{"id":66539,"date":"2025-04-14T11:25:51","date_gmt":"2025-04-14T18:25:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/energi.media\/?p=66539"},"modified":"2025-04-14T11:25:51","modified_gmt":"2025-04-14T18:25:51","slug":"opinion-coal-in-alberta-neither-public-outrage-nor-waning-global-demand-seem-to-matter-to-danielle-smith","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/energi.media\/opinion\/opinion-coal-in-alberta-neither-public-outrage-nor-waning-global-demand-seem-to-matter-to-danielle-smith\/","title":{"rendered":"Opinion: Coal in Alberta – Neither public outrage nor waning global demand seem to matter to Danielle Smith"},"content":{"rendered":"

This article was published by The Conversation<\/a> on April 14, 2025.<\/em><\/p>\n

By Ian Urquhart\u00a0<\/span><\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

\n

\u201cWe heard you,\u00a0Albertans<\/a>.\u201d With those words, Alberta Energy Minister Brian Jean put\u00a0coal mining in Alberta\u2019s Rocky Mountains<\/a>\u00a0back on the table last December. Common sense might suggest Jean meant that Albertans are in favour of resuscitating\u00a0metallurgical coal mining<\/a>\u00a0there, but that\u2019s not the case.<\/p>\n

Instead, the public strongly opposes reviving metallurgical coal mining \u2014 also known as coking coal mining \u2014\u00a0to supply Asian steelmakers<\/a>. December\u2019s\u00a0Coal Industry Modernization Initiative<\/a>\u00a0sadly exemplifies what has become too common in politics today \u2014 using misinformation to try to win the public\u2019s willingness to accept the unacceptable.<\/p>\n

In this case, the government\u2019s treatment of expert opinion compounds its misinformation. It\u2019s blind to expert advice from the\u00a0International Energy Agency (IEA)<\/a>\u00a0and the\u00a0Australian government<\/a>\u00a0questioning the rosiness of metallurgical coal\u2019s future.<\/p>\n

Bringing coal miners back to Alberta\u2019s Rockies was extremely contentious between 2020 and 2022. Jason Kenney\u2019s Conservatives removed the de facto exploration and exploitation restrictions in place there\u00a0since the 1970s<\/a>. At the same time, Benga Mining Limited proposed to resume coal mining in southwest Alberta. Together,\u00a0these events ignited a public furore<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Public opposition<\/h2>\n

Andrew Nikiforuk<\/a>, a journalist whose books and articles focus on epidemics and the energy industry, was one of the first to bring coal miner ambitions to the public\u2019s attention. He told me the outrage was \u201cprobably the most important environmental protest I have ever witnessed in this province.\u201d<\/p>\n

Benga\u2019s Grassy Mountain project was summarily dismissed by government regulators\u00a0in 2021<\/a>. Eleven weeks before that decision, Alberta created the\u00a0Coal Policy Committee<\/a>. It consulted Albertans about the 2020 decision to invite coal miners to return to the Rockies.<\/p>\n

The committee gave anyone with a view on coal \u2014 positive or negative \u2014 the opportunity to contribute to its deliberations. The response was impressive. The committee received nearly 4,400 pieces of correspondence, 176 detailed written submissions and conducted\u00a067 virtual and public meetings<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The consultation confirmed what\u00a0polling firms had already found<\/a>: \u201cA significant number of respondents are apprehensive about coal development in Alberta.\u201d<\/p>\n

Albertans didn\u2019t believe coal\u2019s economic benefits justified its risks to landscapes and water quality. Only eight per cent of those who answered the committee\u2019s survey question about the economic benefits of coal mining felt they were very important; 64 per cent regarded those benefits as \u201cnot important at all.\u201d<\/p>\n

This unambiguous public opposition repeated\u00a0what the federal-provincial review panel<\/a>\u00a0into Benga\u2019s Grassy Mountain coal mine proposal revealed in 2020-2021. Ninety-eight per cent of the more than 4,400 public comments left on the review panel\u2019s website opposed the proposal to bring coal mining back to the Crowsnest Pass.<\/p>\n

