OTTAWA — The National Energy Board has less than six months to redo its environmental review of the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion, this time taking into account the impact of additional oil tanker traffic off the coast of British Columbia.

Natural Resources Minister Amarjeet Sohi is making the announcement this morning in Halifax, where Canada is hosting environment and energy ministers at a G7 summit meeting.

The federal cabinet has ordered the NEB to return with a new recommendation within 22 weeks on whether the pipeline expansion should proceed after taking a look at the environmental impact of having more than three dozen oil tankers shipping diluted bitumen through the Burrard Inlet every month.

The Federal Court of Appeal last month quashed the approval the NEB and the cabinet gave the project in 2016, citing improper consultation with Indigenous communities and a lack of review of the marine shipping issue.

Several Indigenous communities, environment groups and the B.C. government are concerned about the higher risk of oil spills if an expanded pipeline increases oil tanker traffic from five per month to 35.

Sohi is also appointing a special marine technical adviser to be part of the NEB’s new review, but that person has yet to be named. </s> (Reuters) — The Canadian government on Friday directed its National Energy Board (NEB) regulator to conduct a new review of its application to expand the Trans Mountain oil pipeline, taking into account the impact of additional marine traffic.

The NEB must report to cabinet within 22 weeks, Natural Resources Minister Amarjeet Sohi said. Canada's Federal Court of Appeal last month quashed the Liberal government's approval of the pipeline project, which runs from Alberta's crude oil heartland to the British Columbia coast.

More to come. </s> OTTAWA—The National Energy Board (NEB) has less than six months to redo its environmental review of the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion, this time taking into account the impact of additional oil tanker traffic off the coast of British Columbia. Three weeks after the Federal Court of Appeal overturned approval of the expansion project, Natural Resources Minister Amarjeet Sohi says the federal cabinet is giving the NEB 22 weeks to complete a thorough review of the environmental impact of additional oil tankers that would result from the additional flow of diluted bitumen from an expanded pipeline.

“We are confident that this plan will allow us to meet the high standards that Canadians expect when it comes to protecting the environment,” Sohi said Friday. The review will examine the impact on killer whales of the additional tankers — it’s estimated the number of ships will go to about 35 a month from the current five. Last month the appeal court quashed the NEB and cabinet blessing of the project, citing improper consultation with Indigenous communities and a lack of review of the marine shipping issue. The decision laid out some specific things Canada and the NEB must do if they want the pipeline green-lighted again.

“Obviously this decision was disappointing but by no means insurmountable,” Sohi said. He said a decision on whether or not to appeal has yet to be made but the government has already acted on steps to respond to the court decision without appealing. First Nations groups not swayed by potential appointment of Supreme Court judge Ottawa looks at having retired judge help guide renewed pipeline review process

As Trans Mountain sits in limbo, will more people divest from fossil fuels? Canada’s plans to restart consultations with Indigenous communities will be announced shortly, he added. A source told The Canadian Press recently the government is looking at hiring a retired federal judge to help oversee those consultations with a view to ensuring they follow court-ordered processes exactly this time.

