It’s a headline that was hard to miss during 2016. The pipeline. In fact it was seldom absent from our pages or our website as the decision deadline drew closer. And after years of reporting on the proposed Trans Mountain expansion project, it was given the green light on Nov. 29.
Here’s a quick recap of the year(s) of the pipeline.
Many things happened in 2016 prior to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau making the pipeline announcement.
In January, the federal Liberals announced its plans to extend the Kinder Morgan pipeline review by several months to allow for an upstream greenhouse gas emissions assessment and more consultation with First Nations.
Then on May 19 the National Energy Board recommended the feds approve the twinning of the Edmonton-to-Burnaby pipeline. Even though the NEB attached 157 conditions to its approval, the board was heavily criticized by Mayor Derek Corrigan and others for being flawed and biased.
Before the recommendation was made, the city analyzed 33 of the NEB’s substantial rulings and found that 80 per cent of Kinder Morgan’s motions were granted, in comparison to only four per cent of intervenors’ motions.
At the time, the NEB’s Sarah Kiley said that wasn’t the case, arguing the board is committed to a “fair, thorough and rigorous review” of the project.
A three-member ministerial panel travelled to communities along the proposed pipeline and marine shipping route in the summer. In their report, panelists did not make recommendations, rather, they posed six questions to the federal government.
Greg McDade, one of the city’s lawyers, said at the time, that if the government approved the $bi-billion project, it would be “ignoring the report.”
Thousands of protesters took to the streets of downtown Vancouver on Nov. 19 as part of a Kinder Morgan rally. Speaking to the crowd, Corrigan reaffirmed he would stand in front of a bulldozer if it came down to it.
When Trudeau’s decision came down less than three weeks before the Dec. 19 deadline, Burnaby residents were upset. Many took their concerns to Terry Beech’s office on Dec. 3, when he held an open house for his Burnaby North-Seymour constituents.
But it seems the city’s fight isn’t over. The mayor has always said he plans to use all the legal tools available.
Just before Christmas, the city filed an appeal on the cabinet’s decision in the Federal Court of Appeal.
Corrigan has said he’s “relatively confident” the Kinder Morgan project can be stopped in the courts, noting the legal battles between the company and opposed First Nations.
Even though a decision has been made, this controversial issue will be closely watched in 2017.
Kinder Morgan wants to start construction next September, with an estimated in-service date of late 2019.
