Alberta Premier Danielle Smith says the B.C. premier’s opposition to her B.C. pipeline proposal violates her province’s right to export its resources and blocks a project she says would benefit all of Canada.
Smith made the comments on Oct. 7, responding to remarks B.C. Premier David Eby made the previous day, where he described Alberta’s proposed pipeline as a “fictional” project that lacks First Nations’ consent, “makes no financial or economic sense,” and would cost taxpayers “billions,” adding that it was a political stunt for political advantage in the next provincial election.
Alberta last week announced it will act as proponent and submit an application to the federal government’s Major Projects Office (MPO) for a new bitumen pipeline to B.C.’s northwest coast. The Major Projects Office, launched in August, is a federal initiative aimed at fast-tracking projects deemed to be of national interest by streamlining approval processes and coordinating related financing. The office was created as part of the Building Canada Act, which allows projects to bypass some laws to speed up their construction….