Pipeline ‘a very large risk’: B.C.
Premier doubts public supports Northern Gateway
OTTAWA • B.C. Premier Christy Clark says the proposed Northern Gateway oil sands pipeline poses “a very large risk” to her province with “very small” benefit, and doubts British Columbians believe the risk to the environment is an acceptable one.
Just days before her government will pose questions to Enbridge at the joint review panel examining the Northern Gateway, Ms. Clark said in an interview that while she understands the national economic importance of the pipeline, she’s not convinced yet it’s in the best in- terests of British Columbians.
“I understand the national benefit in this, and the huge benefit to Alberta in this. I understand that. But there is a very large risk to British Columbia for our marine and terrestrial environment. And there is a very small — at the moment — benefit to our province,” she said in an interview Thursday evening.
The B.C. government is still trying to determine, through the review panel process, the risks and benefits for her province, she said, but the public — to this point — doesn’t appear convinced it’s worth the gamble.
“Based on what we know now, I don’t think British Columbians think the balance of risks and benefits is an acceptable one,” she said.
Her comments are arguably her most forceful yet on the proposed paired system of pipelines that would send bitumen from northern Alberta to the port of Kitimat, B.C., where supertankers could then ship the product to lucrative Asian markets.
The $5.5-billion, 1,172-kilometre pipeline is facing strong opposition from First Nations, landowners and environmental groups over its potential impact on land, air and water.
Enbridge announced Friday it’s prepared to spend up to $500-million on additional safety measures for the Gateway, including increasing the thickness of pipeline walls over water crossings and adding more pipeline inspections.
Alberta and the federal government support the project as a way to bring additional pipeline capacity to the West Coast.
But the B.C. premier has refused to state her position, with her party trailing in the polls to the provincial NDP, which is firmly opposed to the pipeline.
She insisted earlier this week that Enbridge must improve its pipeline safety following a damning report last week from U.S. investigators about a 2010 oil spill in Michigan.
Her latest comments are sure to spark tension next week as premiers gather in Halifax for the Council of the Federation meeting and hope to craft a new pan-canadian energy strategy.
Ms. Clark secretly flew into Edmonton on Thursday to meet with Alberta premier Alison Redford. She also stopped in Saskatoon earlier that day for a meeting with Saskatchewan premier Brad Wall, who supports the pipeline. Ms. Redford came out of the meeting disappointed that Ms. Clark has refused to state a position on the pipeline.
“It ’s incredibly frustrating to me,” the Alberta premier said following the meeting.
The B.C. premier told Postmedia News she’ll raise the pipeline next week at the Council of the Federation conference, which coincides with her government using its intervener status at the National Energy Board joint hearings to press Enbridge for answers on some of the province’s concerns.
“We will be discussing it and we will have more to say about it next week,” Ms. Clark said. “I understand the value in being able to export that oil, that bitumen, to China, for Alberta.”
The important part of the discussion for B.C. is exporting liquefied natural gas, she said, and unleashing potentially hundreds of billions of dollars of shale gas deposits in the province’s northeast, getting it to the West Coast and off to Asia where it could be sold at a higher price.
“Natural gas is a very lowrisk commodity to move and to ship,” she said. “Shipping bitumen is a whole different story and we are watching very closely what is going on with the joint review panel process.”