VANCOUVER/UNCEDED xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (MUSQUEAM), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (SQUAMISH), AND səlilwətaɬ (TSLEIL-WAUTUTH) TERRITORIES — Frontline communities have been sidelined by the BC Energy Regulator (BCER), as it bypasses legal requirements to greenlight construction on the Prince Rupert Gas Transmission pipeline. The Skeena Watershed Conservation Coalition, Kispiox Valley Community Centre Association, and Kispiox Band, represented by Ecojustice lawyers, have filed a judicial review to hold the BCER to account for breaking its own rules and ignoring concerns from communities directly impacted by the project.
This 4-foot-diameter pipeline would transport fracked gas across northern B.C. to the West Coast, where it would be exported overseas as liquefied natural gas (LNG). The pre-construction approval process has been shrouded in secrecy, with construction set to begin without an assessment of the cumulative effects this pipeline will have on the environment and communities along its path — an assessment which is required by the permits the BCER issued for the pipeline.
Kathy Clay, President of the Kispiox Valley Community Centre Association (KVCCA), shared: “The KVCCA is concerned that the pipeline — which crosses the Kispiox Valley — would affect freedom of movement, property security, personal safety, and access to community services, including grocery stores, medical care, and 9-1-1. The pipeline would introduce noise, pollution, and disturbances to the land and water where we live and work. Some of these effects would be permanent. The concerns of the Kispiox Valley residents have not been acknowledged, much less addressed, by government or industry regulators.”
Shannon Lea McPhail, Co-Executive Director at Skeena Watershed Conservation Coalition, shared: “This is our home and it’s infuriating to watch our Provincial regulators ignore their own permit conditions to make things easier for a multi-billion fossil fuel project that will have massive, irreversible impacts. Our regulators have bent over backwards to keep this project alive since it was approved in 2014, sacrificing accountability to British Columbians to pave the way for LNG projects. So much for our ‘continent-leading’ CleanBC climate plan.”
This is not the first time the BCER has bent the rules for pipeline companies. Local groups point to a long history of the BCER disregarding regulations and dismissing community concerns to build pipelines (such as Coastal Gaslink) in northern B.C. The BCER’s sidestepping of permit requirements in this case is a regulatory failure, and yet another example of environmental injustices being borne disproportionately by Indigenous Nations and other frontline communities.
Kolin Sutherland Wilson, Chief Councillor of Kispiox Band said: “In bypassing the permit requirement to assess the cumulative effects of the Prince Rupert Gas Transmission pipeline, the BC Energy Regulator is demonstrating a dangerous disregard for both the rule of law and the well-being of our communities. This is not just a pipeline issue: it’s a matter of social and environmental justice. Our communities deserve to have our voices heard and our concerns addressed transparently, especially as the climate crisis escalates. It is unacceptable to move forward with such a massive fossil fuel project without a full understanding of its consequences.”
The environmental assessment for this Prince Rupert Gas Transmission pipeline is now a decade old and is set to expire in November. Over the past ten years, there have been significant changes to the project plan, the pipeline route, the watersheds, and the communities who are now in its path — a multitude of reasons BCER should have enforced its own permit requirements and ensured a new cumulative effects assessment took place. Additionally, climate impacts have worsened, and continued industrial development in northern B.C. has made sensitive ecosystems and endangered species, including salmon and caribou, more vulnerable.
Matt Hulse, Ecojustice lawyer, said: “In the decade since the PRGT pipeline went through its environmental assessment, the conditions on the ground and the impacts of the pipeline have changed significantly. Adding the requirement for a cumulative effects assessment before construction started was intended to fill this information gap and help identify the project’s impacts and how to address them. Unfortunately, the BCER has taken an unreasonable and extremely narrow view of what “cumulative effects” means and is fast-tracking the start of construction without ensuring key permit requirements are met.”
About
The Kispiox Band is an eastern Gitxsan village, originally known as Anspayaxw. It is one of six ancient Gitxsan communities that exist within the territory of the Gitxsan Nation, in what is now known as northwestern B.C. The Kispiox Band has 1555 members and the elected Band Council is responsible for the administration and band services, the well-being of the band members, and matters affecting the Kispiox Village. The PRGT pipeline will pass 7km from the Kispiox Village and crosses the Skeena River and its tributaries, from which the village draws its drinking water.
The Kispiox Valley Community Centre Association (KVCCA) was founded in 1955 and represents some 200 people, most of whom reside in the Kispiox Valley north of Anspayaxw (Kispiox) Village. Residents enjoy a rural, self-sufficient lifestyle and live with respect for the environment. In 2014, the KVCCA issued the Kispiox Valley Declaration, which states that residents, “cannot stand by and let any industrial presence, including oil and gas development, that would threaten or harm our values and responsibilities…” The PRGT project would travel through the Kispiox Valley.
Skeena Watershed Conservation Coalition (SWCC) was founded in 2004 by a diverse group of people living and working in the Skeena River watershed. Our board of directors and membership reflects the broad interests of the people in this region. We are united in understanding that short term industrial development plans, even 50-year plans, will not benefit our region in the long run if they undermine the social and environmental fabric that holds the watershed and its communities together. SWCC has twice earned the recognition of top ten most innovative and effective organizations in Canada as well as the North American Conservation Leadership Award. The PRGT pipeline would travel through the Skeena Watershed.
Ecojustice uses the power of the law to defend nature, combat climate change and fight for a healthy environment. Its strategic, public interest lawsuits and advocacy lead to precedent-setting court decisions, law and policy that deliver lasting solutions to Canada’s most urgent environmental problems. As Canada’s largest environmental law charity, Ecojustice operates offices in Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto, Ottawa and Halifax.
