Expect legal battle if Ottawa forces pipelines through

Harper government has not satisfied the legal requirement for consulting B. C. First Nations, UBC legal expert says

Ottawa and B. C. First Nations will be tied up in a “legal quagmire” for years over proposed oil pipelines because the federal government has not satisfied a legal requirement for “meaningful consultation” with natives, a legal expert says.

The federal government is “trying to integrate native consultations with the environmental review process,” Gordon Christie, an associate law professor at the University of B. C., said Wednesday. “But when you have something like this — thousands of kilometres of pipeline that will have a serious impact on the interests of First Nations — the consultation has to be precise.”

“All indications are ( First Nations) are gearing up to stop this,” Christie said. “It’s going to be a fascinating year.”

Supreme Court of Canada rulings in 2004 and 2005 imposed a duty on the federal government to consult First Nations about decisions that could affect their rights. The nature of that consultation is not as clear.

Five federal deputy ministers have been in Vancouver meeting First Nations leaders this week in a bid to improve relations. A federal official has said the meetings were not intended to fulfil the duty to consult.

At the top of the federal agenda is the Northern Gateway pipeline. But the issue of consultation also affects the expansion of the Kinder

The message is clear. We will carry this fight through the courts and on the land if necessary.

GRAND CHIEF STEWART PHILLIP

HEAD OF THE UNION OF B. C. INDIAN CHIEFS

Morgan pipeline from Alberta to Burnaby and six liquefied natural gas projects.

All told, the projects are worth $ 47 billion.

Native leaders have insisted the oil pipelines are dead because they have a high risk of causing environmental damage.

Grand Chief Stewart Phillip, head of the Union of B. C. Indian Chiefs, said First Nations are prepared for a fight and if the federal government tries to “ram these proposals through,” it will create a “watershed moment in Canadian history.”

“Both the ( Stephen) Harper and ( Christy) Clark government have unfortunately, in a provocative way, pitted the economy against the environment and it will prove to be incredibly divisive to Canadians who will find themselves on one side or the other.

“There’s no question from the countless rallies and political action throughout B. C. the message is clear,” Phillip said. “We will carry this fight through the courts and on the land if necessary.”

Art Sterritt, executive director of Coastal First Nations, and Ed John, of the B. C. First Nations Summit, said the Northern Gateway project is dead and if the federal government wants a relationship with First Nations in B. C. it will have to accept that.

Federal Opposition Leader Tom Mulcair, who attended a First Nations Summit meeting in B. C. Tuesday, said Ottawa is trying to push through big energy projects but is not consulting with First Nations.

“This is a failure of the federal government to respect the Supreme Court. Canadian law requires consultation with First Nations,” Mulcair said.

Sending the deputy ministers west is a clear sign of the Harper government’s intent, Mulcair said. “They are sending a warning the federal government is about to impose its will on First Nations.”

Phillip said he believes the unprecedented meeting between deputy ministers and native leaders was, in part, a public relations exercise and an attempt to “fabricate a record of consultation.”

“One is left with a huge sinking feeling ( Ottawa) will declare this ( an oil pipeline) in the national interest,” he said.