INDIGENOUS

Helin, president of Eagle Spirit Energy Holding Ltd., said a council of 35 chiefs and mayors along the proposed pipeline’s route are fed up with environmental groups coming into their communities and dictating how they should look after their people.

He said First Nations have been stewards of the land for thousands of years, but must also find ways to fund social programs and ease economic hardship.

“They really resent ... these fly-in celebrities interfering in their traditional territories and interfering in their communities by basically hiring local people to be props and puppets for their opposition to most development,” Helin said.

Eagle Spirit’s chief council has set up a GoFundMe campaign for a legal fight against federal legislation banning tankers from B.C.’s north coast. It’s raised less than half of its $100,000 goal.

“In a lawsuit against the cashed-up federal government, that’s not going to take you very far,” Helin said.

An expansion to the Trans Mountain pipeline between Edmonton and the Vancouver area remains in limbo following a Federal Appeal Court ruling in August that quashed its approval. The ruling requires Ottawa to consult more with affected First Nations and to do further study on the impact of increased tanker traffic.