Dear Editor:
The second round of National Energy Board hearings regarding the Kinder Morgan proposal to massively expand the Trans Mountain oil pipeline has begun. Can we expect an open process that seeks out and encourages public input? Hardly.
The first round saw the cities of Burnaby, Vancouver, North Vancouver and Port Moody asking for more information about the project, particularly with respect to the increase of oil tanker traffic in Burrard Inlet should the application be approved. However, in many cases replies to questions posed by these cities either have not provided the information requested or have not been answered at all. For example, of the 1,700 questions put by Burnaby, Kinder Morgan opted to reply to less than 40 per cent and ignored the other 60 per cent. In the case of Vancouver, the percentages were the reverse: 60 per cent were answered in whole or part while 40 per cent were not. Port Moody and North Vancouver were accorded similar treatment.
You would think the NEB would come down hard on KM for this show of disrespect. Not so. In fact, the regulatory board is actually aiding and abetting the Texas-based pipeline company. Case in point: There were 2,400 followup questions/objections filed by all interveners after it became apparent Kinder Morgan either did not have or did not wish to share the information requested during the first round. The NEB ruled that Kinder Morgan need only provide the answers to 107 of them.
In other words, incredibly the energy board ruled that the pipeline owners need not answer 93 per cent of the information requests.
But we shouldn't be surprised at this closing off of public participation. The federal Conservative government learned from the Northern Gateway hearings that public comment often revealed issues and concerns (e.g., environmental) it really didn't want raised.
So, it took steps to limit public access and comment with respect to future projects. Thus, what we have today is a regulatory body that serves the interests of the oil industry rather than the interests of the public.
It is this reality that guarantees the second round of hearings will be no different than the first. And, yes, Kinder Morgan likely will get the regulatory licence to proceed with its plans, but it has already denied itself the social licence.
Bill Brassington, Burnaby
