President's Notebook
APEGA
sands production represents less than 2.5 per cent of global oil production, has contributed to organized opposition to Canadian pipeline projects that seek secure access to international markets. Ironically, this negative focus on oil sands production has occurred against a background of global oil demand increasing by 6.9 per cent over the past three years, according to the International Energy Agency. Because there is a global excess of production capacity, controlling global carbon emissions from oil consumption is clearly more of a demand-side than a supply- side challenge. Limiting oil sands production does not curb oil consumption because there is no shortage of global oil supply. Of course, opposing oil sands production is a much easier target for opponents than limiting global demand. Regardless, these external factors create considerable uncertainty, and we surely must temper expectations for a recovery of Alberta’s energy sector that is similar to the ones we have seen before. The impact of the NEP on the employment of Professional Engineers and Professional Geoscientists in Alberta was certainly extreme. In 1981, when Alberta’s population was slightly over half what it is now, APEGGA (as we were known then) had about 16,000 Professional Members. In 2016, Professional Members number about 55,400. This means that the proportion of Alberta’s total population made up of Members has almost doubled in the 35 years since the NEP. While I have not been able to verify province-
we have undertaken the most detailed and thorough review of APEGA expenditures and revenue in recent memory. This exercise has been extremely informative and has allowed us to make, with considerable confidence, some very difficult decisions. Inevitably, some of these decisions will be unpopular in some quarters. In developing our new strategic plan, we have recognized the need for essential improvements in APEGA’s regulatory operations. Because we are accountable under the Engineering and Geoscience Professions Act (EGP Act) , we have a clear duty to ensure that we have an effective capability to deliver our regulatory mandate. We cannot put our privilege of professional self-regulation at risk by failing to implement improvements that we know are necessary. While self-regulation provides us with considerable autonomy, this privilege comes with the harsh reality of being entirely self-funded. Consequently, we must take appropriate measures to ensure the viability of APEGA as we navigate difficult economic conditions. Uncertainty is clearly a dominant reality facing us on many fronts. We have witnessed the United Kingdom voting to withdraw from the European Union, resulting in major implications for the future of international collaboration and trade. Now, we have the largest American electoral surprise since Harry Truman defeated heavily favoured Thomas Dewey, 68 years ago. Both these recent and generally unpredicted exercises in democracy signal a deep dis- satisfaction with the status quo among voters. Profound uncertainty is the inevitable outcome among our major trading partners. The Interim CEO’s Message , which appears on the two pages that follow my column, provides some detail on the major decisions we have found necessary to ensure the viability of APEGA in these uncertain times. A key feature of our deliberations has been a reliance on a balanced approach. We have comprehensively considered all sources of APEGA revenue and expenses, along with mitigation measures for our Members in distress, in relation to a clear need for improved regulatory performance. We landed on several difficult decisions, only after we had developed a comprehensive and balanced perspective. APEGA faces a serious challenge to provide a realistic and responsible approach to external realities. Conditions in Alberta have clearly changed in the 35 years since the severe downturn caused by the NEP. We need to accept that APEGA must be capable of weathering continuing change for the foreseeable future. All of us must contribute if we are to continue honouring our responsibility to protect public safety and the public interest — as we are obliged to do under the EGP Act .
wide unemployment numbers for our Members as a proportion of total unemployment, indications are that engineering unemployment is higher than the provincial average and that geosciences unemployment is comparatively even worse. In fact, focused consultation with key representatives of our geosciences community provided clear signals that the basic structure of professional demand for our geoscience Members has been changing and may continue to change. Given the dramatic increase of our Members as a proportion
of the total Alberta population over the past 35 years, we should expect that we comprise a larger fraction of total unemployment in Alberta than we did during the NEP.
PLANNING DURING DIFFICULT TIMES
I can certainly assure our Members that your Council and APEGA manage- ment are taking very seriously the cur- rent painful realities confronting many of our Members. Over the past three months,
Questions or comments? president@apega.ca
WINTER 2016 PEG | 5
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