If Kinder Morgan wants to expand the Trans Mountain pipeline, which runs oil from Alberta to Burnaby, the company will have to face opposition from a First Nations group with traditional territories around the Burrard Inlet.
On Oct. 31, Chief Justin George announced that the Tsleil-Waututh Nation will oppose the expansion of the pipeline.
"The pipeline ends at the Westridge terminal located along the Burrard Inlet in the heart of the Tsleil-Waututh traditional territory. The risks associated with the Kinder Morgan project are too great to accept," said George. "The Tsleil-Waututh are the 'People of the Inlet'. We have exercised stewardship responsibility for the lands and waters of our territory since time out of mind. As a result of industrial expansion over the last century, my nation has seen the quality of its resources decline to a point where our elders can no longer teach their grandchildren how to harvest traditional marine foods, such as clams, that have sustained our people for thousands of years."
Kinder Morgan is currently testing market interest in an expanded pipeline system. The pipeline's current capacity is 300,000 barrels per day, but that could increase to 700,000 if the line is fully expanded, which would mean more tanker traffic in the Burrard Inlet. Ships fill up at the Westridge Marine Terminal to ship oil abroad. Parts of the 1,150kilometre line are twinned already, but Kinder Morgan would have to twin more sections to meet increased demand, and the company is currently holding an "open season" to see if shippers will commit to using an expanded system. The company's plans to expand are dependent on enough market interest.
The Tsleil-Waututh Nation felt the impact of the 2007 Kinder Morgan oil spill, when city-hired workers ruptured a pipeline while digging in North Burnaby. According to the nation, approximately 1,500 barrels of oil seeped into the Burrard Inlet and adjacent areas.
"Our community was deeply affected by the 2007 oil spill. Our inlet has been scarred by the impacts of oil spills, and we have seen firsthand the inadequacies of emergency response and clean-up efforts," George said. "Given this experience, it is just too big of a risk to allow more oil to be transported through Burrard Inlet for export."
Kinder Morgan spokesperson Lexa Hobenshield said the company is disappointed in the Tsleil-Waututh's statement.
"We have - and will continue to - extend an open invite to Tsleil-Waututh to meet with us, when they're ready, about our operations and our future plans," she said. "We have not initiated an expansion project. We are assessing commercial interest through an open season. If and only if we have that support, we will engage fully and openly with Tsleil-Waututh Nation as we will all stakeholders about a project."
If the open season is successful, Hobenshield said the company will initiate a comprehensive consultation process in advance of preparing an applications to the National Energy Board.
"We will consult all those First Nations, communities and stakeholder groups that have an interest in our pipeline," she said. "We are prepared to meet and discuss all comments and concerns."
In a previous statement, Hobenshield said pipelines are the safest way to transport oil.
"Pipelines are the most efficient, environmentally benign and safest method of transporting petroleum products as compared to other transportation modes," she said. "Safety is our priority, we have demonstrated a safe operating history. The Trans Mountain pipeline has been safely and efficiently moving petroleum products from Alberta to the West Coast and Interior region of B.C. for almost 60 years, including supplying about 90 per cent of the local gasoline needs."
The Tsleil-Waututh Nation is a Coast Salish community of with roughly 500 members located along the shores of Burrard Inlet in North Vancouver.
