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Pipeline decision part of healthy democracy: Maple Ridge MP

Courts listening, protecting aboriginal rights: Tam
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Protesters gathered outside the office of Minister of Public Services and Procurement Delta MP Carla Qualtrough to call on her to speak out against the planned expansion of the Trans Mountain pipeline. (Black Press files)

Opponents of the Trans Mountain Pipeline were celebrating on Thursday.

The Federal Court of Appeal overturned the Liberal government’s approval of the project to twin the pipeline that carries oil from the Edmonton area to Burnaby.

The courts said the federal government did not adequately consult with First Nations, as a unanimous decision by a panel of three judges said the National Energy Board’s review of the project was flawed, and the federal government could not rely on it as a basis for its decision to approve the expansion.

A new review will be necessary before the $9.3 billion expansion can be approved.

Peter Tam, who ran for the Green Party in the Pitt Meadows-Maple Ridge riding in 2014, was pleased with the decision.

“It’s a good wake-up call, to say ‘let’s think about this more,’” he said.

“I’m very glad the courts are listening, and protecting indigenous rights.”

Tam participated in the legal pipeline protests in the Lower Mainland, but drew the line at disobeying the courts.

“The experience of thousands of people in the streets marching is more than a protest, it’s a real statement,” he said.

The court rendered its verdict as Kinder Morgan shareholders voted to finalize the sale of Trans Mountain Pipeline to the Canadian government. The federal government approved the project in 2016, and purchased the pipeline for $4.5 billion.

Tam said the government ownership creates a different fight for pipeline opponents.

“Now it’s a whole new ball game,” he said, adding that Thursday’s decision may only serve to slow the project.

“But when you weigh out the pros and cons, the biggest hurdle is … increased tanker traffic and the impact on our coastline.”

The number of tankers in Burrard Inlet would increase by seven times.

Davis Friesen, who is seeking the Conservative Party nomination for the Pitt Meadows-Maple Ridge riding, was discouraged by the court’s decision, adding the government now owns a pipeline it can’t build.

Friesen said Conservatives generally support the project, but he is critical of the federal government taking on a risky project that private industry no longer wanted to pursue, to later sell the project back to private interests.

He said taxpayers will be on the hook for $4.5 billion, and counting.

“This thing is not going forward. That’s what we learned today,” said Friesen. “It’s been one mess after another.”

Friesen said that Conservatives, in general, would rather “set conditions for private industry to succeed,” instead of taking over the project.

Pitt Meadows-Maple Ridge MP Dan Ruimy said the court ruling should be taken as a sign of a healthy democracy.

“We live in a country where this sort of thing is going to happen. It says the system is working. Nobody can ram anything through,” said Ruimy.

He said the court ruling is 300 pages, speaks to specific issues, and he is still looking at those.

Ruimy noted other court challenges to the pipeline have been overruled by the courts, such as a recent win in court against the City of Burnaby.

“The sky is not falling, this does not mean the pipeline is not moving forward,” Ruimy added.

He said the ruling might have caused a private company to abandon the project, but the government ownership ensures it will still proceed.

“Time and again, the government has said this pipeline is in the national interest. We knew there are obstacles to get where we want to go.”

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MP Dan Ruimy


Neil Corbett

About the Author: Neil Corbett

I have been a journalist for more than 30 years, the past decade with the Maple Ridge-Pitt Meadows News.
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