Should the debate over the Trans Mountain pipeline go to a referendum?
Posted May 19, 2016 11:49 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – The National Energy Board is releasing its decision today on whether to approve the controversial Trans Mountain pipeline, which would carry bitumen from Alberta to BC.
But a local group doesn’t think this should be left up to a panel and politicians, and wants the proposal to go to a referendum similar to the HST vote or transportation plebiscite.
Kai Nagata with the Dogwood Initiative explains what that could like and thinks it would be more cost effective:
“The National Energy Board costs a lot of money [and] we don’t know how much this new transitory panel is going to cost, but it’ll be in the millions of dollars. Adding a question to the ballot in the next provincial election would cost much less than striking a new panel every time a pipeline gets proposed.”
He feels nearly everyone in this province has an opinion about this and they won’t be heard unless there’s a vote.
“Awareness around these oil tanker projects is very high right across the province. Obviously, opinions are divided but everyone’s got one. I think it’s questions like this that you need to take to the general public and a plebiscite or referendum is a great way to get a definitive ‘yes’ or ‘no’ and end this 10-year-long debate.”
Last week, the BC government quietly changed the boundaries of a provincial park north of Kamloops to potentially make way for the pipeline.
Kinder Morgan is looking to spend about $6.8 billion to twin the pipeline and triple capacity to carry bitumen from Edmonton to Burnaby.
