The BC government announced Five conditions for any crude oil pipeline wanting to cross BC. The five conditions via the CBC are here:
Conditions for approvalCompleting the environmental review process. In the case of Enbridge, that would mean a recommendation by the National Energy Board Joint Review Panel that the project proceed.
- Deploying world-leading marine oil-spill response, prevention and recovery systems for B.C.'s coastline and ocean to manage and mitigate the risks and costs of heavy oil pipelines and shipments.
- Using world-leading practices for land oil-spill prevention, response and recovery systems to manage and mitigate the risks and costs of heavy oil pipelines.
- Addressing legal requirements regarding aboriginal and treaty rights, and ensuring First Nations provided with the opportunities, information and resources necessary to participate in and benefit from a heavy-oil project.
- Ensuring British Columbia receives a fair share of the fiscal and economic benefits of a proposed heavy oil project that reflects the level, degree and nature of the risk borne by the province, the environment and taxpayers.
Lets look at it all...
The National Energy Board Joint Review Panel would have to say yes to the project. That was always a condition. The Liberals have dressed it up as a Demand. As to the pipeline getting approval, the federal Conservatives have stacked the deck, changed the rules and in case all that doesn't provide a yes to the pipeline, the Harper Cabinet can make any decision it wants to make. The Harper Government can do this because the BC Government signed away the right to hold its own Environmental Review.
The second condition is more gobble gook. Enbridge will have to put in place a "world leading" oil spill response. Now the problem with that is even a "world leading" oil spill response anticipates an oil spill. When you have tankers, you have spills. Its not a matter of if an oil spill happens, its a matter of when.
The Clark government goes on to state that the plan must mitigate the risks of any spill. Now that one sounds impressive. Its double speak. Mitigating a spill is important for sure. Now how much would it have to mitigate. Will they have to have in place a system that captures all the oil from a spill within an hour, a week, a year, a decade? Will they have to replace all the lost salmon, the lost tourism, the lost ecosystem? Will they have to pay BC for having to remove the tag line 'Beautiful BC' from license plates?
The third condition is more of the same, basically point two repeated.
The forth condition is a gimme. The pipeline folks will have to have serious talks with First Nations. That's not a condition, that's the law already.
The final condition is also a gimme. If we are going to let someone build a pipeline across BC and then allow them to put that oil in a floating balloon and let it float along our coast, you bet you better be willing to make it worth while. The trouble here is that if its the Clark Government deciding fair compensation, were in more trouble than you imagine. These are the people that sold BC Hydro admin work to Accenture, that sold BC Rail and the rail tracks for 900 plus years for a mere one billion dollars.
Christy Clark seems to think she's running a high school student council. What with secret meetings with Alberta and Saskatchewan Premiers and a phone call to Prime Minister Harper. I can guess what was said. Clark says give me some time. Im still on board but need to sound tough. The others look at her and hardly conatin their disdain... Christy will soon have no one to talk too at Premiers meetings.
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