\n
\n
\"A
A sign opposing coal development in the Rocky Mountains in June 2021 amid a public outcry about Conservative proposals to lift a ban on coal mining in the Rockies. THE CANADIAN PRESS\/Jeff McIntosh.\u00a0<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>
<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Second, the committee concluded that land-use planning, with public consultation, needed to take place before a decision could be made about\u00a0permitting coal exploration in the Rockies<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Premier Danielle Smith\u2019s government hasn\u2019t listened. It doesn\u2019t intend to conduct the land-use planning called for by the committee.<\/p>\n

Jean has also said he will consult industry \u2014 and only industry \u2014 as he tries to get his new policy in place this year. He promised \u201ctargeted\u201d engagement with coal industry stakeholders<\/a>. The public and other interests will be mere spectators.<\/p>\n

Global coal demand is a myth<\/h2>\n

Alberta\u2019s coal initiative has an optimistic view of future metallurgical coal demand.<\/p>\n

Jean markets his proposal by saying Alberta coal is needed \u201cgiven the current and anticipated future global demand for coal.\u201d But the IAE doesn\u2019t share that optimism. Nor do experts from the Australian government, the world\u2019s largest exporter of metallurgical coal.<\/p>\n

\n
\n
\"A
Minister of Energy and Minerals Brian Jean is sworn into cabinet in Edmonton in June 2023.\u00a0THE CANADIAN PRESS\/Jason Franson<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n
<\/div>
<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The IEA\u2019s annual coal report is a benchmark for understanding the medium-term global outlook for coal. Its most recent report projects metallurgical coal production will\u00a0fall by 4.2 per cent from 2024 to 2027<\/a>. The IEA\u2019s 2024\u00a0World Energy Outlook<\/a>\u00a0predicted steelmaking coal production would fall over the next two decades as steelmakers reduce greenhouse gas emissions.<\/p>\n

In 2050, it expects world coking coal production to drop 35.8 per cent from the 2024 level.<\/p>\n

Australia\u2019s pre-eminence comes from producing 46 per cent of global metallurgical coal exports. The Australian government\u2019s March 2025 Resources and Energy Quarterly confirms the general thrust of the IEA\u2019s analyses. A slight increase in the amount of steel produced without metallurgical coal \u201cwill likely result in a slight fall in global metallurgical coal demand through to 2030<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n

Read more:\u00a0Australia urgently needs to get serious about long-term climate policy \u2013 but there’s no sign of that in the election campaign<\/a><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

\n

Asian demand<\/h2>\n

The IEA makes it clear that Australian producers don\u2019t intend to relinquish market share willingly.\u00a0Forty-seven Australian coal projects are in the pipeline<\/a>, with most focused on metallurgical coal or metallurgical\/thermal coal combined. Three-quarters of Australia\u2019s metallurgical coal exports feed the Asian steel industry.<\/p>\n

Then there\u2019s Mongolia. After its \u201crecent extraordinary export growth\u201d into China, Mongolia now supplies nearly one-half of China\u2019s imports. The country is the world\u2019s second largest metallurgical coal exporter. Mongolia\u2019s high-quality coal, proximity to China and improved rail infrastructure will make its production difficult to displace.<\/p>\n

\n
\n
\"Two
Workers shovel coal atop a trailer truck at a coal mine in Inner Mongolia in China.\u00a0(AP Photo\/Mark Schiefelbein)<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>
<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

It\u2019s unlikely, then, that new coal production from Alberta will gain easy access to Asian markets.<\/p>\n

Alberta\u2019s Coal Industry Modernization Initiative illustrates two dangerous trends in politics today \u2014 the refusal to heed both the public and experts.<\/p>\n

