Editor :
You are no doubt aware that Enbridge is planning to trench a 36” diameter pipeline containing crude oil through the headwaters of the Bulkley River. This letter is a reminder of the risks and that the Project Review Panel Hearings will begin in January 2012 but that the process begins much sooner.
This pipeline would run from Bruderheim Alberta to Kitimat B.C. through the Rocky and Coast Mountain Ranges, cross hundreds of streams in the Morice-Bulkley watershed alone, and end up at the Pacific Ocean. The crude oil would then be transported by oil tanker through the Douglas Channel and Pacific Ocean to refineries in Pacific Rim countries.
The crude oil pipeline plus a parallel pipeline containing condensate, would follow the Morice River valley, cross the Morice River near the Morice-West Bridge, and run parallel to Gosnell Creek.
Oil spills are inevitable at some point. The National Energy Board found that large diameter oil pipelines fail from corrosion and stress after 28 years on average. A pipeline running through areas at risk of landslides and other unpredictable events will be at greater risk.
By allowing this pipeline to go through we would be opening up the possibility of future pipelines using the same route, exporting more natural resources and further endangering our salmon spawning habitat, our pristine wilderness, and the sustenance of our existence.
You can find out more about participating in the Joint Review Panel process at www.gatewaypanel.review.gc.ca under “What’s New” or phone 1-866-582-1844.
You can submit a letter of comment or make an oral statement to the Review Panel. You can write your Mayor, MP, MLA, and Prime Minister. You can also join folks like the Friends of Wild Salmon and/or the Friends of Morice-Bulkley in their fight to protect our rivers and streams.
Please join the growing force of people objecting to this pipeline proposal.
Carlie Kearns
Houston