As we see the RCMP clearing out yet another illegal blockade set up by activists on the Coastal Gaslink (CGL) pipeline project, we are witness to the usual misinformation going around about the issue..Political activists and B-list actors from Hollywood are jumping on the anti-pipeline bandwagon and feeding a false narrative of indigenous people being oppressed in BC’s North..Below, is a picture of the blockade set up by activists. It was little more than a bulldozed pile of garbage, but it did manage to block access to 500 men and women who were in a CGL work camp up the road. The activists were holding those workers hostage as food and water could not be brought to the camp. There is no way the RCMP could stand by and let this happen.. dumpa .Let’s clear up some misconceptions right now..Some media and activists are claiming the blockade was set up by the Wet’suet’en First Nation in the area. This is utter bunk..While there may indeed be a handful of members from the Wet’suet’en First Nation among the activists at the blockade, the band itself is in full support of the pipeline..Here is an excerpt from a press release issued by the Wet’suet’en First Nation on November 14th:.“We want to make it absolutely clear that the actions of a few members of Gidimt’en Clan who claimed to evict Coastal GasLink and the RCMP from the headwaters of the Morice River do not represent the collective views of the Clan or of most Wet’suet’en people.”.Not only are the elected authorities within the Wet’suet’en First Nation in support of the line, but all 20 of the other First Nations along the pipeline right of way have also signed on as supporters. CGL did everything correctly. They spent years in consultation with indigenous groups. They struck agreements and formed partnerships with all who may be affected by the pipeline construction..Should the will of the elected leaders of 20 First Nations be ignored due to the protests of a handful of extremists? Some people seem to think so..We see many voices on social media vacuously howling: “It’s their land!” as if the protest of a small minority settles the issue..The CGL line predominantly crosses Crown land. Nobody aside from the government holds any form of deed or title to the land in question. People like to point out the land is “unceded” by the traditional indigenous occupants. This is true, but it doesn’t mean the traditional occupants hold title on it today. Perhaps down the road treaties will be established in that area. For now, we have to work within the rule of law..Our legislation has developed an expectation that the concerns of the traditional inhabitants of the land must be taken into consideration with any development. First Nations people have a close relationship with the land in question and still make up the majority of the population in the region. No development will ever be approved without striking a broad consensus with the local First Nations. This was done with the CGL project..The CGL pipeline will be delivering natural gas. There will be no oil moved through the line and the environmental risks presented by it are minimal. It will have less impact upon the local environment than a small road through the area would..There is nothing that can or should be negotiated with the extremists blocking construction on the line. The activists in opposition to this line are not reasonable and they have no legal ground to stand upon. They want nothing less than the permanent cancellation of this line. That would lead to the shutdown of the multi-billion dollar LNG export facility on the West coast in Kitimat. It’s just not a reasonable demand and there is no middle ground on the matter..If these extremists are appeased, we may as well shut down the country. This is not hyperbole. The rule of law would mean nothing and no amount of following the rules could lead to getting any sort of project done. Any handful of activists could block anything from a housing development to a farm without consequence..The pandemic let the government kick this issue down the road in the spring of 2020. The issue is now back with a vengeance and the government has to decisively act on this. The practice of arresting these extremists and then dropping charges later has to stop. These people are putting workers at risk and they are blocking legal enterprise. They need to be charged and convicted with real consequences. Otherwise, they will simply keep coming back and blocking projects as we are seeing today..The government must take a zero-tolerance stance with these extremists and follow through. They need to defend this project and bust the myths being spread about it. Will Trudeau’s government do this? They have made their opposition to petrochemical development pretty clear. Hopefully, they understand a refusal to act on these protests will have consequences reaching far beyond just the energy industry..Cory Morgan is the Alberta Political Columnist for the Western Standard and Host of the Cory Morgan Show
As we see the RCMP clearing out yet another illegal blockade set up by activists on the Coastal Gaslink (CGL) pipeline project, we are witness to the usual misinformation going around about the issue..Political activists and B-list actors from Hollywood are jumping on the anti-pipeline bandwagon and feeding a false narrative of indigenous people being oppressed in BC’s North..Below, is a picture of the blockade set up by activists. It was little more than a bulldozed pile of garbage, but it did manage to block access to 500 men and women who were in a CGL work camp up the road. The activists were holding those workers hostage as food and water could not be brought to the camp. There is no way the RCMP could stand by and let this happen.. dumpa .Let’s clear up some misconceptions right now..Some media and activists are claiming the blockade was set up by the Wet’suet’en First Nation in the area. This is utter bunk..While there may indeed be a handful of members from the Wet’suet’en First Nation among the activists at the blockade, the band itself is in full support of the pipeline..Here is an excerpt from a press release issued by the Wet’suet’en First Nation on November 14th:.“We want to make it absolutely clear that the actions of a few members of Gidimt’en Clan who claimed to evict Coastal GasLink and the RCMP from the headwaters of the Morice River do not represent the collective views of the Clan or of most Wet’suet’en people.”.Not only are the elected authorities within the Wet’suet’en First Nation in support of the line, but all 20 of the other First Nations along the pipeline right of way have also signed on as supporters. CGL did everything correctly. They spent years in consultation with indigenous groups. They struck agreements and formed partnerships with all who may be affected by the pipeline construction..Should the will of the elected leaders of 20 First Nations be ignored due to the protests of a handful of extremists? Some people seem to think so..We see many voices on social media vacuously howling: “It’s their land!” as if the protest of a small minority settles the issue..The CGL line predominantly crosses Crown land. Nobody aside from the government holds any form of deed or title to the land in question. People like to point out the land is “unceded” by the traditional indigenous occupants. This is true, but it doesn’t mean the traditional occupants hold title on it today. Perhaps down the road treaties will be established in that area. For now, we have to work within the rule of law..Our legislation has developed an expectation that the concerns of the traditional inhabitants of the land must be taken into consideration with any development. First Nations people have a close relationship with the land in question and still make up the majority of the population in the region. No development will ever be approved without striking a broad consensus with the local First Nations. This was done with the CGL project..The CGL pipeline will be delivering natural gas. There will be no oil moved through the line and the environmental risks presented by it are minimal. It will have less impact upon the local environment than a small road through the area would..There is nothing that can or should be negotiated with the extremists blocking construction on the line. The activists in opposition to this line are not reasonable and they have no legal ground to stand upon. They want nothing less than the permanent cancellation of this line. That would lead to the shutdown of the multi-billion dollar LNG export facility on the West coast in Kitimat. It’s just not a reasonable demand and there is no middle ground on the matter..If these extremists are appeased, we may as well shut down the country. This is not hyperbole. The rule of law would mean nothing and no amount of following the rules could lead to getting any sort of project done. Any handful of activists could block anything from a housing development to a farm without consequence..The pandemic let the government kick this issue down the road in the spring of 2020. The issue is now back with a vengeance and the government has to decisively act on this. The practice of arresting these extremists and then dropping charges later has to stop. These people are putting workers at risk and they are blocking legal enterprise. They need to be charged and convicted with real consequences. Otherwise, they will simply keep coming back and blocking projects as we are seeing today..The government must take a zero-tolerance stance with these extremists and follow through. They need to defend this project and bust the myths being spread about it. Will Trudeau’s government do this? They have made their opposition to petrochemical development pretty clear. Hopefully, they understand a refusal to act on these protests will have consequences reaching far beyond just the energy industry..Cory Morgan is the Alberta Political Columnist for the Western Standard and Host of the Cory Morgan Show
