The recommendations of the National Energy Board (NEB) reconsideration hearing on the Trans Mountain Pipeline is profoundly disappointing, but not surprising.
As an intervenor in both the Hearings on the pipeline, the outcome was politically motivated and designed to “get to yes” from the start.
In this report, the NEB adds 16 new non-binding “recommendations” to cabinet, as well as the existing conditions, as they recommend that Cabinet approve the project. Surprise, surprise, they have done their part to push this project ahead.
They found the project will cause “significant adverse environmental effects” on the southern resident killer whales. And, on the Indigenous cultural use associated with the southern resident killer whales.
In addition, the greenhouse gas emissions from the increased vessel traffic will be significant. They determined that a spill isn’t likely, but if one was to happen, it would have significant environmental impacts. But, they deemed the risk “acceptable”.
So, there you have it. The Board acknowledged that it put “significant weight” on the perceived social and economic benefits of the Trans Mountain project. And, they decided that these benefits outweigh the substantial impacts this project will have on the environment.
The NEB’s processes are completely underwhelming. They are an energy regulator, and they continue to only view the world through that lens.
NEB ignores local concerns
For the most part it is the waters surrounding my riding that they determine can be sacrificed.
Residents of Saanich North and the Islands have every reason to be concerned because our interests have been ignored. This is why I and my colleagues are encouraging the provincial government to terminate our equivalency agreement with the federal government, and instead conduct our own environmental assessment of the project. We cannot rely on the federal government, and must do all we can to protect our environment and our local economies.
This project is not in our interest. The NEB actually acknowledges that “the benefits and the burdens of the Project and its related marine shipping are not distributed evenly across the country.” The benefits are disproportionately national in scope, and the burdens are local.
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has given a 12-year window for us to act to avoid the most catastrophic effects of climate change.
Instead, we are going in the wrong direction. Canada has made our fossil fuel regulator responsible for our environmental processes. The result is an unbelievably foolish decision to invest in more fossil fuel infrastructure.
We owe it to our children and our grandchildren to focus on toward the future. Our innovative and creative industries are a much better investment. They are leading global economic growth, not the sunsetting industries of yesterday.
Now it is over to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. The ball is in your court Mr. Prime Minister.
You have written the best summary of the situation that I have seen yet. I am very glad you are working on this.
I feel helpless, although my support of the Green Party and West Coast Environmental Law helps me sleep at night.
I would like to do more. If you have any suggestions, please let me know.
Please continue to have our voice heard! I appreciate your support and will continue to be a strong voice for the Salish Sea, our riding and British Columbia.
Great post, Adam.
thank you Adam Olsen for a plan of action insisting BC gov’t do their own environmental assessment of Trans. Mt. Pipeline & drop the equivalency agreement with Federal gov’t.
I feel the 3 lonely Greens have not confronted the NDP as much as their election campaign promised. You hold the balance of power but act like newbies . You have more passion than Sonia or Andrew but I hear NO rally cries for survival ? Blind to follow example of progressives
If the Greens fade into background & NDP is compromised & Liberals hide/lie corruption: the window of opportunity is now lost ! Don’t make grand sweeping sayings like futures of the next generation is at risk. Today grade 1 children are realizing by the time they graduate from grade 12 their planet earth will be in an irreversible downhill spiral into self destruction. Sorry No romantic survivors. No reliable food sources, no clean water, no fresh air, no repairs from damaging weather events, no security for peace & community. Brutal Mass Extinction of Life.
Thank you for your comments and I certainly share your frustration with the lack of action on this from the BC NDP. I appreciate the reality it may not look like we “have confronted the NDP as much as their election campaign promised”, but we most certainly have and we most certainly will continue. I accept the criticism and will continue to do what I can.
Thank you, Adam, for this summary. I think what frustrates (angers) me the most, is that at both the federal and provincial levels of government, support for fossil fuels has, for decades now, been couched in terms of “transitioning to clean energy.” And yet nowhere, in any budget, at either level, are there major, significant, meaningful budgetary provisions to actually start that transition. No actual reduction in subsidies to fossil fuels, no subsidies to clean energy, no significant funding made available to retrofit buildings, no meaningful changes to the building codes. There are dribs and drabs, but any significant money still flows to the fossil fuel industry, in one form or another. LNG, Site C, pipelines. Eleven years, ten months, and we’ve just dug ourselves an even bigger hole.
Thank you Grace. I believe the $900 million investment in CleanBC is significant to clean up some of the emissions but you are right that they just create new ones with LNG. We need to deal with the habitat destruction as well!