Local Journalism Initiative
By John Woodside & Sonal Gupta, Local Journalism Initiative, Canada’s National Observer.
Following a closed-door meeting with Prime Minister Mark Carney on Tuesday, Coastal First Nations leaders said they are still firm in their opposition to a new oil pipeline.
“Our interest isn’t about money in this situation, it’s about [the] responsibility of looking after our territories and again nurturing the sustainable economies that we currently have here,” said Gaagwiis Jason Alsop, President of the Council of the Haida Nation and vice president of CFN, speaking at a press conference.
“Any time there is a discussion about our territories, we need to be in the room.”
Marilyn Slett, President of the Coastal First Nations/Great Bear Initiative and Chief Councillor for the Heiltsuk Tribal Council
The group of coastal nations has been a primary voice against the proposed pipeline carrying bitumen from Alberta since an MOU was signed between Carney and Alberta Premier Danielle Smith in November. Their opposition goes back more than a decade to a previous proposal, Northern Gateway — which was defeated in part by the nations’ opposition and the proponents’ lack of consultation with them.
First Nations leaders invited the prime minister to meet on their territory to speak with him directly about North Coast resource projects and shipping — including the controversial Alberta oil pipeline that would bring oil tankers to the region.
“Any time there is a discussion about our territories, we need to be in the room,” said Marilyn Slett, president of the Coastal First Nations/Great Bear Initiative and chief councillor for the Heiltsuk Tribal Council. “It is very important to us that the prime minister see our territories and understand our concerns.”
Ahead of the meeting in Prince Rupert, Carney told reporters the discussion with Coastal First Nations leaders was to have a “dialogue” on the “decisive moment” Canada finds itself in. He said he planned to discuss the economic opportunities as well as the importance of conservation in the region he acknowledged was core to the identity of Indigenous nations.
“Today is not a day for big announcements, it’s a day for dialogue,” he said. Joining Carney at the meeting were Natural Resources Minister Tim Hodgson and Housing and Infrastructure Minister Gregor Robertson.
At the time of the signing of the Alberta-Ottawa deal, Hodgson said he could host meetings with nations over Zoom — comments he apologized for shortly after. He reiterated his apology to Coastal First Nations leaders Tuesday.
Speaking to reporters after the meeting, the First Nations leaders said no commitments were made and the discussion focused on identifying shared priorities.
“We need to make sure that we are investing in stewardship and the response, planning and the ability to deliver in responding to any emergencies, any accidents.”
Gaagwiis Jason Alsop, President of the Council of the Haida Nation and Vice President of Coastal First Nations (CFN)
Finding ways to work together
Alsop said the meeting focused on identifying areas of alignment where First Nations and the federal government could work together, particularly as the prime minister confronts broader economic and leadership challenges, while understanding the real-world impacts of proposed projects on the North Coast, including effects on communities, culture and local economies.
“We need to make sure that we are investing in stewardship and the response, planning and the ability to deliver in responding to any emergencies, any accidents,” he said.
In response to questions by Canada’s National Observer about whether economic development and marine conservation were being linked during the meeting, Alsop said Carney did not frame conservation investments as a trade-off for pipeline support.
Slett said the vessel traffic in the region is projected to rise by about 217 per cent to more than 1,000 transits a year, raising concerns about spill response capacity, impacts on the seabed and risks to the marine environment. She said communities along the coast already face challenges responding to marine emergencies, with assistance sometimes taking days to arrive.
“The coast is not ready right now,” Slett said. “There is an urgent need to prepare our coast.”
“We are very clear that we support sustainable economies, we’re respectful of the challenge that the federal government is facing and we want to be as flexible as we can in finding ways to work together.”
Marilyn Slett, President of the Coastal First Nations/Great Bear Initiative and Chief Councillor for the Heiltsuk Tribal Council
The Hecate Strait is known for its unpredictable weather and extreme conditions. Slett said coastal and hereditary leaders raised those concerns directly with Carney during the meeting.
The federal government has recognized the gap in marine response capacity and the need to strengthen preparedness to address the growing impacts of shipping on sensitive ecosystems, cultures and coastal communities. There are shared priorities under existing agreements, including the ocean reconciliation framework and Great Bear Sea marine protected area agreements, and that First Nations are now looking to work with the federal government to fully implement those commitments, she added.
