I’m sure you too have experienced countless breathtaking moments in the midst of BC’s west coast – the fragile boundary between the land and ocean that changes by the hour, the majestic mountain ranges, the rivers, islands, lakes, and trees make me proud to be able to call this beautiful place my home. Other than being home for you and I, BC is home to countless more, fostering more diversity of organisms than anywhere else in North America. However, the Northern Gateway Project is threatening BC’s environment. Proposed by the Canadian oil company Enbridge, two pipelines would be built between the Albertan oil sands and BC’s west coast. This project is not in the public’s interest and will severely harm our environment. By selling Canada’s own oil to tidewater, Canada’s economy surely would be freed from the U.S. market where Canadian products are low-priced.
Nonetheless, the environmental damage is impossible to put a dollar value to. Enbridge reported that it “experienced over 65,047 barrels of oil spills between 2006 and 2010.” If a spill were to occur, it would be “especially hazardous due to the explosive properties of diluted bitumen.” Furthermore, the pipeline traverses the traditional territories of the First Nations. The government had promised the land to the Aboriginals, but now they are taking them back for profit. “It is a shame we have to go to court, not to establish law, but to uphold existing law,” says Ross, chief councilor for the Haisla.
Is the benefit to Alberta, Enbridge Inc., and the government from supplying Asian markets oil worth the risk, even if it means putting BC’s coast to a threat of a disastrous spill? If money is the most important decision-making factor of a country, haven’t we gone back 200 years back to the times when human rights were not respected?
Sources:
http://www.raincoast.org/wp-content/uploads/Conclusions-about-Northern-Gateway.pdf
http://forestethics.org/enbridge-the-facts
http://www.ppwc.ca/pulp-paper-and-woodworkers-of-canada-oppose-enbridge-northern-gateway-project/