The stakes here are large. Coal mining will undoubtedly have a substantial impact on the headwaters that serve people in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba. Smith\u2019s Conservatives should in fact embrace common sense and the spirit of party policy from the 1970s. Prohibit coal mining in Alberta\u2019s Rockies.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This article was published by The Conversation on April 14, 2025. By Ian Urquhart\u00a0 \u201cWe heard you,\u00a0Albertans.\u201d With those words, Alberta Energy Minister Brian Jean put\u00a0coal mining in Alberta\u2019s Rocky Mountains\u00a0back on the table last [Read more]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":66541,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"give_campaign_id":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[63,2478,80,14,95,613],"class_list":{"0":"post-66539","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-opinion","8":"tag-coal","9":"tag-danielle-smith","10":"tag-environment","11":"tag-featured","12":"tag-fossil-fuels","13":"tag-mining"},"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nAlberta - Thoughtful Journalism About Energy's Future<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Alberta Energy Minister Brian Jean put\u00a0coal mining in Alberta\u2019s Rocky Mountains\u00a0back on the table last December\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/energi.media\/opinion\/opinion-coal-in-alberta-neither-public-outrage-nor-waning-global-demand-seem-to-matter-to-danielle-smith\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Alberta - Thoughtful Journalism About Energy's Future\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Alberta Energy Minister Brian Jean put\u00a0coal mining in Alberta\u2019s Rocky Mountains\u00a0back on the table last December\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/energi.media\/opinion\/opinion-coal-in-alberta-neither-public-outrage-nor-waning-global-demand-seem-to-matter-to-danielle-smith\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Thoughtful Journalism About Energy's Future\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/energimedia\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-04-14T18:25:51+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/energi.media\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Alberta-Lethbridge-News-Now-Jeremy-Lamberton.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"800\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"450\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Energi Staff\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@EnergiMedia\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@EnergiMedia\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Energi Staff\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"6 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/energi.media\\\/opinion\\\/opinion-coal-in-alberta-neither-public-outrage-nor-waning-global-demand-seem-to-matter-to-danielle-smith\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/energi.media\\\/opinion\\\/opinion-coal-in-alberta-neither-public-outrage-nor-waning-global-demand-seem-to-matter-to-danielle-smith\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Energi Staff\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/energi.media\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/07051d0cfb14da284c97fb8ff214caf7\"},\"headline\":\"Opinion: Coal in Alberta – Neither public outrage nor waning global demand seem to matter to Danielle Smith\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-04-14T18:25:51+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/energi.media\\\/opinion\\\/opinion-coal-in-alberta-neither-public-outrage-nor-waning-global-demand-seem-to-matter-to-danielle-smith\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":1044,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/energi.media\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/energi.media\\\/opinion\\\/opinion-coal-in-alberta-neither-public-outrage-nor-waning-global-demand-seem-to-matter-to-danielle-smith\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/energi.media\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/04\\\/Alberta-Lethbridge-News-Now-Jeremy-Lamberton.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Coal\",\"Danielle Smith\",\"Environment\",\"featured\",\"Fossil Fuels\",\"Mining\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Opinion\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/energi.media\\\/opinion\\\/opinion-coal-in-alberta-neither-public-outrage-nor-waning-global-demand-seem-to-matter-to-danielle-smith\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/energi.media\\\/opinion\\\/opinion-coal-in-alberta-neither-public-outrage-nor-waning-global-demand-seem-to-matter-to-danielle-smith\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/energi.media\\\/opinion\\\/opinion-coal-in-alberta-neither-public-outrage-nor-waning-global-demand-seem-to-matter-to-danielle-smith\\\/\",\"name\":\"Alberta - Thoughtful Journalism About Energy's Future\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/energi.media\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/energi.media\\\/opinion\\\/opinion-coal-in-alberta-neither-public-outrage-nor-waning-global-demand-seem-to-matter-to-danielle-smith\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/energi.media\\\/opinion\\\/opinion-coal-in-alberta-neither-public-outrage-nor-waning-global-demand-seem-to-matter-to-danielle-smith\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/energi.media\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/04\\\/Alberta-Lethbridge-News-Now-Jeremy-Lamberton.