Northern Gateway Pipeline 2
Enbridge offered First Nations cash to study whether to support pipeline
VICTORIA - An aboriginal organization leading the fight to prevent oil tankers on the British Columbia coast once took money from Enbridge Inc., (TSX:ENB), the company planning to sail those same ships larger than the Empire State Building along the coast.
Coastal First Nations executive director Art Sterritt said Monday his organization received $100,000 from Enbridge, but that didn't translate into support for the company's proposed $5.5-billion pipeline project.
Sterritt estimates Enbridge has provided up to $1 million to B.C. First Nations to study the pipeline. Most First Nations contacted by The Canadian Press would only say they accepted money from the company, but wouldn't confirm amounts....
http://thetyee.ca/CanadianPress/2012/02/14/Enbridge-Deals-17044340/
Feds Hid Names of Big Oil Companies At Lobby Retreat
http://www.montrealgazette.com/business/Feds+names+companies+lobbying+re...
"The Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade has deliberately attempted to conceal key details about a taxpayer funded lobbying training retreat it organized last year in London Englad for its European diplomats to promote the oilsands, including names of major corporations involved and concerns raised at the meeting about whether its strategy was 'credible'..."
From the Nathan Cullen thread:
Nathan Cullen wrote:
Hello Boom Boom
Good and sadly relevant question
Mr. Harper would almost certainly try to "overrule" an NEB rejection of Gateway two things come to mind: the law may not allow him to. Second, the people I've met and the folks I represent won't let that kind of injustice take place
He's put the whole process in disrepute with his bullying and put Canadians into a real state of anger by his attempted bullying. Bad move
also from the Nathan Cullen thread:
I really hate to beg while time flies by so quickly, but if Nathan could suggest a plan of action if Harper overrides a negative evaluation of the Northern Gateway Pipeline, I'll be really, really happy.
Civil disobedience!
I like the idea of organised civil disobedience, if all else fails.
Councillors in Terrace, BC, vote to oppose Northern Gateway project
TERRACE, B.C. - One of the largest cities in northwestern British Columbia has officially joined the opposition to the Enbridge Inc., (TSX:ENB) Northern Gateway project.
Councillors in Terrace have voted 5-2 to oppose plans for construction of the $5.5-billion pipeline from the Edmonton-area to Kitimat, 60 kilometres south of Terrace, where a tanker port would be built to ship oil sands crude to Asia.
The Monday night vote ends years of fence-sitting by Terrace councillors, with one noting the pipeline and port are good for Ottawa and Alberta, but leave Terrace, Kitimat and the surrounding communities with few benefits and most of the risk.....
http://thetyee.ca/Blogs/TheHook/BC-Politics/2012/02/15/TerraceVote/
'We are going to need two or three Enbridge-Keystones': Liepert
Alberta's oil sands are expanding so fast that such pipeline proposals as Enbridge's Northern Gateway and TransCanada's Keystone XL are just the beginning, says Alberta finance minister Ron Liepert.
“Keystone is only one of them, Enbridge is only one of them, but the reality is by 2020 we are going to need two or three Enbridge-Keystones,” Liepert recently told Bloomberg-Businessweek.
Oil sands production is expected to reach three million barrels per day over the next eight years, about double the current output, according to the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers....
http://thetyee.ca/Blogs/TheHook/Environment/2012/02/15/enbridge-keystone...
On Facebook just now:
Nathan Cullen: "Talking about the Northern Gateway Pipeline with CBC before going to testify this morning."
Nathan Cullen wrote:
Mr. Harper would almost certainly try to "overrule" an NEB rejection of Gateway two things come to mind: the law may not allow him to. Second, the people I've met and the folks I represent won't let that kind of injustice take place.
Unfortunately Cullen is wrong on both counts.
The law only requires Harper to have the NEB look at the matter and make a recommendation. It does not require Harper to accept the recommendation of the NEB.
Politicians always talk about the views of the people they have spoken to, and invariably those people allegedly always support what the politician wants. The fact is that the people with economic and political power in this country want the Northern Gateway Pipeline, and those people always get their way. Nathan Cullen and the NDP aren't going to stop them.
Civil disobedience, then - if necessary. Maybe court challenges? And if Dix wins the election, maybe another strategy will arise.
Court challenges won't work because Harper has the law on his side.
Adrian Dix can't do anything. And anything he tried would have to have a mandate from the voters, coming foreseeably so soon after an election. He would have to campaign hard on an unequivocal anti-pipeline program.
