Could an oil pipeline to B.C.’s North Coast be back on the agenda?
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Nearly a decade after former prime minister Justin Trudeau pulled the plug on the proposed Northern Gateway pipeline to B.C.’s North Coast, it appears the concept may be back on the drawing board.
New Prime Minister Mark Carney has pledged to fast-track a series of new “nation-building” industrial projects in response to the ongoing trade war with the United States.
And a new Northwest Coast Oil Pipeline could be one of those priorities, according to a list of 32 major projects obtained by newspaper The Globe and Mail this week.
The proposal, described as being in the “concept” phase, could be pursued within a larger economic corridor, and would link “Canadian heavy crude to markets in Asia,” the Globe reports.
The list includes a heavy focus on Western Canada, with other projects including an LNG Canada Phase 2 and the dredging of the Burrard Inlet to allow for larger oil tankers to serve Trans Mountain’s Burnaby Mountain terminal.
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Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has long championed the concept. Environmental groups and First Nations in British Columbia have opposed the prospect of a new pipeline to the North Coast, citing Indigenous sovereignty, environmental impacts and the prospect of a devastating bitumen spill in the region’s rough and remote seas.
B.C. Assembly of First Nations Regional Chief Terry Teegee said any process attempting to bring a crude oil pipeline through Indigenous territory would have to comply with constitutional requirements to consult with First Nations and with the United Nations Declaration on Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) and British Columbia’s own legislation enshrining it.
“It’s really necessary to have provisions there for First Nations to have free prior and informed consent … and perhaps maybe it is a process where First Nations can develop their own environmental assessment or any approval process that they deem fit for themselves,” Teegee said.
“It’s very crucial … you know, there’s a possibility for civil discourse, there’s a possibility for litigation.”
There is currently no proponent for a pipeline to B.C.’s North Coast.
It’s a fact B.C.’s NDP government, which aggressively fought the expansion of the Trans Mountain pipeline, has been quick to point to whenever the prospect has been raised.
“Our message to the federal government is there is an absolute desire in challenging times for people to invest in B.C. They are doing that. The private sector is doing that, and we are investing in the future in B.C., especially in terms of electrification,” Energy Minister Adrian Dix said.
“And we expect and hope the federal government will get behind real projects … this is not a time for fantasy politics. It’s a time for serious politics and serious projects.”
If the project is advanced as a key federal priority, however, it looks likely to have the support of the provincial Opposition.
“We are the export coastline for a large portion of Canada here, and to be part of a good, solid confederation, which is Canada, we need to play our part in this,” BC Conservative finance critic Peter Milobar said.
“We also need to be willing to have those conversations and get moving with another pipeline in northern B.C. if that is what looks like to be our best economic opportunity to get our oil from Alberta to global markets at a fair price.”
The prime minister has not announced a timeline for the draft list to be finalized, and it remains unclear if the controversial oil pipeline will make the final cut.
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