Métis Leaders Allege Exclusion From 1-Million-Barrel Pacific Link Talks
Updated
Updated · Eye on the Arctic · Oct 16
Métis Leaders Allege Exclusion From 1-Million-Barrel Pacific Link Talks
2 articles · Updated · Eye on the Arctic · Oct 16
Summary
Six Métis communities in Alberta’s Wood Buffalo region said Ottawa never consulted them before designating the Pacific Link pipeline a national-interest project on Oct. 1.
At a Fort McMurray news conference, the leaders said they were also left out of the federal-provincial launch event and were given no details on Indigenous ownership stakes.
The proposed line would carry 1 million barrels a day from the oilsands to a deepwater port near Delta, B.C.; Ottawa has said 10% ownership will be available to Indigenous communities.
The Métis leaders said they are not opposing the pipeline outright but want answers before approvals, citing worries that expanded oilsands output could raise environmental and accident risks.
Alberta said it has been meeting Métis leaders on the project, while the federal government had not responded to CBC’s request for comment by publication.