Here Comes the Bribe
As opposition mounts to Northern Gateway, backers will promise big bucks for BC.
Alberta Premier Alison Redford stated in a recent speech that her government is looking to "clear a path for the oil sands through British Columbia by upping the economic benefits for its western neighbour -- including the option of paying to modernize and expand West Coast ports."
Premiers don't just throw that sort of stuff around and I believe that this speech foretells an ever increasing policy of the federal government and Alberta to bribe First Nations and the rest of B.C. citizens alike.
Here is why we must not take the bribe....
My bets are, Dix wants to announce pipeline opposition but he also wants to wait until the upcoming byelections are resolved, to give the party momentum.
My bets are Dix will take the bribe.
'It's Going To Be War': First Nations Battle Canadian Tar Sands
All Fossil Fuels Must Be Cut to Avoid Global Warming Scientists Say
http://www.vancouversun.com/business/fossil+fuels+must+avoid+global+warm...
"Two Canadian climate scientists from the University of Victoria say the public reaction to their recently published has missed their key message: That all forms of fossil fuels, including the oilsands and coal, must be regulated for the world to avoid dangerous global warming..."
There are very good reasons for the public reaction missing their key message.
For one, the two scientists did not handle the media well. They should at the very least have put out a press release and published it on the web. Instead they gave interviews, full of nice soundbites that the right-wing media could take out of context to imply that the tar sands emissions are no big deal. The climate change denial industry and the ethical oil people are wetting themselves with delight.
For another thing, their article is not available for people to actually read without paying a whack of money to the publisher, so the MSM gets to twist and distort what it says with very few people being in a position to see for themselves.
Enbridge Gets Supertanker Nod for Northern Gateway Exports
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-investor/enbridge-gets-supertanker-...
"Supertankers can safely carry huge volumes of oil sands crude through the winding waterways that connect Kitimat BC to the open Pacific, a federal review has concluded, giving a boost to efforts to build a new pipeline to the West Coast. The review by Transport Canada examined the marine passages that would allow the proposed Enbridge Inc. Northern Gateway pipeline to export Alberta oil to buyers in China and California. That $6.6 billion project has become one of the country's most important industrial initiatives, backed by major energy producers and opposed by a raft of first nations and environmental groups.."
I'll have to read the actual report but this all seems very iffy. Yes, oil can be carried safely though those passages IF the weather isn't too bad, IF there isn't an earthquake or tsunami, IF the helmsman isn't wasted, etc. A problem only has to happen once for a serious disaster.
Found it! That took a while.
Our supply ship a few years ago breached its hull while navigating through the deep waters of Harrington Harbour - a journey its made thousands of times without incident. One time was all it took for the ship to be placed in an emergency position (no one was injured, the ship went into drydock and was repaired).
As for the current expansion underway at Ft. Mac, and the "two or three Keystone Enbridges" - it must be stopped somehow.
Play it their way - financial disobedience? Make the oil sands unprofitable... perhaps with "added expenses" that certain forms of disobedience can provide. Calling Weibo!!
Federal budget to include measures to speed up energy approval process
Finance Minister Jim Flaherty plans to include new measures to expedite environmental approvals for energy projects in next week’s budget, as part of efforts to build new pipelines that will help the country tap into growing Asian demand for oil, a person familiar with the document said.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s Conservative government has vowed to speed the regulatory review process for projects such as pipelines, as the country seeks to build oil-exporting capacity after U.S. President Barack Obama in January denied TransCanada Corp. a permit for its Keystone XL pipeline to the U.S. New rules to quicken approvals will be part of the March 29 budget, the person said on condition they not be identified because the fiscal plan hasn’t been made public....
http://business.financialpost.com/2012/03/20/federal-budget-to-include-m...
Native-led oil pipeline protest draws hundreds to Vancouver Art Gallery
Protesters marching through downtown Vancouver Monday promised to fight big oil and big government and put a stop to proposed pipeline expansions in B.C.
Chanting native elders wearing button blankets and pounding drums led more than 300 marchers to the Vancouver Art Gallery for a noon rally where they were joined by hundreds more.
Pipelines proposed by Kinder Morgan and Enbridge require First Nations support, and if Monday’s rally is any indication there is plenty of opposition in that camp.
Grand Chief Stewart Phillip was one of many high-powered native leaders who said Prime Minister Stephen Harper has bitten off more than he can chew if he thinks more oil tankers will be allowed on B.C.’s west coast.
“We all know this government is a few clowns short of a circus, and that this fight will intensify,” said
Phillip. “I will tell my grandchildren that you were here today, and we will win this, and we will make this a better world.”....
