Prime Minister Mark Carney held discussions with Coastal First Nations in Prince Rupert, British Columbia today, focusing on various regional projects, including the potential construction of an oil pipeline from Alberta. Before meeting with leaders, Carney emphasized the importance of not only constructing projects but also considering how to build collaboratively.
Coastal First Nations President Marilyn Slett expressed concerns about the detrimental impact of an oil spill on their way of life, emphasizing the group’s strong opposition to any pipeline leading to British Columbia’s coast. Slett highlighted the significance of the prime minister understanding their territories and issues.
Slett expressed eagerness to collaborate with the federal government to promote projects that prioritize marine protection and sustainable economic growth, emphasizing the lack of technology capable of effectively cleaning up an oil spill at sea.
In a recent development, a memorandum of understanding was signed between Ottawa and Alberta, outlining a potential pathway for an oil pipeline and the removal of an oil tanker ban along British Columbia’s North Coast.
A group of individuals gathered outside a hotel in Prince Rupert to show solidarity with the Coastal First Nations’ stance against pipelines. Arnie Nagy, a member of the Haida Nation, stressed the importance of preserving rights and criticized any actions favoring major oil corporations over the people.
Art Sterritt, a member of the Gitga’at Nation and former spokesperson for the Coastal First Nations, expressed disappointment in the prime minister’s decision to engage with Alberta without consulting the First Nations first. Sterritt warned of the environmental devastation an oil spill in British Columbia could cause to essential species in the region.
The demonstrators’ protest focused on opposing the potential lifting of the long-standing oil tanker ban and the proposed pipeline to British Columbia’s North Coast during Prime Minister Carney’s visit to meet with Coastal First Nations.