The petroleum sector in Canada has developed into a vibrant industry which has resulted in export driven economic wealth and a top five global energy producer. In 2007, Canada’s energy export revenue totaled $90 billion and accounted for about 20% of the value of all exports. A study undertaken at the University of Calgary suggests that our economy without the impact of oil and gas would barely be recognizable, less than half its current size.
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Global trade in carbon is a growing business with quadrupling in international carbon sales in 2006 at over $25B USD according to the World Bank. The New York Times presented carbon trading as one of the fastest growing trades, with companies scrambling to get a slice of a market now worth about $30 billion and could grow to $1 trillion within a decade. Carbon trading is the new big thing according to “In London’s Financial World”. Carbon will be the world’s biggest commodity market, and it could become the world’s biggest market over all, it added.

Alberta Climate Change and Emissions Management Act 2007, and British Columbia Greenhouse Gas Reduction Targets Act or Cap and Trade Act, 2008, pave the way for industrial plants in these provinces, to take action to mitigate their carbon intensity, including buying of carbon credits to offset and meet their greenhouse gas emissions intensity target, thereby pioneering carbon trading in these provinces and Canada at large.
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“It’s very quiet now”, the agency receptionist told Ben, while pointing to a book to enter his details. “Please call me when anything comes up”, Ben replied, shaking his head from left to right as he enters his information into the agency diary. This is the common response Ben got when he went job hunting last week after unsuccessful job search online and having his email account flooded with the reply; “Unfortunately, we found a more experienced candidate, we are unable to offer you the position at this point in time. We will keep your information …”

However, whether Ben was qualified or unqualified, job shortages or losses are not limited to temporal and part time jobs as house hold names like General Motors, Chrysler and Canadian Television (CTV) also answered present in the job loss roll called with even far reaching implications.
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Without disputing its cause or causes, impact or impacts, solution or solutions, most governments around the world have got climate change popping on their agenda all the time. Our energy has been invested in diverse ways to find possibilities of reducing carbon dioxide emissions. We’ve explored measures ranging from simple, “easy-to-do” home based stuffs like: “turn off”; to large scale, complex scientific experiments such as adding iron to the ocean, in what is known as: “ocean fertilization”.
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In a world of rising energy prices, a growing demand for clean and sustainable energy and a growing demand to mitigate climate change, should we be constructing new coal power plans or other high green house gas (GHG) emitting power sources?

When I go around industrial complexes and see the huge eye-catching plume of smoke rising up smoke stacks in to the atmosphere, the first thing that comes to my mind, possibly like most of your minds is the air pollution and to an extent climate change causing potential of these waste hot gases.
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A day doesn’t pass by without a media report relating to the economic downturn. Irrespective of its origin, architect, beneficiary or solution, a quick and robust solution to reverse this trend is inevitable. In this respect, governments around the world have been busy designing economic stimulus packages, necessitated by the unprecedented loss associated with this dire situation.

In a world of growing demand for energy and rising prices, the Canadian energy sector, a top five world energy producer, generated 5.6% of its national GDP in 2007. Canadian energy exports fuels a great deal of US energy imports, directly and indirectly breathing livelihood and economic sustenance to Canada.
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