Court overturns Northern Gateway pipeline approval

“We are thrilled to see the Court’s judgement acknowledging the serious flaws in the federal approval of Northern Gateway”, said Jessica Clogg, Executive Director and Senior Counsel with West Coast Environmental Law.

The court ruled that Canada’s federal government did not properly consult with First Nations on or near the route of the Enbridge Inc.’s proposed Northern Gateway Pipeline, The Globe and Mail reported.

The Court stated that the federal government’s consultation efforts with First Nations “fell well short of the mark”, and overturned Northern Gateway’s federal approval.

“The court heard arguments in a judicial review from four environmental groups and seven first nations and determined that the federal government did not “fulfill its duty to consult” with first nations communities”, according to a copy of the ruling.

In a ruling released Thursday, the court said the former Conservative government did not adequately consult aboriginal communities regarding their traditional territory or accommodate their concerns.

Critics have also pointed out that Northern Gateway’s parent company, Enbridge, has a history of environmental destruction, including a massive pipeline rupture that spilled close to one million gallons of crude oil into Michigan’s Kalamazoo River and Talmadge Creek in 2010-eventually forcing the company to pay million in cleanup costs.

A federal joint review panel issued a report recommending approval of the project in December 2013, after years of legal controversy and public protest.

But the project has faced continued opposition from the B.C. government, environmental groups and First Nations.

The pipeline, planned to carry more than 500,000 barrels of Alberta crude oil to the B.C. coast per day for export, was approved in 2014 with 209 conditions. Today’s decision is a victory across the board: “for the wildlife living in this marine environment, and for the communities living at its shores”.

The Sierra Club helped raise money to fund First Nations involved in the legal challenge.