Parkland County landowners oppose Trans Mountain route

Hearings offer affected individuals opportunity to resolve issues

SPRUCE GROVE A group of Parkland County landowners voiced their opposition to the Trans Mountain pipeline route Friday during a National Energy Board panel hearing in Spruce Grove.

This was one of numerous hearings planned for landowners affected along the planned pipeline route and offer affected individuals the opportunity to present and resolve any issues with where the pipeline will be placed.

Representatives of Trans Mountain were present to field questions.

Keelan Petterson and his family live roughly 20 km west of Spruce Grove along Highway 16. Having purchased the property in 2015 after numerous agreements and pipeline plans were already in place, Petterson wanted answers about keeping his yard intact and securing the safety of his family.

“I’m not objecting to the pipeline in general,” he said. “What I’m objecting to is that every time I meet with them, they keep taking more and more space.”

The original construction corridors granted 50 metres of access to Petterson’s land. New proposals have extended that zone to 78 metres, with the most recent changes coming two days ago, Petterson said.

That would place construction within 30 to 40 metres of Petterson’s home.

Paramount to Petterson’s concerns is the damage construction will do to a lining of trees and bushes on the property, as well as his 11-month-old child’s safety.

The trees act as a barrier between him and his four neighbours around three sides of his 64-hectare lot. The proposed construction area would remove nearly 1,000 trees on the south side of his property to pile soil and create an embankment.

Petterson feels the amount of space they need is unnecessary and that construction can take place within the original corridors stated when he bought the property.

Trans Mountain has offered to install snow fencing along the embankment to alleviate Petterson’s safety concerns.

Since most of the major news about the pipeline comes from disputes in Burnaby, B.C., James Stevenson, a communications officer with the energy boards, said that people often forget about these types of preparations along the way.

“There is a tendency for the public to not be aware of all of the regulatory stuff going on,” Stevenson said. “But there is a massive amount of work that’s going to make sure that the company does what they were asked to do.”

Petterson thinks the main hurdle in dealing with landowners is the lack of communication from Trans Mountain.

“There’s no communication, because it’s constantly changing,” he said.

“How can I make a decision for what they’re going to do when they can’t even tell me what they’re going to do themselves?”

The panel will take information from the panel hearings before announcing a decision in early 2018.