Alberta
Province to respond to 358 COVID-19 cases in High River – Alberta Update
From the Province of Alberta
Update 35: COVID-19 pandemic in Alberta (April 17 at 4:15 p.m.)
There are now 1,124 confirmed recovered cases of COVID-19 in the province.
A total of 239 new cases have been reported, bringing the total number of cases to 2,397.
No Albertans have died since the last report.
Latest updates
- Cases have been identified in all zones across the province:
- 1,673 cases in the Calgary zone
- 429 cases in the Edmonton zone
- 135 cases in the North zone
- 77 cases in the Central zone
- 68 cases in the South zone
- 15 cases in zones yet to be confirmed
- Of these cases, there are currently 60 people in hospital, 13 of whom have been admitted to intensive care units (ICU).
- 400 cases are suspected of being community acquired.
- A total of 50 Albertans have died from COVID-19 to date: 34 in the Calgary zone, eight in the Edmonton zone, seven in the North zone, and one in the Central zone.
- To date, 270 cases have been confirmed at continuing care facilities, and 32 residents at these facilities have died.
- There have been 89,144 people tested for COVID-19 and a total of 92,805 tests performed by the lab. In the last 24 hours, 3,831 people have been tested.
- Effective immediately, Alberta Health Services will assume administration of Manoir du Lac in McLennan. Learn more here.
- The 310 call centre is assuming standard hours of operation, from 8:15 a.m. to 6 p.m. weekdays, and will not be open this weekend.
Expanded testing
- Alberta Health continues to closely monitor outbreak situations, and is working with employers and Alberta Health Services to expand testing to asymptomatic residents and staff in continuing care facilities and outbreak sites in the coming days. All workers from all companies at outbreak sites will be offered this opportunity.
- Additionally, Alberta’s testing capacity is rapidly expanding and anyone with symptoms anywhere in the province can now be tested.
- Those with symptoms of COVID-19, including cough, fever, runny nose, sore throat, or shortness of breath, should complete an online COVID-19 self-assessment. After completing the form, there is no need to call 811.
- Alberta’s testing capacity is currently approximately 7,000 samples per day, and the laboratory network is working to increase this capacity.
Camping reservations temporarily suspended
- Alberta Parks has suspended online campsite reservations and is refunding customers who have booked up to May 19.
- The decision is in line with other jurisdictions, such as Ontario, British Columbia, Saskatchewan and Parks Canada, which have also suspended or delayed camping reservations.
Wastewater management
- As the regulator of municipal wastewater systems, Environment and Parks is aware of reports from municipalities that some homeowners are flushing inappropriate items down toilets, such as disinfectant wipes or paper towels.
- Albertans should avoid flushing items not intended for toilets because they can block sanitary lines, create service disruptions and cause sewer backups.
Temporary suspension of applications for emergency social services funding
- Effective April 21, the Government of Alberta will be temporarily suspending applications for emergency social services funding to charities, not-for-profits and civil society organizations to support their COVID-19 response.
- Government has received more than 600 applications for the $30-million fund. Current applications are being reviewed, and approvals for urgent requests will occur before reopening application intake.
Mental health supports
- Confidential supports are available to help with mental health concerns. The Mental Health Help Line at 1-877-303-2642 and the Addiction Help Line at 1-866-332-2322 are available between 7 a.m. and 11 p.m., seven days a week.
- Online resources provide advice on handling stressful situations or ways to talk with children.
Family violence prevention
- A 24-hour Family Violence Information Line is available at 310-1818 to get anonymous help in more than 170 languages.
- Alberta’s One Line for Sexual Violence is available at 1-866-403-8000, from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
- Information sheets and other resources on family violence prevention are available at alberta.ca/COVID19.
Quick facts
- The most important measure Albertans can take to prevent respiratory illnesses, including COVID-19, is to practise good hygiene.
- This includes cleaning your hands regularly for at least 20 seconds, avoiding touching your face, coughing or sneezing into your elbow or sleeve, and disposing of tissues appropriately.
- For recommendations on protecting yourself and your community, visit alberta.ca/COVID19.
- All Albertans need to work together to overcome COVID-19. Albertans are asked to share acts of kindness they have experienced in their community during this difficult time by using the hashtag #AlbertaCares.
From LifeSiteNews
“If the federal government refuses to abide by the constitution, we will take them to court again to defend our jurisdiction and the thousands of Albertans who work in the petrochemical sector”
Alberta has rejected the Liberal government’s “unconstitutional” federal plastics registry and production limit.
In an April 25 press release, Alberta’s Environment Minister Rebecca Schulz promised to take Liberal Minister of Environment and Climate Change Steven Guilbeault to court over his proposal to create a plastics registry, mandating companies to report their plastic production and implementation.
“If the federal government refuses to abide by the constitution, we will take them to court again to defend our jurisdiction and the thousands of Albertans who work in the petrochemical sector,” Schulz declared.
“This unilateral announcement is a slap in the face to Alberta and our province’s petrochemical industry, and the thousands of Albertans who work in it,” she continued.
