Aboriginals, environmentalists to rally outside Trans Mountain hearings in B.C.
BURNABY, B.C. — National Energy Board hearings on the proposed Trans Mountain pipeline expansion are underway in the Vancouver area today, despite calls from local politicians and protesters to halt the controversial review.
First Nations, environmental groups and municipalities are set to make their presentations on Kinder Morgan’s contentious US$5.4 billion plan to triple the current capacity of the Alberta-to-B.C. pipeline.
The hearings began Tuesday morning and will continue over the next 10 days in Burnaby, B.C., before wrapping in Calgary next month.
City of Surrey lawyer Anthony Capuccinello opened arguments by reiterating the city’s firm opposition to the expansion. The city, about 45 kilometres east of Vancouver, is asking the board to require Kinder Morgan to decommission and remove the portion of the current pipeline that runs through Surrey as a condition of any approval it grants.