A group of Burnaby pipeline opponents is crying foul over the government panel's characterization of the local board of trade’s position, saying it’s incorrect.
The three-person panel came to Burnaby in August and heard from local stakeholder groups and residents. Burnaby Board of Trade president Paul Holden was one of many that spoke to the panel, and on the government’s website, he was characterized as “strongly in favour” of the pipeline expansion.
The website reads: “Burnaby Board of Trade President and CEO, Paul Holden, spoke strongly in favour of the pipeline but nevertheless suggested that the board would prefer a route that does not enter and terminate in the densely populated City of Burnaby.”
Holden said that’s not accurate as the board hasn’t taken a position either for or against the project.
“What our position is, what I’ve said all along really, is we support responsible resource development; we support getting the product to market. We have voiced some specific concerns on the project itself,” he said. “So we’ve never actually said either we strongly support or we oppose. We’ve never used those words to describe our position on the project. We’ve basically said we support the goals of product to market and responsible development of resources, and we have some concerns on the project.”
Karl Perrin, a member of Burnaby Residents Opposing Kinder Morgan Expansion, said the panel’s characterization of Holden’s presentation was false and underlines a problem with the panel.
“Their report, which Minister of Natural Resources Jim Carr will pass on to the Trudeau cabinet, is nothing more than their story about our stories, filtered by their biases,” Perrin wrote in a statement to the NOW. “There is no transcript or recording of the Burnaby Board of Trade's oral submission.”
The federal government sent the panel to gather feedback from communities along the pipeline route and shipping corridor.
Perrin pointed to a recent board of trade statement that outlines the group’s position: "The BBOT’s review acknowledges the need for greater access to international markets for Canadian oil products and supports responsible resource development but also questions the current expansion plans as proposed, citing concerns with respect to the impact of seismic activity on the pipeline, as well as the risk to Burnaby as the project terminus – and whether the economic benefits outweigh those concerns. The review also cites the lack of a cooperative relationship between the project proponents and key local stakeholders as an area of concern.”
Natural Resources Canada, which oversees the panel, is working on a response. Check this page for updates.
