Roughly half of Canadians -- and nearly the same proportion of Albertans -- believe new oilsands projects should be suspended until environmental issues in northern Alberta are resolved, a new poll suggests.

The survey also shows four of five Canadians disagree with the Harper government's approach to protect economic growth in the oilsands sector while allowing its annual greenhouse gas emissions to triple over the next decade.

Matt Price, a climate and energy policy expert with Environmental Defence, which commissioned the survey, said the poll indicates Canadians won't accept a government approach that goes easy on the oilsands sector.

"In general, the public seems to be ahead of politicians in wanting to attack global warming," Price said.

The survey, conducted by McAllister Opinion Research, shows 79 per cent of Canadians said greenhouse gas emissions from the oilsands sector should be "capped at current levels and then reduced" because of the impact on global warming. Only 12 per cent of respondents, both in the province and in the country as a whole, said emissions from the oilsands sector should be "allowed to exceed current levels" so as to encourage economic growth.

The study comes as the Athabasca oilsands, which is attracting more than $100 billion in global investment, is drawing more attention due to the amount of carbon dioxide that such large mega-projects produce.

Drayton Valley Tory MLA Diana McQueen, the provincial government's new parliamentary assistant for the environment, said her party heard on the campaign trail this month that Albertans want a balanced approach to developing the oilsands, which boasts crude reserves second in the world only to Saudi Arabia.

"They really want to see a balance between the economic stability of the province and growth, and the environmental stewardship," she said in an interview. "They want a strong economy, but they want us to deal with the environmental issues as well."

An oilpatch official acknowledged the energy industry must do a better job addressing public concerns, but contended the energy-rich oilsands are being developed in an environmentally responsible way.

"The rules that are on the books in Alberta are more stringent -- as they apply to the oil and gas industry -- than anywhere else in the world," said Brian Maynard, vice-president of stewardship for the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers.

Under the Harper government's planned regulations, Environment Canada has predicted carbon dioxide equivalent emissions from oilsands companies would grow to 75 million tonnes per year from 25 million tonnes before going down in 2018. Alberta's greenhouse gas targets lag behind Ottawa's commitment to cut emissions 20 per cent below 2006 levels by 2020, and 60 to 70 per cent by 2050. Ottawa plans to stop the rise of greenhouse gas emissions within five years, whereas Alberta is looking at 12 years.

Growing public concern about the oilsands puts Alberta on a collision course with Ottawa, says one political analyst.

David Taras of the University of Calgary believes the federal Tory minority government will eventually be pressured to do something about the oilsands, while Conservative Premier Ed Stelmach, with a fresh mandate and a large majority, will feel emboldened to resist.

"At some point, (Prime Minister Stephen) Harper is going to have to stop dancing around the issue, and it's going to have to be (a) very tough talk with Alberta -- and we'll see if anyone backs down," Taras said. "We're heading for a car crash, but what it looks like and when it comes, I'm not sure."

The poll indicates Canadians are not worried about increasing tensions between Ottawa and Alberta because of new regulations. Seventy-two per cent of respondents said that they supported a "more active role" in managing the environmental impacts of the Alberta oilsands versus 17 per cent who did not.

Extracting oil from Alberta's oilsands is an energy-intensive process that sometimes requires mining the resource, then using heated water to separate the bitumen from the sand. In oilsands too deep to mine, steam is pumped into the ground to assist with extraction.

Industry officials predict production could grow to four or five million barrels a day over the next decade or two.

But when asked about new projects, 52 per cent of Canadians said they should not be approved until "environmental management issues are resolved," versus 32 per cent who said they should be "permitted so as not to curb economic growth." The numbers were closer in Alberta where 48 per cent supported a suspension of new projects versus 40 per cent who did not.

The poll surveyed 1,014 Canadians from March 7 to 10 and is considered accurate within 3.1 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.

tseskus@theherald.canwest.com