Friday, March 29, 2024

Trans Mountain pipeline expansion quashed by Federal Court of Appeal

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The Federal Court of Appeal has nullified the government’s approvals to build the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion project.

The $7.4 billion project is now halted indefinitely by this decision which is a major victory for Indigenous groups and environmentalists.

An executive summary of the ruling was written by Justice Eleanor Dawson and released on Thursday morning, revealing that the National Energy Board’s assessment of the project was extremely flawed and too unreliable to base the federal cabinet’s approval for the project in 2016.

The Court’s ruling was also a result of the government failing to “fulfil the legal duty to consult Indigenous peoples”.

The decision has garnered comments from Finance Minister Bill Morneau, and celebrations from First Nations communities, including the Tsleil-Waututh who took Canada to court.

Earlier this year, Green Party leader and MP for Saanich-Gulf Islands, Elizabeth May was arrested and charged with criminal contempt during a Kinder Morgan pipeline protest in Burnaby on March 23.

May also took to Twitter to celebrate the court’s decision today:

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Brishti Basu
Former Senior Staff Writer and Content Manager at Victoria Buzz.

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