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Energy East, Northern Gateway, TransMountain. None of these projects are just about pipelines carrying crude oil from Alberta’s oil sands to tidewater. They’re also about the increased traffic from the giant oil tankers that will carry the oil through the Bay of Fundy, Hecate Strait and Salish Sea. All three of these seas are ecologically priceless, renowned for their abundant birds, fish, whales, and other marine mammals. The Bay of Fundy alone has 14 Important Bird Areas (IBAs), home to over a million shorebirds, not to mention its populations of Humpback, Fin, Minke and endangered North Atlantic Right Whales. What is the scientific evidence about the risks of an Exxon Valdez-sized spill? Such an oil spill could be catastrophic for… read more →
As one of only two organizations physically present during the hearings on the proposed Northern Gateway pipeline and tanker project, Nature Canada was high on the media’s list of organizations to contact for comment when the devastating decision by the federal government to approve the project came through on June 17, 2014. Paul Jorgenson, Nature Canada’s Senior Communications Manager, was on hand to answer pressing questions from various media sources keen to hear what Nature Canada had to say about the disappointing decision to give Northern Gateway the greenlight despite piles of evidence forecasting a one in four chance of an oil spill within the pipeline’s lifetime. Nature Canada speaks to Global BC Nature Canada speaks to Radio Canada… read more →
OTTAWA (June 17, 2014) Nature Canada and BC Nature have expressed their profound disappointment at the federal government’s decision to conditionally approve the Northern Gateway pipeline and tanker proposal. “It is most disconcerting that the federal government has chosen to gloss over the risk of oil spills and the environmental harm that such spills would cause,” said Stephen Hazell, interim executive director of Nature Canada. “The expert evidence before the Panel was that there is one in four chance that a pipeline has a major spill in its lifespan – those are worse odds than playing Russian roulette.” The University of Victoria Environmental Law Centre represented BC Nature and Nature Canada, at the hearings. Four separate Enbridge expert witness panels… read more →
Yet another pipeline and tanker project to export bitumen from Alberta’s oil sands to Asia or the United States is being reviewed by the National Energy Board (NEB). The Trans Mountain Pipeline Expansion Project would include approximately 990 km of new pipeline between Edmonton and Vancouver and expand a marine terminal in the Fraser River delta. Traffic from this terminal through the Salish Sea would increase from the current five to an estimated 34 oil tankers per month. Nature Canada and BC Nature, represented by University of Victoria’s Environmental Law Centre, are jointly intervening in the review to ensure that nature is well-represented at the NEB hearings, expected to commence in January 2015. The first job of our team of… read more →
It is hard to imagine that an oil spill could have positive economic effects for the people and communities directly affected by such a disastrous event. Surprisingly (or not!), that’s just what Kinder Morgan claimed in its 15,000 page application to the National Energy Board to expand its Trans Mountain pipeline through British Columbia. The statement, which Kinder Morgan says was taken out of context in an interview given to the Canadian Press, states: “Spill response and clean-up creates business and employment opportunities for affected communities, regions and cleanup service providers.” While Kinder Morgan is working hard to clean-up its image, we’re preparing for Nature Canada’s participation in the Trans Mountain pipeline hearings by conducting the required research to develop… read more →