LNG - Fracking

A two-month-old letter from a First Nation that said granting an environmental assessment certificate to Woodfibre LNG would be a "legal error" was finally published after the BC Liberal government gave approval in principle to the project on Oct. 26. But it's unclear whether the First Nation's concerns were ever addressed.

The Aug. 18 letter from the Tsleil-Waututh Nation's chief negotiator to Environment Minister Mary Polak and Natural Gas Minister Rich Coleman urged the government not to issue the certificate before undertaking additional studies and assessment work.

B.C. community groups seeking information on dealing with fracking development in their province met with New Brunswickers via an online forum Saturday.

Community leaders, church groups and First Nations people in Vancouver linked up by video with like-minded people in Moncton to learn how to slow fracking developments in northern B.C. and to perhaps convince their government to place a moratorium on the process. 

It's been almost a year since New Brunswick declared a moratorium on hydraulic fracturing.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

OCT. 28, 2015

SQUAMISH NATION COMMENTS ON PROVINCIAL GOVERNMENT'S EA APPROVAL OF WOODFIBRE LNG PROPOSAL

NORTH VANCOUVER — After careful review of provincial government decision Monday to issue an environmental assessment certificate for Woodfibre LNG’s proposed $1.6-billion gas export facility, the Squamish Nation (SN) today says it is looking forward to further discussions with the provincial government — on a government-to-government basis.

SN spokesperson Chief Ian Campbell points out:

TransCanada Corp. has received provincial permits to build a natural gas pipeline that would feed Pacific NorthWest LNG’s planned export terminal near Prince Rupert.

The Prince Rupert Gas Transmission (PRGT) route would start at a northeast B.C. site near Hudson’s Hope and stretch nearly 900 kilometres to finish on Lelu Island. The Pacific NorthWest LNG consortium led by Malaysia’s Petronas wants to construct an $11.4-billion plant on Lelu Island to export liquefied natural gas to Asia.

Well, fellow friends of freedom of the press, what now?

The Squamish First Nation has given the green light to the $1.7 billion Woodfibre LNG project in the form of a Squamish environmental certificate.

Squamish council has issued an environmental certificate to Woodfibre LNG, but has yet to give one to FortisBC, which would build the pipeline infrastructure needed to supply the plant with gas.  

However, both FortisBC and Woodfibre have agreed to all 25 conditions that the Squamish have set out for approving the project.

The province faces a new First Nations legal challenge to an element of the Pacific Northwest Liquefied Natural Gas project just as it prepares to open its major annual conference aimed at promoting the prospects of its still nascent industry.

[Website editor's note: Two articles, published Sept 30 and Oct 1, 2015,  on the proposed Energy East tar sands pipeline and the proposed gas pipeline and LNG plant in BC] 

[Webpage editor's note: This article is part of a series on water supply and use in British Columbia published in the Vancouver Sun daily. This article addresses the water use and abuse by the natural gas fracking industry in the northeast of the province, incluidng the huge expansion of water abuse if plans by the industry to create liquefied natural gas production (LNG) on coastal BC are successful.]

The Lax Kw’alaams First Nation is seeking aboriginal title to Lelu Island and Flora Bank, creating a legal obstacle for a Malaysian-led consortium that wants to build an $11.4-billion terminal to export liquefied natural gas from British Columbia.

The aboriginal group will file a notice of civil claim to launch the legal action next week in the B.C. Supreme Court, Lax Kw’alaams Mayor Garry Reece said in an interview on Friday.