The latest news regarding the Trans Mountain Expansion wasn’t exactly what Lakeland MP Shannon Stubbs had been hoping for.
Although she was pleased to see the National Energy Board (NEB) would be upholding the original decisions and orders they issued prior to the Federal Court of Appeal, Stubbs continues to wait in the wings to hear more from the federal government.
“The bottom line is, there still really isn’t a clear path forward or concrete next steps coming from the Liberals on the Trans Mountain Expansion. Obviously, I’m glad to see the NEB say that all of the previous approvals they made three years ago are going to be valid again, but there still isn’t a concrete start date for construction,” said Stubbs, who is also Shadow Minister for Natural Resources.
On July 19, the NEB announced how regulatory processes for the Trans Mountain Expansion will forge ahead, including a detailed route and condition compliance processes.
For Stubbs, however, there is still a lot of work to be done.
“So far, it looks like the work that can start up here in August, is similar to the work that was already starting up in specific areas more than a year ago,” she said. “They still have 30-day notice periods that they have to give to individual landowners along the entire route, and there are still a variety of other approvals and permits from other government departments and agencies that apparently the Trans Mountain Corporation, which is now owned by Canadian taxpayers, still has to secure.”
She added, “I’m glad to see the NEB announcement, but the Trans Mountain Expansion itself really isn’t any farther ahead than it was a year ago, and frankly, three years ago when the Liberals first approved it.”
The 1,150-kilometre pipeline expansion dates back to 2013, when Kinder Morgan applied for NEB approval. After the NEB concluded its hearing order in February 2016 and issued its recommendation report including 157 conditions a few months later, the federal government approved the project in November 2016.
On May 29, 2018, the Canadian government purchased the pipeline from Kinder Morgan.
Stubbs noted since purchasing the expansion, at a cost of roughly $4.5-billion, the federal government has failed to provide a concrete strategy.
“We’ve been calling on the Liberals to give that plan to Canadians. They owe it to Canadians because of their bad decision to spend $4.5-billion of our tax dollars to purchase the pipeline, instead of just setting the conditions and providing legal certainty for Kinder Morgan to go ahead and build it,” Stubbs stressed, adding she continues to put pressure on the federal government to be transparent and accountable when it comes to the project.
“The Trans Mountain Expansion was supposed to be complete and operating by the end of 2019, and what it’s looking like is it will be lucky and still a challenge for construction of the pipeline to start before the end of this current construction season,” she expressed.
Part of the reason for the delays, Stubbs said, is due to the government’s decision to have the NEB “go back through the same whole process they already did,” three years ago
Stubbs described the NEB’s announcement as “critical.”
“It’s one of the many factors that would allow for the construction of the Trans Mountain Expansion, but on the other hand, it’s a no-brainer, because the NEB over the 22 week reconsideration period, they examined and reviewed all of the exact same information they already did thoroughly over a three-year process when they made their recommendation in 2016,” detailed Stubbs. “The reality is, no new information was examined, no material was exchanged, and even opponents of the approval are the same, the supporters of the approval are the same, the science and evidence hasn’t changed.”
She added, “It’s good that the NEB gave that approval, but really, the big picture is it’s the Liberals that have to tell Canadians exactly what the next steps forward will be for the project.”
According to Stubbs the expansion faces new challenges “coming in-part from the groups that challenged the project before, and actually coming from one indigenous community that supported the project when Kinder Morgan owned it.”
She hopes the federal government will explain to Canadians how they plan on getting around those issues.
“The Liberals have given no clarity at all about what will be different this time in terms of the legal challenges and challenges from other jurisdictions, which is actually stopped construction from ever starting in the first place,” she exclaimed.
With over $35-million in losses on the Trans Mountain Expansion to-date, including loan and financing and $10-million worth of bonuses “going to a variety of different executives to be paid out this year, and all the way out to 2021,” Stubbs wants to see the Canadian government be honest about where the money for the project is going.
She said, “This is exactly why there needs to be a clear plan from the Liberals and transparency around costs, because the Liberals owe it to Canadians to tell them how and when exactly the Trans Mountain Expansion will be complete and what the cost will be to them.”
“It’s important in the broader picture… I would say what really needs to happen is the government needs to come out with a concrete plan and explain to Canadians exactly what will be done differently this time to ensure the Trans Mountain Expansion has the political and legal certainty to go ahead, how it won’t be stopped by any challenges in the future, and also talk about this ownership issue,” Stubbs concluded.
