----- Original Message -----
From: RUSSELL DIABO
To: Undisclosed-Recipient:;@priv-edtnaa05.telusplanet.net
Sent: Tuesday, March 21, 2006 6:04 AM
Subject: First nations want pipeline consultations
ENERGY
First nations want pipeline consultations
Want special panel created for Enbridge project because of inattention by Ottawa
DAVE EBNER
CALGARY -- First nations along the route of Enbridge Inc.'s proposed Gateway
pipeline from Alberta's oil sands to the British Columbia coast want a special
panel created to handle consultations with aboriginals, an idea a native leader
says has been born of frustration.
Elmer Derrick, an executive chairman for the Northwest Tribal Treaty Nations in
northern B.C., is meeting with Indian and Northern Affairs government officials
in Ottawa tomorrow to present the idea of a special board to consult with first
nations.
"It came out of frustration," said Mr. Derrick, whose association represents
about 50 aboriginal groups. "We could not find any movement on the side of the
Crown to live up to its legal obligation. . . . They don't seem to be taking
the obligation seriously."
The Supreme Court has said in several rulings in recent years that the federal
government has a duty to conduct meaningful consultations with first nations
for industrial projects on their traditional land, even if legal title isn't
officially proven.
The idea of a special panel to address consultation is the latest indication of
unrest over the Gateway project, a $4-billion proposal to move oil sands
production from Alberta to Kitimat, on the B.C. coast, for export to Asia and
California.
The Carrier Sekani Tribal Council, which represents seven first nations on the
Gateway route and is part of the Northwest Tribal association, complained to
the National Energy Board that it has not been adequately consulted in the
early stages of the pipeline project. In a Feb. 22 letter to the NEB, the
council said it "may be required to bring legal action in Federal Court."
The Northwest Tribal Treaty Nations passed a resolution at a meeting in Prince
George last November to consider a special panel to handle consultations with
the federal government. Mr. Derrick said the concept is not yet fully formed
but said he hopes it would actually simplify the broader regulatory process to
approve a project like Gateway, rather than complicate it further.
Discontent among first nations is a major issue for proposed pipelines.
The project most notably affected has been the planned Mackenzie Valley natural
gas pipeline in the Northwest Territories. The federal government was sued by
the Deh Cho First Nations in the Northwest Territories in 2004, who complained
they had been unfairly excluded for a review of the pipeline.
The legal action led to a $31.5-million settlement last summer.
Gateway is one of several proposals to move additional oil sands production out
of Alberta, and is the biggest part of Enbridge's expansion plans. The
Calgary-based pipeline company has said it plans to file a regulatory
application to the NEB in the next three months, hoping to have Gateway in
service in 2010.
"We've always been supportive of stakeholders having their say in the process
but it's not up to us to define that process," said Glenn Herchak, an Enbridge
spokesman.
Beyond the idea of a special panel, Mr. Derrick also said some first nations
along the Gateway route are interested in acquiring an equity stake in the
project, although he didn't name specific groups.
Industry players have said the key underpinning of current support for the
Mackenzie pipeline is the Aboriginal Pipeline Group, which would own one-third
of the line and is made up of first nations along the route in the NWT.
Enbridge has said it is willing to sell up to 49 per cent of the pipeline,
generally to companies that make long-term oil shipping commitments such as
PetroChina International Co. Ltd., which last April signed a preliminary deal
to move crude on the line.
However, Mr. Herchak said Enbridge has heard there might be interest among
first nations for equity in Gateway, and the company is willing to consider it,
although he added it is premature to discuss details such as how large a stake.
"We are prepared to consider some level of aboriginal equity investment," Mr.
Herchak said.
Mr. Derrick said there is mixed support among first nations for Gateway,
similar to sentiments expressed along the Mackenzie route in the NWT.
"I've heard of support, very strong support . . . and I've heard very strong
concerns," Mr. Derrick said. "There's a mixed reaction, because people are
concerned about protecting the environment . . . but there's also concern about
advancing our economies."
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
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