The B.C. government has given the green light to Kinder Morgan’s Trans Mountain expansion project.
Premier Christy Clark announced on Wednesday that the province’s five conditions have been met, an hour-and-a-half after issuing the company its environmental assessment certificate. The certificate has 37 new conditions attached to it, in addition to the 157 conditions set out by the National Energy Board.
“We always said the five conditions were a path to yes and if the project met the five conditions, we would say yes, and that’s where we are today,” she said during a press conference in Victoria.
B.C.’s conditions included successful environmental reviews, world-leading marine oil spill response and prevention plans, First Nations participation and British Columbians getting a "fair share" of the project’s economic benefits.
In November, Clark told reporters that almost all conditions were satisfied, and that she was still in talks with Ottawa about its Oceans Protection Plan and Kinder Morgan about a fair deal.
On Wednesday, she said the province had reached an “unprecedented” agreement with Kinder Morgan, and that the company will pay the province between $25 and $50 million annually for 20 years as part of a revenue-sharing contract.
“We have been working over the last four-and-a-half years, talking to Kinder Morgan how this could potentially could be structured,” she told the media. “I’ve always said the money part of it is the least hard. The oceans spills protection side (of it) was the hardest of these things to nail down.”
All revenue will be put into an environmental protection fund called the B.C. Clean Communities Program, which will allow community groups to apply annually for grants.
“Think about it, for example, shoreline cleanup in the community. ... They could apply to support salmon- spawning beds or fish hatcheries, things that are going to improve our environment in British Columbia,” said Clark.
Kinder Morgan has also committed to a “British Columbians first” policy, giving B.C. workers first dibs for any construction jobs within the province.
Meanwhile, Mayor Derek Corrigan said the province’s environmental approval of Trans Mountain is “a real shame.”
“I think it must be incredibly disappointing to the people of British Columbia to know that their premier has been unable to protect their interests,” he told the NOW. “I think it’s going to be a significant issue in the upcoming election and it may even be a determinative issue in many ridings.”
Corrigan said he’s still “hopeful” the city’s legal battle in the Federal Court of Appeal will be successful, but had no update on the matter.
“The only thing I can see is to get a government in British Columbia that will be stronger and more protective of B.C.’s interests,” he added.
Katrina Chen, the NDP MLA candidate for Burnaby-Lougheed, called the approval “very bad.”
“It’s a bad decision. I’ve been knocking on doors; I’ve talked to hundreds of families and it is very obvious, especially in Burnaby-Lougheed, people are very mad about this project. They’re concerned about the safety and the environmental impact on our community,” she said.
Ian Anderson, president of Kinder Morgan Canada, also released a statement on Wednesday.
“Trans Mountain shares the values and priorities of safety, environmental protection and prosperity for communities that B.C.’s five conditions represent. The province has been clear from the very beginning, and today’s announcement is the culmination of many years of work to demonstrate to British Columbians that our project meets both the regulatory requirements and the B.C. government’s conditions to move forward,” he said in a press release. “We believe this represents a positive outcome for our company, customers and for British Columbians and all Canadians who will benefit from the construction and operation of an expanded pipeline.”
Trans Mountain wants to begin construction on the Edmonton-to-Burnaby pipeline in September, with an in-service date of December 2019. The $6.8-billion project will triple the pipeline’s capacity to 890,000 barrels a day.
A closer look at the environmental assessment certificate
B.C.’s environmental approval came with 37 new conditions.
According to the provincial government, the conditions respond to concerns raised by aboriginal groups and address “key areas of provincial jurisdiction and interest,” such as vegetation and wildlife, parks and protected areas, greenhouse gas emissions and terrestrial and marine spills.
Here are some of the commitments Trans Mountain must meet:
*Consult with the aboriginal groups and provincial agencies when developing and implementing relevant plans and programs required by the National Energy Board and the provincial environmental assessment certificate.
*Develop wildlife species at risk offset plans and a grizzly bear mitigation and monitoring plan for all impacted grizzly bear population units.
*Prepare and implement access management plans to avoid or mitigate disruption to the access by members of aboriginal groups carrying out traditional use activities and by provincially authorized trappers and guide outfitters.
*Prepare and implement a worker accommodation strategy that describes the potential environmental and social-economic impacts of construction camps on aboriginal groups and communities, and includes a plan to provide medical and health services for employees and contractors using the construction camps.
*Prepare offset plans for any provincial parks, protected areas and recreation areas that would be impacted by the project.
*Report greenhouse gas emissions consistent with B.C.'s Greenhouse Gas Industrial Reporting and Control Act and offset the greenhouse gas emissions from project construction in British Columbia through the B.C. Carbon Registry.
*Conduct a research program regarding the behaviour and clean-up of heavy oils spilled in freshwater and marine aquatic environments to provide Trans Mountain and spill responders with improved information on how to effectively respond to spills.
*Develop emergency response plans that include guidelines for incident notification and communications; oiled wildlife care; volunteer management; environmental sampling and monitoring and describe how Trans Mountain would coordinate emergency response participation of first responders, agencies, municipalities and regional districts and aboriginal groups.
*Increase Trans Mountain's emergency preparedness and response exercise and training program to include full scale exercises or deployments of emergency equipment for certain pipeline rupture and tank fire scenarios before operations begin.
*Implement an aboriginal marine outreach program along the marine shipping route to address the impacts of increased project-related tanker traffic in the Salish Sea.
*Provide opportunities for aboriginal groups to participate in construction and post-construction monitoring, including training for aboriginal monitors.
-Source: Ministry of Environment