Rally planned for Gateway Project hearings in Comox (tidechange.ca)
March 31, 2012 1:00 P.M. at Comox Rec. Centre 1855 Noel Ave.
BC Grand Chief Stewart Phillip was just on P&P to say that by fast-tracking envornmental reviews in the budget, that he has forced First Nations to the courts and barricades - I think he has Oka in mind.
ETA: Joe Oliver just said the aboriginals will see it is their interest not to block these projects - meaning a lot of money is going to be shovelled at them.
ETA: Greg Weston just said this could be the beginning of a really ugly confrontation because the government is determined to ram Northern Gateway through, come hell or high water.
..more on the van demo
On Monday March 26—in part to mark the 23rd anniversary of the Exxon Valdez disaster—activists in Vancouver organized the “No Tankers” rally at the Vancouver Art Gallery. Almost 2000 people showed up on a rainy Monday at noon to hear speakers from indigenous and activist communities, as well as special guests like Bill McKibben of 350.org. Two Thousand. On a Monday. In the rain. As Ben West of the Wilderness Committee noted, “If I was a politician in the Conservative Party I’d be shaking in my boots.” As we keep saying in this movement, this is only the beginning—but what a beginning we’ve been making!...
.............
NO TANKERS March 26 VAG All Speeches
..just finished listening to the no tanker speeches. i recommend that people take the time to listen. very inspiring to say the very least. the youngest speaker was 11 yrs old. check ot the link to the declaration below.
Exploring the possibilities of a coalition, the groups assembled here agreed on a variety of basic points: following First Nations’ lead in the struggle against the pipeline projects (most clearly and forcefully stated in the Fraser River Declaration); addressing the fact that all our crises —environmental, economic, and social—are part and parcel of one crisis leading back to the disenfranchisement of the 99%
Northern Gateway hearings in limbo as rowdy welcome unsettles panel
The first day of a planned four-day hearing by the joint review panel examining the Enbridge Northern Gateway Pipeline project was cancelled in Bella Bella, B.C.
A terse update posted on the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency web page dealing with the Northern Gateway review panel said the three members would not be sitting on Monday.
quote
Ms. Slett said a notice from the joint panel was received shortly after members Sheila Leggett, Kenneth Bateman and Hans Matthews arrived at the Bella Bella airport to a rowdy welcome by demonstrators.
Opponents also lined the road from the airport to the village to demonstrate concerns about the plan to pipe Alberta oil across B.C. to port in Kitimat for shipment overseas.
Ms. Slett told the community meeting that the airport reception was emotional and powerful, but remained respectful and peaceful.
“We want to let them know that they are completely safe in our community. It is really offensive to have to go over to convey this to the Joint Review Panel. We are a peaceful people,” she said....
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/british-columbia/northern-g...
First nations school protests Northern Gateway pipeline
Public hearings on the proposed Northern Gateway pipeline resume on Monday in the coastal community of Bella Bella, where the federal review panel was met by protesting students and teachers from the local first nations school.
Staff at the Bella Bella Community School organized the protest to greet the panel members as they arrived on Sunday. Some of the students have launched a hunger strike as well to protest against the plan by Enbridge to transport Alberta’s oil-sands crude across B.C. to reach markets in Asia and California.
Once the hearings resume, it’s another day to chip away at a list of some 4,300 members of the public who want to make oral submissions. B.C. first nations have been among the leading opponents of the pipeline, but the people who want to address the panel span the globe, according to the project proponent.
Changes announced last week to the environmental assessment process could trim that list, however.
The streamlined review process announced in the federal budget last Thursday, which will be retroactive, is supposed to ensure that major projects such as Enbridge’s $6.6-billion pipeline will be reviewed in a two-year timeframe.
A spokesman for Enbridge said Sunday it’s not clear just how that will apply to this application, which is coming up on the second anniversary this spring.
“The minister has spoken about shortening the process, it will be interesting to see how that will be accomplished,” said Paul Stanway, Enbridge’s spokesman.
“One of the issues that has bothered us is the number of people who have registered to make oral statements,” he said. “We need to set some guidelines for this, about who should be heard by the joint review panel. It surprised everybody, it’s the first time we’ve seen an organized attempt to overwhelm the process. We need to make these decisions in a timely manner.”....
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/british-columbia/first-nati...
Analysis: Stephen Harper Faces Tricky Terrain During 'Three Amigos' Summit
http://www.thestar.com/news/world/article/1155077--analysis-stephen-harp...
