Over the past few weeks while the House of Commons had not been sitting, I have been touring around Bow River riding visiting with many people, businesses, and communities. Respecting COVID rules, I have been able to absorb a vast array of opinions and viewpoints regarding the current state of affairs in our riding, province, and country. From Linden to Taber, from Chestermere to Patricia, I managed to reach all four corners of the riding!
Here are some examples of the places I’ve been and people I’ve spoken to. You will come to understand that many issues overlap for so many people. Concerns with costs of living, costs of operating businesses, cost of the carbon tax, COVID restrictions, vaccine availability, and more:
Agriculture:
We know the agriculture industry is an extremely important part of our riding and there are many different sectors within agriculture as well. There are many feedlots in the Bow River riding, and in speaking with some feedlot operators, they have expressed to me how several policies like the Liberal Carbon Tax and the bureaucracy in the acquisition of temporary foreign workers has affected operations in a devastating manner.
Supply Chain:
In meeting with those in the grocery store industry, they tell me of how a small delay in the supply chain can have drastic consequences for local shops – especially in rural areas where choice may not be as abundant. Even in the automotive industry, a lack of new parts for 2021 vehicles like trucks and even furniture for RVs and motorhomes has caused a backlog of new vehicles on the production lines.
Carbon Capture Utilization and Storage (CCUS):
Many Alberta MPs and I had the opportunity to tour an energy company’s site at Clive, AB to see what kind of Alberta-first innovation and technology is being used right here in our great province. Carbon Capture Utilization and Storage (or CCUS for short) is a method of extracting oil from fields that were once considered dry. While conventional methods of extraction have drawn about 50% of the oil in a field, by using CCUS technology, there is a potential of extracting about 20% more oil from that very same field.
So far over 1.2 million tonnes of carbon have been sequestered – that’s the equivalent of over 350,000 cars taken off the road. With Made-In-Alberta technologies like these, we can not only create a more sustainable environment, but also continue oil & gas production for the prosperity of the Alberta economy!
Vaccine Availability:
The Conservatives put forth a motion to the government to put forth a plan to safely re-open our economy once and for all. It was voted down by EVERY OTHER PARTY except the Conservatives. All 151 Liberals, all 31 Bloc Quebecois, all 24 NDP, and all 3 Green Party MPs voted ‘Nay’ to put forth a plan to safely re-open. These parties want Canada locked down.
Canada needs to re-open. Canada needs vaccines. We are lagging behind thanks to this Liberal Government.
I can be reached by email at martin.shields@parl.gc.ca. My Brooks office can be reached at 403-793-6775, and my Strathmore office at 403-361-2980. Please don’t hesitate to contact me on any federal issue.
