Despite opposition from Indigenous leaders and the provincial government, the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion is moving ahead, with construction set to begin in September.
Kinder Morgan plans to twin the existing pipeline running from central Alberta to British Columbia’s Lower Mainland, increasing capacity from 300,000 barrels of oil a day to 890,000. The company has announced its intention to begin construction next month on private land, which could include the Westridge Marine Terminal in Burnaby and a tank farm near Simon Fraser University.
Kinder Morgan Inc.'s KMI $5.8-billion oil pipeline expansion is threatened by the political overtures of British Columbia, which is not in favor of this project and vows to join the legal fight against it by teaming up against Canadian federal approval of the project.
In anticipation of the September 2017 construction start date, Trans Mountain has signed a memorandum of understanding which will lead to an Engineering, Procurement and Construction contract (EPC) for the Trans Mountain Expansion Project with the newly formed Kiewit-Ledcor Trans Mountain Partnership (KLTP).
US firm Kiewit, a major player in BC construction ruled 'reckless' in worker's death, has piled up other safety violations.
Bent low over the shattering racket of the power drill he was driving into solid rock, without a radio and wearing ear protection that muffled the shouts of other workers, Sam Fitzpatrick may never have seen the boulder that killed him.
Washington State officials have privately complained about a lack of information — vital for an oil spill response — on the ingredients of the diluent used to help Alberta bitumen flow through Kinder Morgan’s Trans Mountain oil pipeline.
Two recent decisions from the Supreme Court of Canada — Clyde River v Petroleum Geo-Services Inc. and Chippewas of the Thames First Nation v Enbridge Pipelines Inc. — are being hailed as landmark cases on Indigenous peoples’ right to be consulted about projects that threaten to damage their traditional territories.
On 26 July, the Supreme Court of Canada announced its decision regarding Enbridge’s Line 9 pipeline. The Chippewas of the Thames First Nation, located near London, Ontario, had argued that due process had not been followed in the government approving significant changes to the existing pipeline. The Supreme Court ruled against the Chippewas of the Thames, and in favour of the National Energy Board and, in effect, Enbridge.
