Environment a background issue in Alberta election but may play role, say observers

Few governments have seen as many environmental dust-ups as Alberta's United Conservatives in their four-year tenure.

Few governments have seen as many environmental dust-ups as Alberta's United Conservatives in their four-year tenure.

They tried delisting parks and opening the Rocky Mountains to coal mining. They charged fees for a beloved alpine playground. They started an inquiry into whether environmental groups were "anti-Alberta." They proposed dunning taxpayers for the cleanup costs of abandoned oil and gas facilities.

The list goes on.

But how those issues play in the upcoming provincial election is not a simple question, observers say. Albertans have a complicated and even contradictory relationship with the landscape in which they both play and make their living.

"Most Albertans want economic growth and environmental sustainability the same way they want low taxes and high-quality public services," said University of Alberta political scientist Jared Wesley. "They don't want to make that choice."

Recent polling suggests about two to five per cent of Albertans consider the environment a priority issue for the May 29 election.

"It doesn't even crack the top 10," said Wesley.