“We are very clear that we support sustainable economies, we’re respectful of the challenge that the federal government is facing and we want to be as flexible as we can in finding ways to work together,” Slett said.
Leaders said Carney confirmed his government would seek free, prior and informed consent for any pipeline project.
But as the fossil fuel industry and its political proxies ramp up pressure on Ottawa to approve a new million-barrel-per-day pipeline to the West Coast, it is not yet clear how Carney will navigate the political pressure brought to bear on his government — or how his government will determine whether it has met the bar for consent and consultation.
Political pressure mounts for new pipeline
Following the US capture of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and President Donald Trump laying claim to that country’s oil industry, some of Canada’s strongest fossil fuel proponents have said the case for a new oil pipeline has never been stronger.
In a recently penned op-ed for the National Post, Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre said the arrest of Maduro was a “good thing,” but “this moment also resets the clock for global energy markets.”
Despite the previous Liberal government building the Trans Mountain expansion pipeline at a cost to the public purse of at least $34 billion, Poilievre accused Liberals of blocking oil and gas development for the past decade. He wrote that if Carney is serious about building major projects, he must approve the proposed pipeline to the West Coast within 60 days of receiving an application.
“Courts have already ruled that premiers cannot block interprovincial pipelines and that First Nations do not have a veto, only a right to be consulted,” he wrote.
“As Alberta doubles oil production in the coming years, infrastructure must be ready to deliver that energy to new markets while also strengthening our energy partnership with the United States.”
Danielle Smith, Premier of Alberta
Carney has previously said his government will respect the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples guaranteeing a right to free, prior and informed consent. The UN declaration is enshrined in both federal and BC laws.
In a letter addressed to Carney, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith laid out a parallel argument to Poilievre, saying more Venezuelan crude flowing into US refineries poses a direct threat to Canadian oil.
“It is within this context that expanding and diversifying access to international markets through a new oil pipeline to Canada’s northwest coast is more important than ever,” she wrote in the letter shared on X. “As Alberta doubles oil production in the coming years, infrastructure must be ready to deliver that energy to new markets while also strengthening our energy partnership with the United States.”
Contrary to the memorandum of understanding she signed with Carney that aimed to limit project reviews to a two-year timeline for permitting, Smith said approval times must now be further accelerated to a six-month window.
Smith said the province intends to submit its application for a new pipeline by June and asked that it be approved by the fall.
This month the Alberta government claimed that a new oil pipeline, which could facilitate an additional 28.9 million tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions from new oil production according to estimates from Environmental Defence, is not a step backward in Canada’s energy transition. The province said given oil demand will continue, it’s important oil is “responsibly and ethically produced.”
‘One spill’ is all it takes
A specific route for the proposed pipeline has not been finalized, but an export terminal is planned for the northwest coast, requiring oil tankers to cross through the Great Bear Sea — home to 30,000 square kilometres worth of marine conservation zones Coastal First Nations consider essential for the well being of the region.
“It would take just one spill to destroy our way of life.”
Marilyn Slett, President of the Coastal First Nations/Great Bear Initiative and Chief Councillor for the Heiltsuk Tribal Council
“There is no technology that can clean up an oil spill at sea,” Slett said. “It would take just one spill to destroy our way of life.”
For coastal nations like the Haida, oil spills in the region would be devastating. More shipping traffic increases the threat to the environment, which could impact food security, the tourism industry and more.
On Tuesday, Gaagwiis cited a close call the Haida Nation had over a decade ago which spurred the creation of a “voluntary protection zone” off the coast of the nation’s territory, Hadia Gwaii. The voluntary protection zone asks large vessels to stay further from shore than they otherwise would — a request respected about 90 per cent of the time. It’s both an assertion of sovereignty and a practical safety measure.
The close call involved the Russian cargo ship Simushir, which was carrying mining supplies, hundreds of tonnes of bunker fuel and 59 tonnes of diesel when it lost power. The crew couldn’t fix the mechanical issues, the ship’s captain was injured and the blowing wind set the vessel on a collision course with Haida Gwaii.
In this remote part of the country, the Coast Guard was sent to rescue the ship, but it took over 14 hours to arrive. Leaders from the nation previously told Canada’s National Observer if it weren’t for the wind calming they would have been hit.