Guilbeault’s plan, set to be implemented in September 2025, would mandate that businesses record how much plastic they place on the market in addition to the amount of plastic waste generated on their commercial, industrial, and institutional premises.
Companies would then report that amount to the federal government. The plan exempts small businesses which produce less than one tonne of plastic each year.
However, Schulz explained that the registry would negatively affect Alberta, as “plastics production is a growing part of Alberta’s economy, and we are positioned to lead the world for decades to come in the production of carbon neutral plastics.”
“Minister Guilbeault’s proposal would throw all of that into jeopardy and risk billions of dollars in investments. This includes projects like Dow Chemical’s net-zero petrochemical plant in Fort Saskatchewan, a $9-billion project that will create thousands of jobs,” she warned.
Schulz further pointed out that the mandate will not reduce plastic production since countries such as China will produce more plastic to make up for Canada.
“If the federal government limits plastic production in Canada, other countries like China will just produce more. The only outcome that this federal government will achieve will be fewer jobs in Canada,” she explained.
Schulz’s statement comes after the November decision by the Federal Court to rule in favor of Alberta and Saskatchewan, declaring that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government overstepped its authority by classifying plastic as “toxic” and banning all single-use plastic items, like straws.
Essentially, the ruling overturned Trudeau’s 2022 law which outlawed manufacturing or importing plastic straws, cutlery, and checkout bags on the grounds of government claims that plastic was having a negative effect on the oceans. In reality, most plastic pollution in the oceans comes from a few countries, like India and China, which dump waste directly on beaches or in rivers.
The November ruling was only one of two recent court rulings that have dealt a blow to Trudeau’s environmental laws.
The second ruling came after Canada’s Supreme Court recently sided in favor of provincial autonomy when it comes to natural resources. The Supreme Court recently ruled that Trudeau’s law C-69, dubbed the “no-more pipelines” bill, is “mostly unconstitutional.” This was a huge win for Alberta and Saskatchewan, which challenged the law in court. The decision returned authority over the pipelines to provincial governments, meaning oil and gas projects headed up by the provinces should be allowed to proceed without federal intrusion.
The Trudeau government, however, seems insistent on defying the recent rulings by pushing forward with its various regulations.
From the Fraser Institute
By Spencer Gudewill and Tegan Hill
Last November, Premier Danielle Smith announced that her government will give up to $1.8 billion in subsidies to Dow Chemicals, which plans to expand a petrochemical project northeast of Edmonton. In other words, $1.8 billion in corporate welfare.
And this is just one example of corporate welfare paid for by Albertans.
According to a recent study published by the Fraser Institute, from 2007 to 2021, the latest year of available data, the Alberta government spent $31.0 billion (inflation-adjusted) on subsidies (a.k.a. corporate welfare) to select firms and businesses, purportedly to help Albertans. And this number excludes other forms of government handouts such as loan guarantees, direct investment and regulatory or tax privileges for particular firms and industries. So the total cost of corporate welfare in Alberta is likely much higher.
Why should Albertans care?
First off, there’s little evidence that corporate welfare generates widespread economic growth or jobs. In fact, evidence suggests the contrary—that subsidies result in a net loss to the economy by shifting resources to less productive sectors or locations (what economists call the “substitution effect”) and/or by keeping businesses alive that are otherwise economically unviable (i.e. “zombie companies”). This misallocation of resources leads to a less efficient, less productive and less prosperous Alberta.
And there are other costs to corporate welfare.
For example, between 2007 and 2019 (the latest year of pre-COVID data), every year on average the Alberta government spent 35 cents (out of every dollar of business income tax revenue it collected) on corporate welfare. Given that workers bear the burden of more than half of any business income tax indirectly through lower wages, if the government reduced business income taxes rather than spend money on corporate welfare, workers could benefit.
Moreover, Premier Smith failed in last month’s provincial budget to provide promised personal income tax relief and create a lower tax bracket for incomes below $60,000 to provide $760 in annual savings for Albertans (on average). But in 2019, after adjusting for inflation, the Alberta government spent $2.4 billion on corporate welfare—equivalent to $1,034 per tax filer. Clearly, instead of subsidizing select businesses, the Smith government could have kept its promise to lower personal income taxes.
Finally, there’s the Heritage Fund, which the Alberta government created almost 50 years ago to save a share of the province’s resource wealth for the future.
In her 2024 budget, Premier Smith earmarked $2.0 billion for the Heritage Fund this fiscal year—almost the exact amount spent on corporate welfare each year (on average) between 2007 and 2019. Put another way, the Alberta government could save twice as much in the Heritage Fund in 2024/25 if it ended corporate welfare, which would help Premier Smith keep her promise to build up the Heritage Fund to between $250 billion and $400 billion by 2050.
By eliminating corporate welfare, the Smith government can create fiscal room to reduce personal and business income taxes, or save more in the Heritage Fund. Any of these options will benefit Albertans far more than wasteful billion-dollar subsidies to favoured firms.
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