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Panel told it can't look beyond pipeline
By Carla Wilson Times Colonist (Victoria), Wednesday, April 10, 2002
It is beyond the scope of a joint federal panel considering a planned natural gas pipeline to Vancouver Island to also tackle environmental effects of burning the gas, an industry proponent told a hearing on Tuesday.
Lawyer Don Davies, representing the Georgia Strait Crossing Pipeline Ltd., argued that the panel does not have the authority under either the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act or the National Energy Board Act to consider the impact of burning the gas.
The company, a joint venture between B.C. Hydro and Williams, a U.S. firm, is planning to run a natural gas pipeline from Washington state to Vancouver Island to feed two power plants here. One power plant is at Campbell River and another is planned for Duke Point at Nanaimo.
The pipeline company and the provinces of B.C. and Alberta are arguing the panel should only consider whether to recommend approval of the pipeline and should not tackle the issue of the impact of burning the gas.
Project opponents, including environmental organizations, want the panel to examine not only the pipeline but effects of combustion of the gas. These emissions create greenhouse gases.
Proponents and opponents argued their positions at the first day of two days of hearings on Tuesday at the Mary Winspear Community Centre in Sidney. The hearing by the panel, representing the National Energy Board and the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency, continues today.
The complex issue addresses federal and provincial environmental jurisdiction, the scope of legislation and constitutional rights, interpretation of the panel's authority, and past court and panel decisions.
A decision may come out next month on how wide a net the panel will cast. Four weeks of hearings in Victoria, Saltspring Island and Duncan on the project are slated to begin in June but the panel wants to look at the logistics. Whatever the outcome of the current hearings, either side has the option of appealing to the federal Court of Appeal. In addition, the proponent is required to consult with First Nations with an interest in the area.
Davies said the federal Minister of Environment has set out the panel's scope of the project and it does not have the authority to exceed that.
"The Georgia Strait Crossing pipeline will not burn gas," he said. "The users - the power plants, homes, commercial and industry - will combust the gas. There is no basis for you to pick and choose the downstream facilities that you are going to examine."
Jill Page, a lawyer representing the province of Alberta which is interested in the issue, agreed the panel should stick with looking at the pipeline only.
High market demand means the natural gas will be burned somewhere else if this pipeline did not go ahead, she said. The same amount of greenhouse gases as emissions will be created in any case.
"There is simply no purpose, no merit in considering greenhouse gas emissions in the context of a very small pipeline that does not impact the burning of the gas."
Tim Howard, of the Sierra Legal Defence Fund, representing the Society Promoting Environmental Conservation and the David Suzuki Foundation, said that the proponent has described this pipeline project a part of a complete integrated scheme to provide electricity to Vancouver Island via the two power plants.
"As a result of that complete functional integration of the pipeline and the power plants, the impacts of the greenhouse gas produced by those power plants are inextricably linked to this pipeline project."
The panel has a legal duty as a federal panel to look at the implications of introducing a major new source of greenhouse gases, Howard said. Canada and its federal bodies have a legal duties to apply their statutory powers to reflect Canada's international obligations on greenhouse gases.
To view documents on the subject, call up www.neb-one.gc.ca on the Web.
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