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-04-14T18:25:51+00:00\",\"description\":\"Alberta Energy Minister Brian Jean put\u00a0coal mining in Alberta\u2019s Rocky Mountains\u00a0back on the table last December\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/energi.media\\\/opinion\\\/opinion-coal-in-alberta-neither-public-outrage-nor-waning-global-demand-seem-to-matter-to-danielle-smith\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/energi.media\\\/opinion\\\/opinion-coal-in-alberta-neither-public-outrage-nor-waning-global-demand-seem-to-matter-to-danielle-smith\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/energi.media\\\/opinion\\\/opinion-coal-in-alberta-neither-public-outrage-nor-waning-global-demand-seem-to-matter-to-danielle-smith\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/energi.media\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/04\\\/Alberta-Lethbridge-News-Now-Jeremy-Lamberton.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/energi.media\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/04\\\/Alberta-Lethbridge-News-Now-Jeremy-Lamberton.jpg\",\"width\":800,\"height\":450,\"caption\":\"Alberta Energy Minister Brian Jean said he will consult industry \u2014 and only industry \u2014 as he tries to get his new policy in place this year. Lethbridge News Now photo by Jeremy Lamberton.\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/energi.media\\\/opinion\\\/opinion-coal-in-alberta-neither-public-outrage-nor-waning-global-demand-seem-to-matter-to-danielle-smith\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/energi.media\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Opinion: Coal in Alberta – Neither public outrage nor waning global demand seem to matter to Danielle Smith\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/energi.media\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/energi.media\\\/\",\"name\":\"Thoughtful Journalism About Energy's Future\",\"description\":\"\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/energi.media\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/energi.media\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/energi.media\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Energi Media\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/energi.media\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/energi.media\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/energi.media\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2021\\\/06\\\/cropped-cropped-EnergiMedia-v3-logo-e1625024297484.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/energi.media\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2021\\\/06\\\/cropped-cropped-EnergiMedia-v3-logo-e1625024297484.png\",\"width\":302,\"height\":61,\"caption\":\"Energi Media\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/energi.media\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.facebook.com\\\/energimedia\",\"https:\\\/\\\/x.com\\\/EnergiMedia\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.linkedin.com\\\/company\\\/energi-media\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.youtube.com\\\/@EnergiMedia\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/energi.media\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/07051d0cfb14da284c97fb8ff214caf7\",\"name\":\"Energi Staff\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/8aab8747a56101912653d395e4d5b76c013eb58c9c0d846ee34f94382c2a3bbb?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/8aab8747a56101912653d395e4d5b76c013eb58c9c0d846ee34f94382c2a3bbb?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/8aab8747a56101912653d395e4d5b76c013eb58c9c0d846ee34f94382c2a3bbb?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Energi Staff\"},\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/energi.media\\\/author\\\/aen-staff\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Alberta - Thoughtful Journalism About Energy's Future","description":"Alberta Energy Minister Brian Jean put\u00a0coal mining in Alberta\u2019s Rocky Mountains\u00a0back on the table last December","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/energi.media\/opinion\/opinion-coal-in-alberta-neither-public-outrage-nor-waning-global-demand-seem-to-matter-to-danielle-smith\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Alberta - Thoughtful Journalism About Energy's Future","og_description":"Alberta Energy Minister Brian Jean put\u00a0coal mining in Alberta\u2019s Rocky Mountains\u00a0back on the table last December","og_url":"https:\/\/energi.media\/opinion\/opinion-coal-in-alberta-neither-public-outrage-nor-waning-global-demand-seem-to-matter-to-danielle-smith\/","og_site_name":"Thoughtful Journalism About Energy's Future","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/energimedia","article_published_time":"2025-04-14T18:25:51+00:00","og_image":[{"width":800,"height":450,"url":"https:\/\/energi.media\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Alberta-Lethbridge-News-Now-Jeremy-Lamberton.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Energi Staff","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@EnergiMedia","twitter_site":"@EnergiMedia","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Energi Staff","Est. reading time":"6 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/energi.media\/opinion\/opinion-coal-in-alberta-neither-public-outrage-nor-waning-global-demand-seem-to-matter-to-danielle-smith\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/energi.media\/opinion\/opinion-coal-in-alberta-neither-public-outrage-nor-waning-global-demand-seem-to-matter-to-danielle-smith\/"},"author":{"name":"Energi Staff","@id":"https:\/\/energi.media\/#\/schema\/person\/07051d0cfb14da284c97fb8ff214caf7"},"headline":"Opinion: Coal in Alberta – Neither public outrage nor waning global demand seem to matter to Danielle Smith","datePublished":"2025-04-14T18:25:51+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/energi.media\/opinion\/opinion-coal-in-alberta-neither-public-outrage-nor-waning-global-demand-seem-to-matter-to-danielle-smith\/"},"wordCount":1044,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/energi.media\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/energi.media\/opinion\/opinion-coal-in-alberta-neither-public-outrage-nor-waning-global-demand-seem-to-matter-to-danielle-smith\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/energi.media\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Alberta-Lethbridge-News-Now-Jeremy-Lamberton.jpg","keywords":["Coal","Danielle