"OTTAWA — The federal government's advocacy strategy to promote the oilsands sector in partnership with oil and gas companies and the province of Alberta was not just about polishing the industry's image and countering foreign climate change policies."

"Newly released federal documents reveal the outreach also targeted the environmental protection efforts proposed by Canadian provinces.

'To date, Canadian outreach has been mainly with provincial governments considering low carbon fuel standards,' said a report produced by Natural Resources Canada, summarizing a meeting involving representatives of an oil and gas industry lobby group, senior officials from the federal and Alberta governments, and Bruce Carson, a former senior adviser to Prime Minister Stephen Harper. 'Increasing our Canadian exposure, especially in influential areas that are less informed about oilsands development, mainly those (in) Central Canada, is also important.'"

Mike De Souza reports for Postmedia News August 11, 2011. [2]