"The White House meeting will focus on the themes of 'North American competitiveness, CITIZEN SECURITY, and the Americas, Andrew MacDougall, a spokesman for the PMO said in a statement...
It's what happens after, when Harper shifts to the Woodrow Wilson Center for what is billed as a world-wide open conversation on the US-Canada relationship, where the going could get interesting - an ostensibly unfiltered hour of questioning that will dangle, among other things, the political pinata of Keystone XL..."
Director's Forum With the Right Honorable Stephen Harper
Dirty Oil Comes To Bella Bella - by Ingmar Lee
http://www.counterpunch.org/2012/04/03/dirty-oil-comes-to-bella-bella/
"...I am disgusted by the environmental groups that have lent a chimera of dignity to the corrupt NEB process by their participation in this rotten staged process. I cannot for the life of me understand any reason they might give for sitting there, - other than the significant money they get for doing so.
All along I have believed that this horrible process should have been utterly boycotted right from the start. People should not have to waste their time defending their lands and waters from this hideous Harper monstrosity, through this contrived, farcical and corrupt process.
Nevertheless, this most clumsy and stupid act of cowardice just seen at Bella Bella, must might have cost Harper his pipeline..."
I think it's a little extreme to criticize environmental groups for showing up at the process. There is plenty enough dissent to put some of it into the hearings and some of it into protests, blockades, etc.
Dirty Oil Comes To Bella Bella - by Ingmar Lee"...I am disgusted by the environmental groups that have lent a chimera of dignity to the corrupt NEB process by their participation in this rotten staged process. I cannot for the life of me understand any reason they might give for sitting there, - other than the significant money they get for doing so.
i just don't get why the author of this thinks it was okay for him to take part but not the other people? seems to be pretty divisive spewing.
I think some of the enviros got paid to participate and perhaps he felt they thereby legitimized a patently illegitimate process. He was there observing presumably not submitting. You could always email him with your questions - the address is appended to the article.
Enbridge’s Gateway pipeline still in legal swamp
CALGARY — A Canadian government attempt to speed up construction of Enbridge Inc’s Northern Gateway oil pipeline to the West Coast is unlikely to prevent a flood of court challenges that could still delay the multibillion-dollar project.
quote
They say court precedents relating to rights and title to native lands in British Columbia open the government and Enbridge, a major Canadian pipeline and energy company, to untold actions even if the regulatory body reviewing the proposal approves the controversial project. Legal action has already begun and sources say this is likely just the first of a raft of actions as the oil industry and government face opposition from several aboriginal groups.
“You’ve got aboriginal people in British Columbia who will bear all the risks of this, who don’t want to see so-called economic benefits on the back of their culture,” said Louise Mandell, a Vancouver-based lawyer who has argued numerous cases on behalf of native groups, including a landmark one in 1997 known as Delgamuukw that will have implications for the project.
“They won’t allow it, so there will be challenges in whichever direction the legal arguments take it, including legislated solutions.”
quote
Enbridge expects legal issues, especially given the size of the project, but declined to comment on any preparations.
“We recognize the potential is there, but we’re focused right now on the regulatory hearings, which are likely to go on for another 12 to 18 months,” spokesman Paul Stanway said.
The company has sought native support by offering a total of 10 percent interest in the project to first nations and up to C$1 billion in community development money.
http://business.financialpost.com/2012/04/09/enbridges-gateway-pipeline-...
Photos: Hundreds Rally Against Pipelines and Tankers in Victoria
Hundreds of people gathered on the lawn in front of the provincial legislature on Sunday to participate in a 'Rally Against Enbridge.' After a series of passionate speakers - from young children to First Nations grassroots community leaders - rally participants marched through downtown Victoria to Centennial Square.
Many rally speakers and march participants spoke out against Enbridge's proposed Northern Gateway oil pipeline, oil tanker traffic on the coast, and the tar sands. Others also raised their voices against the Pacific Trails natural gas pipeline in northern B.C. and Kinder Morgan's expansion plans for the existing Trans Mountain pipeline that runs from the tar sands to the lower mainland.
"This is incredibly empowering," local environmental activist Zoe Blunt said of the large turnout at the rally, adding that people would be returning on April 21st for Earthwalk, and then again on April 29th for a two-week 'Camp Christy' camp on the lawn.
"Right here. Two weeks. April 29th," said Blunt, as the crowd chanted Camp Christy. "Tell everyone. And bring your tents. Bring your sleeping bags..."
http://vancouver.mediacoop.ca/photo/photos-hundreds-rally-against-pipeli...
