Public be damned !

If the NEB really understood their role—that is to look after the Canadian public interest ,they would solicit and call for world experts to present differing analysis..for debate before the public—and then prepare a recommendation for Cabinet—instead the applicant presents THEIR CHOSEN EXPERTS material…and until someone questions that material—the NEB has no choice but to accept that applicant offering…many of the public did present their opinion but it seems little of that material was incorporated into the final NEB report..even our Provincial government profess to ‘want to challenge the applicants offering’—did our government contract for world class experts for comparison to the Enbridge ,or Kinder Morgan ‘spill ‘ material studies?? The end result seems to be that the deep pockets will win—not surprising , I suppose ? Again the NEB concept/mandate NEEDS FIXING !
The key point remains—why pick BITUMEN shipping routes through narrow,island bound ,busy channels ,ports and similar complex waters in the first place—a Statistics 101 student could argue that to be a relatively poor choice when there are clearly more suitable ,safer routes that would result in less probability of incidents and spills—Instead Enbridge and Kinder Morgan have stuck to the path of least ‘financial ‘ resistance—and the public be damned !
The public may yet be heard at the next NEB(National Election Ballot)..we hope so !

Cooperating or co-opting ?

The Enbridge’ and Kinder Morgan PROPONENTS’ problems all started when they decided ,unilaterally,how and where to build necessary pipelines and where to travel our waters with their unwelcome bitumen tankers and pipelines—
Yes, infrastructure must be built to deliver Canada’s raw materials to market..In the case of the bitumen pipelines and shipping tankers–,mostly for the benefit of Ottawa and Alberta,with BC bearing the bulk of the potential risk ! OK–It’s the way the system works..Sometimes BC may benefit disproportionally—But like Albertans—BC workers and businesses contribute to the national wealth….
What we are seeing is little COOPERATION –Instead we see CO-OPTION .Thanks to online dictionaries; CO-OPTION explained—‘to appropriate as one’s own’; ‘preempt’: ,’commandeer’,’assimilate’,’neutralize’..is not what BC had in mind –particularly when one reads the fancy NEB words ‘The purpose of the NEB is to regulate pipelines, energy development and trade in the CANADIAN PUBLIC INTEREST—presumably that would include BC PUBLIC INTEREST ??.– http://www.neb-one.gc.ca/clf-nsi/rthnb/whwrndrgvrnnc/whwrndrgvrnnc-eng.html“
The BC main public interest/concern were completely IGNORED !Yes ,lot’s of discussion about the latest spill clean-up/recovery technology—which has yet to demonstrated to be effective,SAY,during a bitumen spill from a tanker ,hung up on a reef,at night,during a howling gale !!Show the world how this clean-up technology will handle this more typical ship ‘incident’!—
We see absolutely no willingness by the NEB or the PROPONENTS to reduce the probability AND CONSEQUENCES spills in our waters—absolutely NO WILLINGNESS to alter THEIR path of’ least resistance way’ o planning planningthe right-of –way location OR the ocean bitumen tanker routing…
Some say it feels like the traditional ‘MEGACORP ’ ways of bullying still with us—NO WAY !!The NEB ‘on paper’ looks like a good concept—but in reality it’s NOT WORKING !—except to ensure that the proponents get their way…

Energy Board or Ouija Board ?

Congratulations to all those ‘allowed’ to intervene and speak…I hope that the NEB provided sufficient funds for you to contract your ‘chosen’ world class experts to prepare EVIDENCE for the Board …. such as Kinder Morgan will have had prepared ,for them , by their ‘chosen’ experts…?
The NEB tells us…’they regulate pipelines…in the PUBLIC INTEREST’……the essence of their being ;one would think ?? …
The following link is interesting..
http://www.vancouversun.com/news/spill+risks+would+rise+from+three+major+projects+study/9460933/story.html some excerpts follow..
1.“The potential for oil spills in the Haro Strait-Boundary Pass passage increases by 4.75 times as a result of the anticipated increase of 1,250 large ships annually …., according to the draft findings of a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) funded study.” Who are these EPA folks ?—anyhow “they applied as wannabe interveners,TOO LATE”…though we’ll be involved in these ‘hearings’—like forever !
2.”Kinder Morgan’s consultants concluded the risk of a large spill is very low, once in 2,300 years ”…..who will debate this with influential expert data…?
3.”In a brief email, Transport Canada officials said they would review the U.S. study and CONSIDER any new information “…I thought the NEB should deal with this, in open public debate—not the OTTAWA EXPERTS ,alone !

To have a meaningful hearing the NEB should solicit and fund world class expert SCIENTIFIC opinions, independent of the Applicant—to permit a public review of the more complex issues —

Not long ago our Prime Minister counselled that ‘SCIENCE—not POLITICS ‘ should help us to decide…assuming of course that the PM meant ‘both sides’ of the science.

As Kinder Morgan President ,Ian Anderson ,tells us “Asia is where the producers want to get …”

Canada needs to export resources—and since much of the Bitumen would travel to Asia why not ship from an open port, just north of Prince Rupert— through a combined Enbridge/Kinder Morgan pipeline ,from Alberta ,to an open ocean terminal,thus LEAVING MOST ALL OF BC OCEAN WATERS AND SHORES WITHOUT THREAT OF BITUMEN SPILLS…such a common sense solution would require political leadership…leaving most BC’ers in a happier mood come election time—your move leaders…