Alberta has a substance-abuse problem. The substance is fossil fuels, and the province has become hooked on the revenues from oil and gas sales to fund its spending on health, education and social services. As we are so often told, the first step in beating an addiction is admitting that a compulsion has gotten out of control. Recent announcements suggest that Alberta's leaders appear to have finally taken that first crucial step. We applaud them for doing so. But if they plan to get this addiction under control and so ward off the sort of financial turmoil that has tormented Alberta in the past, they will have to do more.