David Suzuki completely eviscerated Prime Minister Harper on the environment/tar sands on "Power and Politics" today. Suzuki is a national treasure - Harper is pond scum.
Suzuki said Canada has never participated in a referendum to base our entire economy on one industry - the tar sands.
Suzuki also said Alberta can develop the hell out of the tar sands if it wants - just keep the environmental effects - air, water, and land pollution confined to Alberta as well.
Tories fast-track oil and gas projects in overhaul of environmental red-tape
Sweeping Harper government plans will cut the number of federal departments involved in environmental assessments from 40 to just three and hand significant ecological oversight to the provinces.
The Conservative’s legislative plan for “responsible resource development” will also fast-track the environmental review process by imposing fixed timelines of up to 24 months for major oil and gas and mining projects.
The government maintains the changes are necessary to move to a “one project, one review” process that reduces duplication, creates certainty for investors and concentrates federal efforts on major projects such as mining and oil and gas proposals.
“We need a process that ensures timely, efficient and effective project reviews, promotes business confidence and capital investment, while strengthening our world-class environmental standards,” Natural Resources Minister Joe Oliver said Tuesday.
Under the plan, provincial environmental processes will be substituted or considered equivalent to federal reviews so long as they meet the standards set out in the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act.
The provincial rules will also be considered equivalent to federal Fisheries Act regulations as long as they meet or exceed Canadian standards, while the provinces, National Energy Board and the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission will be authorized to grant approvals under the federal Fisheries Act.
“With scarce resources, it is counter-productive to have the federal government completing separate reviews of the same project,” Oliver added, while announcing the changes at a Toronto business that provides products for oil and gas pipelines.
Environmental groups said the changes will erode ecological protection in Canada and effectively provide large oil and gas companies free rein on major projects.
“These changes make it clear that powerful oil interests are running the show, with the federal government bending over backwards to do their bidding,” Gillian McEachern of Environmental Defence said in a statement.
“It won’t be much comfort to people dealing with a dangerous oil spill in their backyard that the company will get a slap on the wrist when government could have prevented the problem in the first place with a real assessment of the risks.”
The government will consolidate federal environmental reviews into three organizations: the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency, the National Energy Board and the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission. Currently, more than 40 federal government departments and agencies have responsibility for project reviews.
Moreover, joint review panels — like the one being held for the proposed Northern Gateway pipeline project — would no longer be required for projects regulated by the NEB and CNSC.
In an effort to improve consultation with aboriginal groups, the federal government is promising to designate a lead Crown consultation co-ordinator for each project and establish consultation agreements with the provinces, territories and aboriginals.
Oliver also pledged the government, for the first time, will provide federal inspectors with the authority to determine whether a company is meeting its environmental obligations under the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act, and impose “tough, new financial penalties” for those firms breaking the rules.
http://business.financialpost.com/2012/04/17/canada-to-reduce-environmen...
epaulo - Suzuki said all that stuff is "baloney". 
epaulo - Suzuki said all that stuff is "baloney".
..what did he mean by baloney, boom boom?
Suzuki is an intriguing man with whom I have had the pleasure of a few conversations during the time that I volunteered at DSF. This included the period of time in which Gordo introduced the carbon tax and the BCNDP opposed it - leaving a lot of environmentalists twisting their faces.
The DSF represents the wing of the environmental movement that likes to work with powerful people/organizations to win influence at high levels. Hockey teams, politicians, corporations, everything under the sun. And this is a very useful and necessary role. But it means the occasional potential for awkward bedfellows - agreeing with Gordo's carbon tax (despite other problems with his agenda), working on a green energy plan with McGuinty (but later being miffed to discover that nuclear becomes part of the strategy), and in general trying not to piss off the powers with which they can win influence. This approach works as long as there are open ears, and it remains "non-political" as long as it's about ideas and not political parties.
I think this is a sign that Suzuki personally has no choice left but to take the gloves off - Harper is someone he will never be able to influence cooperatively, someone who is forcing anyone who supports the environment to be political.
..i supplement my income by attending focus groups now and again. well i just got back from one. there were 10 of us and nobody knew what the topic was until we were gathered in the room. the facilitator began by asking what we thought of the direction bc was going in. was it going in the right direction no one raised their hand and then asked in the wrong direction everyone raised their hand. so he rephrased the right question so that he was asking if you found anything at all positive about the direction and 1 person raised their hand.