Smith","Environment","featured","Fossil Fuels","Mining"],"articleSection":["Opinion"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/energi.media\/opinion\/opinion-coal-in-alberta-neither-public-outrage-nor-waning-global-demand-seem-to-matter-to-danielle-smith\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/energi.media\/opinion\/opinion-coal-in-alberta-neither-public-outrage-nor-waning-global-demand-seem-to-matter-to-danielle-smith\/","url":"https:\/\/energi.media\/opinion\/opinion-coal-in-alberta-neither-public-outrage-nor-waning-global-demand-seem-to-matter-to-danielle-smith\/","name":"Alberta - Thoughtful Journalism About Energy's Future","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/energi.media\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/energi.media\/opinion\/opinion-coal-in-alberta-neither-public-outrage-nor-waning-global-demand-seem-to-matter-to-danielle-smith\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/energi.media\/opinion\/opinion-coal-in-alberta-neither-public-outrage-nor-waning-global-demand-seem-to-matter-to-danielle-smith\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/energi.media\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Alberta-Lethbridge-News-Now-Jeremy-Lamberton.jpg","datePublished":"2025-04-14T18:25:51+00:00","description":"Alberta Energy Minister Brian Jean put\u00a0coal mining in Alberta\u2019s Rocky Mountains\u00a0back on the table last December","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/energi.media\/opinion\/opinion-coal-in-alberta-neither-public-outrage-nor-waning-global-demand-seem-to-matter-to-danielle-smith\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/energi.media\/opinion\/opinion-coal-in-alberta-neither-public-outrage-nor-waning-global-demand-seem-to-matter-to-danielle-smith\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/energi.media\/opinion\/opinion-coal-in-alberta-neither-public-outrage-nor-waning-global-demand-seem-to-matter-to-danielle-smith\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/energi.media\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Alberta-Lethbridge-News-Now-Jeremy-Lamberton.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/energi.media\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/Alberta-Lethbridge-News-Now-Jeremy-Lamberton.jpg","width":800,"height":450,"caption":"Alberta Energy Minister Brian Jean said he will consult industry \u2014 and only industry \u2014 as he tries to get his new policy in place this year. Lethbridge News Now photo by Jeremy Lamberton."},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/energi.media\/opinion\/opinion-coal-in-alberta-neither-public-outrage-nor-waning-global-demand-seem-to-matter-to-danielle-smith\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/energi.media\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Opinion: Coal in Alberta – Neither public outrage nor waning global demand seem to matter to Danielle Smith"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/energi.media\/#website","url":"https:\/\/energi.media\/","name":"Thoughtful Journalism About Energy's Future","description":"","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/energi.media\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/energi.media\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/energi.media\/#organization","name":"Energi Media","url":"https:\/\/energi.media\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/energi.media\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/energi.media\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/cropped-cropped-EnergiMedia-v3-logo-e1625024297484.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/energi.media\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/cropped-cropped-EnergiMedia-v3-logo-e1625024297484.png","width":302,"height":61,"caption":"Energi Media"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/energi.media\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/energimedia","https:\/\/x.com\/EnergiMedia","https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/company\/energi-media","https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/@EnergiMedia"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/energi.media\/#\/schema\/person\/07051d0cfb14da284c97fb8ff214caf7","name":"Energi Staff","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8aab8747a56101912653d395e4d5b76c013eb58c9c0d846ee34f94382c2a3bbb?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8aab8747a56101912653d395e4d5b76c013eb58c9c0d846ee34f94382c2a3bbb?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8aab8747a56101912653d395e4d5b76c013eb58c9c0d846ee34f94382c2a3bbb?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Energi Staff"},"url":"https:\/\/energi.media\/author\/aen-staff\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/energi.media\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/66539","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/energi.media\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/energi.media\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/energi.media\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/energi.media\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=66539"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/energi.media\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/66539\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":66542,"href":"https:\/\/energi.media\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/66539\/revisions\/66542"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/energi.media\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/66541"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/energi.media\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=66539"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/energi.media\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=66539"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/energi.media\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=66539"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}