back in 1995, quebec came very close to declaring independence. in response, the parliament passed some laws, and the supreme court made a ruling that's not very well understood but that says that it would be legal for quebec to separate if they can muster the force to do it but that it is otherwise illegal under canadian law.
that doesn't actually matter very much.
we know today that clinton had been informed of an existing contingency plan written by the pentagon to instantly invade quebec on a declaration of independence. the marines, air force and navy were on guard to invade. quebec came within a few percentage points of becoming the 51st state.
there is a plan to eventually invade montreal in the united states constitution. montreal, it should not be forgotten, was the only major french settlement not taken over in the louisiana purchase, which included major us cities like detroit, chicago, st louis, minneapolis and new orleans. the reason is that the british had already conquered it, at the time.
there is obviously a similar us contingency plan to invade alberta, and it will not take more than six months to trigger.
it follows that alberta may remain in canada or become the 51st state, by force. those are their choices. that is all. there is no alternative.
if alberta wants to get that oil on ships to china, annexation by the united states will not help them do that.