious plan' will make Alberta a leader in clean industry: AFL

The Alberta Federation of Labour says it has an economic strategy ready that would help push province ahead in the new clean energy industry while retaining oil and gas jobs as well as creating 200,000 more positions. (THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh)

A provincial workers' advocacy group has released a plan to help Alberta transition from fossil fuels and push it ahead in the new clean economy.

The Alberta Federation of Labour (AFL) unveils details of its strategy on Wednesday, saying that it offers a different look at the development of industry in Alberta.

The organization says the report, called Skate to Where the Puck is Going, would create 200,000 "good paying" jobs for Albertans and is a "once-in-a-century opportunity."

Gil McGowan, AFL president, says the name comes from what hockey legend Wayne Gretzky's advice to "skate where the puck is going, not where it's been."

"Like it or not, it's going toward a future where there will be less of a demand for fossil fuels," he said. "We are not doing Albertans any favours by trying to sugar-coat this fact."

The AFL also says it's a divergence from the plans that residents have seen from all levels of government so far.

"The report we're releasing this morning is not an emission reduction strategy. It's not a climate leadership plan and it's not a 'green new deal,'" said McGowan.

"(It's) a bold and ambitious plan for the Alberta economy – a plan that if implemented, would preserve existing jobs in the oil and gas sector, create 200,000 new jobs both within the energy sector and beyond it and set us on a path for continued prosperity in a world that's changing fast."

The AFL's plan looks to rely on the province's knack for economic diversification to move into new and growing industries such as producing feedstock for materials manufacturing, establishing metal refineries for batteries and constructing a world-class hydrogen fuels sector.

This return to an entrepreneurial spirit in Alberta is reminiscent of the approach of former premier Peter Lougheed, McGowan said.

"UCP economic policy consists of giving money to big corporations. Premier Lougheed must be turning in his grave," he said.

"Ownership is the cost for private capital when the government de-risks new technologies and industries. The people of Alberta should not be seen as a charity for the wealthy. When we invest, we want a return."

McGowan says what is happening now is the result of global trends in markets, technology and politics that are completely out of the control of Albertans.

"We cannot hold back the tide," he said. "We cannot change these trends by funding war rooms or voting for someone who tells us what we want to hear.

"All we can do – all we must do is skate to where the puck is going."