Two Treaty 8 bands challenge federal approval of North Montney Mainline
The North Montney Mainline pipeline would supply the Transcanada PRGT pipeline and the Petronas terminal that our camp stands in the way of. All along the corridor, there is strong resistance.
"Two northern British Columbia First Nations have filed court challenges of the federal government’s approval of the North Montney Mainline Pipeline project.On July 6, the Blueberry and Saulteau First Nations filed motions asking Canada’s Federal Court of Appeal to judicially review the federal cabinet’s decision to approve the project, which calls for construction of a 305-kilometre pipeline in northern B.C.’s Peace River district.Should it proceed, the pipeline would move natural gas from B.C.’s North Montney area to the NOVA Inventory Transfer market hub, through the NGTL system and other pipelines to markets in Alberta and North America.The First Nations challenging federal approval of the project offered several reasons for their action, including the Crown’s duty to consult and accommodate their constitutional rights, concerns about direct and cumulative impacts to culturally-sensitive areas, as well as treaty rights, the adequacy of reasons, and whether the proposed project is within federal jurisdiction, according to the National Energy Board.In June, the federal government accepted the NEB’s recommendations to approve construction of the North Montney Mainline project. In the view of many, project proponent NOVA Gas Transmission Ltd. had cleared its last major hurdle in gaining NEB approval for the $1.7-billion project.In announcing its acceptance of the NEB’s recommendations, the federal government said it had decided the matter after a careful review, attaching 45 conditions to the project. Earlier this year, the NEB approved the project, in turn recommending acceptance by Ottawa.In addition to the North Montney mainline, the proposed project would include construction and operation of associated metering facilities, valve sites and possible compression facilities.The proposed large-diameter (up to 42-inch) pipeline will consist of two sections, Aitken Creek and Kahta. The pipeline will connect with the existing Groundbirch Mainline (Saturn Section), located roughly 35 kilometres southwest of Fort St. John and will continue about 187 kilometres northwest of town.The North Montney pipeline project, with a capacity of 2.4 bcf per day, also would connect to the proposed 900-kilometre Prince Rupert Gas Transmission Pipeline (PRGT) designed to transport sweet gas to the proposed Pacific NorthWest LNG project on the west coast of British Columbia."
See more at:
http://www.alaskahighwaynews.ca/regional-news/two-treaty-8-bands-challenge-federal-approval-of-north-montney-mainline-1.2008133#sthash.7nuITIp0.dpuf
