Close X
Wednesday, December 11, 2024
ADVT 
National

Truce Called, Wine Flows Again, In B.C.-Alberta Trade War Over Pipeline

The Canadian Press, 23 Feb, 2018 08:53 PM
    VICTORIA — The Alberta government accepted an olive branch from British Columbia and suspended its ban on the province's wine Thursday in a dispute over the Trans Mountain pipeline.
     
     
    Alberta Premier Rachel Notley took the step after B.C.'s John Horgan said his government will ask the courts if it has the right to protect its environment by restricting diluted bitumen shipments through the province.
     
     
    "I think it is fair to say that in a small way today B.C. blinked," Notley told reporters at the legislature in Edmonton.
     
     
    "B.C. is stepping back from the brink and abiding by the law, and this is a good thing."
     
     
    Horgan said his government is filing a constitutional reference case on the issue, which has been at the centre of the heated trade war between B.C. and Alberta. In the meantime, B.C. will not proceed with proposed regulatory restrictions on the increase of diluted bitumen transportation.
     
     
    "We believe it is our right to take appropriate measures to protect the interests of B.C. from the drastic consequence of a diluted bitumen spill," Horgan said at a news conference. "We are prepared to confirm that right in the courts."
     
    He said the federal government declined an invitation to join the province in the reference question.
     
     
    Horgan denied B.C. is backing down, saying the intention is to have cooler heads prevail.
     
     
    "This is not about politics. This is not about trade," he said. "It's about the right for B.C. to be heard."
     
     
     
     
    The province will move ahead with consultations on four other areas of its plan to protect the environment, such as establishing timeframes for responses to spills and requiring some form of restitution to cover the lost use of public resources in the event of a spill.
     
     
    Horgan said he wants B.C. and Alberta to be good neighbours, but the rest of Canada needs to know how strongly British Columbia feels about protecting its coastline.
     
     
    "I believe the federal government and the government of Alberta do not understand the depth of feeling that the transport of diluted bitumen has in B.C.," Horgan said.
     
     
    Notley recently imposed the ban on B.C. wine in retaliation for a pledge last month by Horgan to reject increased levels of oil through the Trans Mountain pipeline until the province reviews spill safety measures. The B.C. government is against expansion of Kinder Morgan Canada's pipeline from Edmonton to Burnaby, although it has already been approved by the federal government.
     
     
    Alberta accused Horgan of illegally trying to kill the pipeline expansion.
     
     
    While Notley is suspending the retaliatory ban on B.C. wine, she left her options open.
     
     
    "If it becomes clear that this action is, in fact, part of a deliberate strategy to harass the pipeline and its investors with frivolous or unconstitutional legal challenges, we will act immediately, and we will expect our federal partners to do the same," she said. 
     
     
    Notley and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau have made it clear that only Ottawa, not the provinces, has the authority to decide what goes in trans-boundary pipelines.
     
     
    As for B.C.'s constitutional reference case, Notley expressed her doubts it will be successful.
     
     
    "I'm confident that the courts will not give B.C. rights it does not possess under our Constitution," she said. 
     
     
    "I'm confident the Constitution will be upheld and we will have seen the last of these ridiculous threats."
     
     
    Federal officials have been meeting with their B.C. counterparts to find a solution to the impasse. Notley, who had also scuttled talks to buy B.C. electricity, had been threatening further retaliatory action.
     
     
    Horgan said his efforts to safeguard B.C.'s interests generated a disproportionate reaction from Alberta that put an entire industry and the livelihoods of people who depend on it at risk.

    MORE National ARTICLES

    WestJet Appeals Lost Bid To Scrap Harassment Lawsuit By Former Flight Attendant

    WestJet Appeals Lost Bid To Scrap Harassment Lawsuit By Former Flight Attendant
    The airline argues Justice Mary Humphries was wrong to have dismissed the company's application to strike the legal action, repeating its argument that the dispute belongs before a human rights tribunal and workers' compensation board.

    WestJet Appeals Lost Bid To Scrap Harassment Lawsuit By Former Flight Attendant

    Mining Company Fined $200,000 For Dumping Waste In B.C. River System

    Mining Company Fined $200,000 For Dumping Waste In B.C. River System
    QUESNEL, B.C. — A mining company operating in British Columbia has been fined for violating the Fisheries Act.

    Mining Company Fined $200,000 For Dumping Waste In B.C. River System

    BC Civil Liberties Association Files Complaint Alleging RCMP Told Witnesses To Delete Video Of Arres

    BC Civil Liberties Association Files Complaint Alleging RCMP Told Witnesses To Delete Video Of Arres
    VANCOUVER — A civil rights group has filed a complaint with the Civilian Review and Complaints Commission for the RCMP, alleging officers told witnesses to delete cellphone video of the arrest of a man who later died.

    BC Civil Liberties Association Files Complaint Alleging RCMP Told Witnesses To Delete Video Of Arres

    Overdose Deaths And Medical Responses In Vancouver Reached New Peak Last Year

    VANCOUVER — The number of overdose deaths in Vancouver increased by 43 per cent last year compared with 2016.

    Overdose Deaths And Medical Responses In Vancouver Reached New Peak Last Year

    U.K. ‘Loneliness Minister' Puts Spotlight On Issue Canada Also Needs To Tackle

    U.K. ‘Loneliness Minister' Puts Spotlight On Issue Canada Also Needs To Tackle
    VANCOUVER — The appointment of a minister of loneliness in the United Kingdom to tackle social isolation is an acknowledgment of a problem Canadian experts say needs to be addressed here as well.

    U.K. ‘Loneliness Minister' Puts Spotlight On Issue Canada Also Needs To Tackle

    Animal Protection Group Urges B.C. Vet Association To Ban Cat Declawing

    Animal Protection Group Urges B.C. Vet Association To Ban Cat Declawing
    VANCOUVER — The society that protects animal welfare in British Columbia is looking to the leadership of Nova Scotia's veterinarians as it calls for a ban on feline declawing.

    Animal Protection Group Urges B.C. Vet Association To Ban Cat Declawing