Premier David Eby has claimed that his Alberta counterpart's push for a pipeline to the coast is putting existing projects in British Columbia "in jeopardy."He argued that Premier Danielle Smith's pipeline "is nonexistent except in the political discourse," and that the focus should be placed on projects that already have proponents and support from First Nations.."She's an incredible advocate," Eby said of Smith, "because you would never guess that there is no private proponent, there is no money, there is no project, there's no support from First Nations along the coast — in fact nobody's talked to them — and this project is nonexistent except in the political discourse."He went on to note that in BC, there are "tens of billions of dollars in projects with private proponents that are ready to go, that need a strong federal partner, and unfortunately, because of this continuing push for this pipeline that doesn't actually exist in any meaningful way, I'm concerned around projects that we actually have ... may be put in jeopardy by that push."Eby did not elaborate..Coastal First Nations later released a statement affirming the premier's comments, adding that their stance on new pipelines "has not changed.""Any project that proposes to send crude oil through our coastal waters is a non-starter," President Marilyn Slett said. "We affirm the Premier’s observations, which should serve as a reality check for any company even considering such a project."She went on to claim that "continually raising the spectre of oil tankers, and the risk of a catastrophic oil spill in BC's coastal waters and our salmon-bearing rivers, risks squandering the tentative goodwill and support of First Nations for more suitable projects.".Eby hints BC open to new pipeline if Smith finds proponent, funding.In June, Eby hinted that BC would open up to the idea of a new pipeline across the province, but only if Smith is able to table a project complete with a proponent and funding.He said BC would "certainly cross that bridge" if the time came, but reminded everyone that there are already "countless projects" that the two provinces can collaborate on.The Alberta premier initially floated the idea at the First Ministers' Meeting earlier that month, arguing that it would strengthen national unity by showing Albertans their interests were being respected."I think we'll have the most success right now is working on a corridor between Hudson Bay and Port Prince Rupert," she said, "and I hope that we can get some common ground on that."
