We live on a finite planet that we must share with other species

Re: Pipeline purchase just keeping up Canadian tradition — June 7

Peter Shawn Taylor feels Ottawa’s purchase of the Kinder Morgan Trans Mountain project is merely another Canadian railway-style megaproject.

Taylor forgets that our past projects were done in an era where hidden environmental costs were ignored. Simply because large-scale environmental harm was ignored in times past does not mean it should be in the future.

We live on a finite planet that we are expected to share with millions of other species. But we continue to act as if all of Canada’s land mass is there for our convenience and exploitation.

Environmental concerns were ignored in the original 1953 Trans Mountain pipeline construction. Today, assessments are done and preparations for oil spills are required.

Kinder Morgan valued its antique Trans Mountain pipeline at just $550 million in 2007. So, Trudeau’s $4.5-billion buyout is a massive overpayment. Economist Robyn Allan notes that ancillaries will bring the final total cost to $15 billion to 20 billion. Canadian taxpayers will inevitably be subsidizing much of this.

This case differs from our past megaprojects because taxpayers will be supporting the already-rich private investors to a much greater extent.

Michael Frind

Waterloo