..the main event turned out to be about the embridge pipeline. they showed us 3 (sleeze) ads and asked which we liked best and why. while some made comment re minor differences everyone questioned the honesty of the info presented and how the ads avoided the topic of spills and accountability. no one was positive. their were people behind a big two way mirror following our responses who also sent question in for us. another group followed after us.
Suzuki said the government's plans were baloney.
re: CBCNews.ca story posted January 5 under the headline, “48% support for northern B.C. pipeline, says poll”
Thank you for your e-mail of February 23 addressed to Kirk LaPointe, CBC Ombudsman, drawing our attention to a CBCNews.ca story (posted on January 5 under the headline, “48% support for northern B.C. pipeline, says poll”) that you feel “misrepresents” the views of British Columbians. The poll is “inaccurate, unfair and biased”, you wrote, pointing out it was paid for by the Enbridge pipeline corporation. You added that any polls you have seen indicate that the “overwhelming majority” of people in the province do not want the pipeline.
It is CBC’s mandate, part of its obligation under the federal Broadcasting Act, to carry information about the topical events of the day. The poll results featured in the story were released that day, just a few days before the start of public hearings on the Northern Gateway Pipelines project.
But it is not the CBC’s obligation to determine what is “truth” (a truly dangerous notion for any broadcaster), but only to present the information fairly and accurately affording Canadians the opportunity and the information they need to make up their own minds about its nature or quality.In this case, the story accurately reported the survey results. It also included other pertinent information: the number of people surveyed, the margin of error, the date it was done, the name of the pollster – Ipsos Reid – and the name of the organization that had paid for it – the Enbridge pipeline corporation. All that information was included in the story’s first few paragraphs. I should also point out the story included a link to the Ipsos Reid web site and, British Columbians on the Northern Gateway Pipelines Project, for those readers interested in more information.
Thank you again for your e-mail.
It is also my responsibility to inform you that if you are not satisfied with this response, you may wish to submit the matter for review by the CBC Ombudsman. The Office of the Ombudsman, an independent and impartial body reporting directly to the President, is responsible for evaluating program compliance with the CBC's journalistic policies. The Ombudsman may be reached by mail at the address shown below, or by fax at (416) 205-2825, or by e-mail at [email protected].
Cabinet to get final say on pipeline projects
excerpt:
But this proposed change means that even if the NEB decides against approving a major pipeline project, cabinet can force it to reconsider.
Resistance fierce as oil sands battle shifts to British Columbia
VICTORIA — During the past few months, the main front in the fight against development of the Alberta-based oil sands has moved to British Columbia. It’s a situation the western-most province is uncomfortable with and an expansion it’s unmotivated to defend.
The aggressive push by the oil sands industry and the Alberta and federal governments to open a new market for Canadian oil through shipments from the West Coast has been met by equally forceful resistance starting at the Alberta-B.C. border.
Anger has escalated since the start of public hearings in January into the Northern Gateway pipeline, proposed by Calgary-based Enbridge Inc., interrupting years of friendly relations between the neighbouring provinces, particularly on energy development.
Indeed, condemnation of the pipeline through B.C.’s rugged north and its associated oil tanker traffic has erupted into the type of popular revolt that is becoming a B.C. mainstay — from the campaign against the harmonized sales tax to the fight to preserve the Great Bear Rainforest and the moratorium on oil tanker traffic and offshore drilling.
quote
“It’s a very challenging place to do business for a lot of companies because of the unresolved aboriginal claims, which means we don’t have treaties, so the legal context is more complex, and we have a much more powerful environmental movement in our politics than you tend to have in other parts of the country. But this project has the potential to see a rallying of not just local but global environmental forces who have their shorts in a knot over oil sands to focus on B.C. as ground zero to save the planet.”
So far, the $5.5-billion Northern Gateway has taken the brunt of the anti-pipeline, anti-oil sands campaign. It’s unclear whether opposition will broaden to a rival plan proposed by Kinder Morgan Energy Partners on April 13 for a $5-billion expansion of its Trans Mountain line.
NIMBYs in B.C.’s Lower Mainland have started mobilizing against increased tanker traffic, even though the pipeline has been safely moving oil and loading it on tankers for 62 years. Vancouver Mayor Greegor Robertson said this week he has a moral obligation to oppose the pipeline.
Recognition that there is inequitable distribution of risks and benefits has started discussion about what could be done to make oil export pipelines more acceptable to British Columbians — particularly First Nations, who are seen as the groups most affected....
http://business.financialpost.com/2012/04/25/resistance-fierce-as-oil-sa...