It seems no matter where you go in the Bulkley Valley, it’s impossible to avoid the issue of the possible Enbridge Northern Gateway pipeline. At the regular Town of Smithers council meeting on Oct. 11, the issue was raised in official correspondence by former Smithers mayor Jim Davidson, who was hoping to push council into announcing a stance on the issue.
In his letter, Davidson requested that council debate the issue, not just pass a motion to receive the letter.
“The Bulkley, Morice and Babine watersheds are and will continue to be far more important to our economy than the short term construction of a pipeline. Given the terrain, the earthquake fault line, pipeline history, there is environmental risk. Under these circumstances this requires a response from Council,” he wrote.
Despite his plea, council motioned to receive the letter as correspondence. Davidson took the opportunity during the public question period at the end of the meeting to raise the issue once more.
“I am disappointed,” he said, again asking that council take a stand one way or the other on the issue.
“If we were impeding the province of Alberta and the oil companies from selling their product, I would be fully in support of that, but that is not the issue and you know it full well,” said Davidson.
Mayor Cress Farrow began his response by answering a question from Mike Sawyer about municipal funding from Enbridge in northern B.C. Sawyer also said he attended the meeting in hopes of hearing council’s official position on the Northern Gateway pipeline.
“We have not received as council anything, in any way shape or form, from Enbridge,” said Farrow.
He then read from the minutes of a council meeting held in August, 2009, at which time councillors voted to not take a position for or against the potential pipeline before learning more.
“As there is much public interest in the project, Council strongly supports and encourages the need for a full public inquiry. It is important that all groups work together to ensure that communities receive social, environmental and economic benefits from the project. There is great concern that the community advisory boards are not driven by a third party, but by the company,” said Farrow, reading from the minutes.
Farrow said that even if council wanted to make a public statement on Northern Gateway, the seven members would be unlikely to agree on any single opinion. Councillor Jo Ann Groves stated that she didn’t think Smithers council should be making a stand on the issue at all.
“I do not believe that this is the table to tell you whether I am for Enbridge or not for Enbridge,” she said. “As far as this council sitting here today, I do not think that’s fair for anybody to ask us as a member of council to stand up and make a partisan decision.”
Councillor Mark Bandstra agreed, and said issues such as pipelines should be dealt with by the provincial and federal governments.
“I think the role of a councillor is to deal with the issues within our community,” he said. “There are many things that influence a community, we can not be in my mind involved in every one of them.”
Bandstra did go so far as to say that he is pro-business and pro-development, although not at any price.
Councillor Charlie Northrup pointed to the last presentation to council from Enbridge, which was in 2009, at which members of the public interrupted proceedings. Council hasn’t allowed any public presentations on the matter since.
He took the same position of most of council, agreeing that the municipal government in Smithers was not the right place for the Enbridge debate. Unlike some, who would not discuss their personal views during the question period, Northrup did hint at his own opinions, mentioning a recent trip to Scotland. While at an attraction there, he encountered a David Suzuki Foundation display about the Alberta tar sands, and said he felt embarrassed to be a Canadian by the one-sided presentation.
After the meeting, Farrow mentioned the timing of Davidson’s letter, as well as reinforcing his belief that council shouldn’t make a public stance on the issue.
“It is interesting that it would surface at this time of year going into an election. It’s a huge issue of concern for not only the people in Smithers, but throughout the Bulkley Valley, throughout the northwest. It’s beyond what our council is able to do,” he said.
Of course, the election timing was no coincidence – Davidson noted in the letter that he had hoped the issue would be dealt with in the public council meeting before the deadline for nominations in the upcoming municipal election. He also wrote that he believes council has a responsibility to respond to such important decisions.
Enbridge’s Northern Gateway Project “is a matter of public policy that requires a position by Smithers Council,” he wrote.