Prime Minister Mark Carney announced today that the Pacific Link bitumen pipeline has been designated as a Project of National Interest.
The approximately 1,250-kilometre pipeline would begin in Bruderheim, Alberta, and end in the Salish Sea at Roberts Bank Terminal 2. With the capacity to transport one million barrels of oil per day, the proposed pipeline would largely follow the Trans Mountain corridor, although details of the route have yet to be finalized.
The proposed route passes through Jasper National Park before ending at the Fraser River Estuary. The federal government has said that choosing a southern route rather than one through northern BC will ensure the project does not cross highly sensitive ecosystems, including the Great Bear Sea.
If the North Coast is too precious to put at risk, why should the Salish Sea be any different?
Proposed route for new pipeline. Route options: Red (optimized), Blue (original) Source: Government of Alberta & CBC.
Major questions remain
The pipeline is estimated to cost between $35.2 and $43.7 billion. During construction, 90% of the project would be owned by Trans Mountain Corporation and the Alberta Petroleum Marketing Commission, with Pembina Pipeline holding the remaining 10%. This would leave the project largely backed by federal and Alberta Crown entities, potentially exposing governments—and ultimately taxpayers—to substantial financial risk.
The announcement also comes amid sweeping changes to Canada’s environmental laws and regulatory processes. In the last year, the federal government has introduced [Bill C-5] and [Bill C-39], changing how major projects can be assessed and advanced in the “national interest.”
Earlier this week, Prime Minister Carney also announced new funding for ocean protection. While some of those measures are welcome, they do not address the fundamental problem of adding further industrial pressure to an ecosystem that is already struggling to support endangered Southern Resident killer whales.
Is this in the national interest?
With key details around financing, ownership and costs still unresolved—and the impacts on the environment and communities not yet assessed—serious questions remain about the decision to fast-track this pipeline in the national interest.
A project with the potential to shape the environmental, economic and social future of a region for decades should face rigorous scrutiny. Instead, this project is being fast-tracked without a full understanding of its long-term impacts on ecosystems, communities and the people who depend on them.
In this rush to build, we cannot lose sight of what cannot be rebuilt once lost: healthy ecosystems, functioning habitats and biodiversity—and the communities and livelihoods that depend on them.