Even if Alberta goes ahead with independence, it will still suffer the catastrophic consequences of climate change, says Green Party leader Elizabeth May.

“Jason Kenney and Western separatists will have to realize there is no planet called Alberta. They can separate — which I don’t think they will and I don’t think there’s much appetite for — but we’re all on the same planet,” May told reporters in Ottawa.

“The biosphere is going to go into meltdown. Alberta is not exempt. Alberta’s already experienced the Fort McMurray wildfires; Alberta’s already experienced the Calgary floods; Alberta is experiencing the rapid retreat of glaciers.”

The Greens will start Parliament next month with 3 seats.

“We have got to really talk to other premiers who don’t grasp this in a way that respects their intelligence — Jason Kenney is plenty intelligent, so he has to be able to understand the science. The discussions have to be grounded in, ‘What does this mean if we continue down the path that says fossil fuels have an economic future?'” May said.

“Fossil fuels have no economic future and they are a threat to our survival. We have to go off fossil fuels.”

And May hit back on feelings of Western alienation by saying Alberta got plenty of federal help to develop the oilsands.

“I think it would be useful to add up all the federal subsidies that went to creating the oilsands in the first place so that it’s very clear to Albertans that this is not just a project of their own government or their own industry, but was massively subsidized by the federal taxpayer,” said May, noting the huge issue of abandoned wells.

“They [Alberta governments] have to carry these liabilities on the books. I did suggest to the prime minister that there might be a role for the federal government in the cleanup of toxic sites which would have an immediate impact on helping the budget of the province of Alberta.”

Kenney’s office wasted little time in firing back Friday.

“Economic projections from around the world show that the demand for oil is increasing, not decreasing, and is expected to so for years to come. Further, once global demand peaks, it is still expected to consume more than 110 million barrels of oil per day.

“So the question is not about the economic future of oil, it’s about where will the world be getting the energy products to meet its demand.”