Kinder Morgan won an important court challenge Nov. 14, when the British Columbia Supreme Court granted Trans Mountain’s request for an injunction to prevent protesters from obstructing some of its work locations in British Columbia.
The injunction stated that protesters must remove their camps and barricades from areas where Trans Mountain is trying to bore holes for a proposed tunnel under Burnaby Mountain.
Protestors, who have been camped out near Burnaby Mountain to block surveying work, were ordered to leave by 4 p.m. Nov. 17, or risk arrest. But instead of packing it in, the protestors bolstered their numbers, staging a rally that attracted hundreds of people.
As of the afternoon of Nov. 18, the protestors had not left, and RCMP had still not moved in to make any arrests.
Kinder Morgan operates the Trans Mountain Pipeline through its subsidiary, Trans Mountain. The pipeline is 50 years old, and stretches from Strathcona County, near Edmonton, to Burnaby, B.C. It runs directly through Jasper National Park.
Last December, the company submitted an application to twin the pipeline’s entire 1,150 kilometre length. The proposed expansion would see about 980 kilometres of new pipeline built. Once completed, the twinning would allow 890,000 barrels of product to pass through the park a day, nearly three times the 300,000 it can handle today.
Accomplishing this feat would require limited construction in Jasper because the pipeline running through the park is already twinned—currently one side is sitting inactive.
Other parts of Kinder Morgan’s application will require major construction, though. Included in that is a two-kilometre section of pipe under Burnaby Mountain, which many in the city of Burnaby vehemently oppose.
That opposition spawned the formation of Burnaby Residents Against Kinder Morgan Expansion—a grassroots organization whose members include Burnaby residents impacted by a past oil spill from the old Trans Mountain Pipeline. Protestors have been camped out at Burnaby Mountain in an effort to keep Kinder Morgan engineers from completing tests in the area.
In his judgment forcing protestors to decamp, Associate Chief Justice Austin Cullen said that it is important to balance freedom of expression against potentially unlawful activity of the protestors, including assault and intimidation.
Since late August, Kinder Morgan has been conducting studies on Burnaby Mountain to determine if routing its proposed pipeline through the mountain is feasible and safe.
It needs to complete the tests for its submission to the National Energy Board on the proposed Trans Mountain Pipeline expansion.
A Trans Mountain representative directed the Fitzhugh’s interview request to a press release issued on its website.
That release stated that the company hoped protestors would respect the court order as it resumes its work.
“We believe it is possible for people to protest and express themselves while we commence our work safely,” it read.
“The tunnel option through Burnaby Mountain is a result of the consultation with the community, their request to see the existing pipeline rerouted and our objective to minimize disruptions to landowners, neighbours and road users. We believe tunneling is the best option and are committed to minimizing impacts to the conservation area and park uses, and mitigation and restoration.
“Ultimately, if the project is approved, there will be no [effect] on Burnaby Mountain because the tunnel will be tens of metres below surface.”
A representative of Burnaby Residents Against Kinder Morgan Expansion could not be reached for comment.
Trevor Nichols
[email protected]
