New Poll : canadians overestimate economic impact of oilsands

Most Canadians overvalue the contribution the oil sands industry make towards the country’s economy, finding it hard to believe it only contributes 2% to Canada’s total Gdp (GDP), outcomes of a current poll published Friday show.

According towards the survey conducted by polling firm Environics for that environmental group Environmental Defence, 57% of Canadians think the industry’s impact is greater than what Statistics Canada shows.

The study discovered that 41% of Canadians think the oil sands contribution to the world’s 11th largest economy is between 6 and 24 times greater than it is. Of these polled, 75% agree the nation should shift its dependence on fossil fuels toward cleaner energy sources.

“We are routinely told our economy will sputter, governments won’t have the ability to balance budgets, and social services will have to be sacrificed when we don’t triple how big the tar sands as fast as possible,” says Tim Gray, Executive Director of Environmental Defence. “However this simply isn’t true. The tar sands aren’t the primary driver in our economy, their contribution is relatively small and certainly not sufficient to warrant the risks of planned massive expansion.”

Although the majority of Canadians believe the tar sands’ contribution to the economy is larger of computer really is, most Canadians also feel we should be transitioning off the tar sands towards cleaner energy.

The polling shows a large majority of Canadians, 76 percent, agree with the statement: Given concerns about climate change, Canada ought to be shifting its energy strategy away from reliance on fossil fuels and towards cleaner energy. 75 % of Albertans felt this way. And quite a few of Canadians, 66 percent, want a fiscal strategy less focussed on tar sands development.

“The numbers speak on their own. Canadians are clearly ready for a safer, cleaner, more prosperous energy future,” Gray says. “The government needs to meet up with Canadians and begin the move away from high-risk, high carbon, expensive tar sands.”

The oil industry and also the federal government have invested millions of dollars in slick tar sands public relations campaigns both at home and abroad. Simultaneously, government’s support for clean energy has plummeted and there is continued failure to introduce regulations to manage soaring climate change pollution in the oil and gas sector.

“It’s profoundly wrongheaded that in the name of tar sands expansion as well as their purported importance to the economy, Canadian environment laws have been gutted, our international reputation has been tarnished, and our water, land, air and climate happen to be damaged. The tar sands account for a sliver of Canada’s economy,” Gray adds. “Canada has a lot more to offer. We’re able to be leaders within an innovative, prosperous, and clean economy – we can and must do better.”

This polling data presents the findings of the paid survey conducted among 1,011 adults from Wednesday June 18th through Monday, June 23rd, 2019. To qualify for this survey, respondents had to be 18 years old or older and reside in Canada.