Contractor works on a new pipeline at the Enbridge facility in east Edmonton.
Photograph by: Calgary Herald, Calgary Herald
For Alberta oilsands producers, the proposed Northern Gateway Pipeline is a crucial new outlet for expanding production.
But for B.C. First Nations fighting over land claims, and environmental groups fearing another Exxon Valdez-sized oil spill on the Pacific coast and further oilsands expansion, Northern Gateway is a rallying point for protest.
Within weeks, Enbridge will set these competing economic and political interests on a collision course by filing an application to build the 1,200-kilometre line to carry more than a half-million barrels of oil a day from near Edmonton to the west coast at Kitimat, B.C.
Public hearings will follow in what is sure to be a lengthy and controversial legal process that may well echo the arguments that have stalled progress on the proposed Mackenzie Valley natural gas pipeline project.
Alberta Energy Minister Ron Liepert said the province "shouldn't underestimate the challenges in B.C. I guess in some ways it could turn out to be a mini-Mackenzie Valley pipeline."
But Alberta, which has the most to lose if Northern Gateway is derailed, can only watch from the sidelines.
"We can't do anything, except encourage (the project) to happen."
For municipalities and construction firms along the route, the project -- with a price tag last estimated at $4.2 billion -- will provide an economic boost. Enbridge estimates it will create 4,000 construction jobs.
"We're desperate here for jobs in the aboriginal and non-aboriginal communities," said Kitimat Mayor Joanne Monaghan.
Her town once had 15,000 residents, but it's down to 8,500, following years of reductions at the Alcan smelter and the recent closing of the Eurocan paper mill.
"There is a lot of optimism about Northern Gateway, but I would never condone it unless it can go ahead in a safe way," she said.
The private Port of Kitimat now handles imports of natural gas for Encana Corp., which ships the product by rail to Alberta for heavy oil diluting. Kitimat handles container ships and bulk vessels bringing in supplies for Rio Tinto Alcan's aluminum smelter.
Enbridge is promising the very large crude carriers (VLCCs) that will use the terminal will be modern double-hulled ships carrying two pilots and tethered to two powerful super tugs that can take over a vessel's course if a problem occurs.
Last month, B.C. First Nations and environmental groups threw down the gauntlet, with Art Sterritt, director of the Coastal First Nations saying they will fight the project.
"As far as we are concerned, this project is dead," he said.
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Read more:http://www.calgaryherald.com/business/energy-resources/Enbridge+pipeline+opens+wounds/2973426/story.html#ixzz0mn3wdwv9
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