Sohi is also appointing a scientific technical adviser to the NEB review panel to help conduct the oil tanker review. The expansion project features a second pipeline, roughly parallel to the existing one that runs between Edmonton and Burnaby, B.C. It would triple the total capacity but the new pipeline would carry only diluted bitumen for export to foreign refineries, while the existing one carries a number of products including refined oil and diluted bitumen. Sohi made the announcement in Halifax, where he is hosting G7 energy ministers. Their meeting comes after G7 environment ministers discussed issues including climate change earlier in the week. Environment Minister Catherine McKenna said Friday the issue of expanding the pipeline was not raised at those meetings. However Canada has been heavily criticized by environment groups for approving the expanded pipeline, which they argue is incompatible with Canada’s promise to cut greenhouse gas emissions and help slow global warming. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and the cabinet argue Canada needs to continue to develop its resources even as it makes the slow transition to a greener, cleaner energy economy. Canada issued cabinet approval for the expanded pipeline in 2016 but political opposition — particularly from the new NDP government in British Columbia, which doesn’t want the pipeline — spooked investors from Kinder Morgan Canada enough that the company wanted to walk away from the project. In May, Finance Minister Bill Morneau announced Canada would buy the existing pipeline from Kinder Morgan for $4.5 billion, expand it and then sell it back to a private buyer when the timing was right. Conservative natural resources critic Shannon Stubbs was not appeased by Sohi’s plan. Ordering the NEB to report back in just under six months is one thing, but the government put no timeline on when the Indigenous consultations will be completed, when cabinet might consider the project or when construction would be restarted. “Today there are no timelines for shovels in the ground,” she said. On the other side of the equation, environment groups say the government is ordering the review assuming approval for the project will be reinstated no matter what the NEB finds. Keith Stewart, an energy strategist with Greenpeace, said the government is treating the latest review as a “box-checking exercise,” adding that isn’t a true consultation process. </s> Canada’s federal government instructed on Friday the National Energy Board (NEB) to review the Trans Mountain Pipeline Expansion project again, this time also taking into account the impact of the expected higher oil tanker traffic off the coast of British Columbia.

Last month, a Federal Court of Appeal quashed the federal government’s approval of the Trans Mountain expansion project, saying that the NEB’s review of the project was fraught with flaws that made it unsuitable as a basis for the government’s approval. The court ruled that the NEB failed to adequately consider how increased tanker traffic off British Columbia’s coasts would affect the environment and First Nations people in the region.

“Today, we have instructed the National Energy Board (NEB) to reconsider its recommendations, taking into account the effects of project-related marine shipping. The NEB will be required to complete a thorough and prompt review and deliver its report within 22 weeks,” Canada’s Minister of Natural Resources, Amarjeet Sohi, said in a statement on Friday.

The government will present to the NEB recent government actions to protect the southern resident killer whale and to implement the Oceans Protection Plan, Sohi said.

“The Trans Mountain Pipeline Expansion project (TMX) is an investment in Canada’s future. The Government remains committed to a clear and reliable path forward for the project,” the minister noted.

The Trans Mountain expansion has become one of the most controversial pipeline projects in North America as it pitted two provinces—Alberta and British Columbia—against each other.

Alberta’s heavy oil producers need more pipeline capacity as their production grows, but pipeline capacity has stayed the same. British Columbia’s NDP government, which came into office last year, however, is against any new oil pipelines, although it doesn’t mind all the crude it currently gets from the existing pipeline.

The fierce opposition in British Columbia has forced Kinder Morgan to reconsider its commitment to expand the Trans Mountain pipeline, and to sell the project to the Canadian government.
• None Ex GM Boss: Tesla ‘Headed For The Graveyard’ </s> This time it has to take into account the impact of additional oil tanker traffic off the coast of British Columbia

OTTAWA — The National Energy Board has less than six months to redo its environmental review of the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion, this time taking into account the impact of additional oil tanker traffic off the coast of British Columbia.

Three weeks after the Federal Court of Appeal ripped up the approval for the expansion project, Natural Resources Minister Amarjeet Sohi said cabinet made an order earlier this week telling the NEB it has 22 weeks to complete a thorough review of the environmental impact of additional oil tankers resulting from the additional flows of diluted bitumen coming from an expanded pipeline.

“We are confident that this plan will allow us to meet the high standards that Canadians expect when it comes to protecting the environment,” he said.

The review will include looking at the impact on killer whales of the additional tankers — it’s estimated the number will go from about five tankers a month to 35.

The Federal Court of Appeal last month quashed the approval the NEB and the cabinet gave the project in 2016, citing improper consultation with Indigenous communities and a lack of review of the marine shipping issue. The decision laid out some specific things Canada and the NEB have to do if they want to get the pipeline approved again.

“Obviously this decision was disappointing, but by no means insurmountable,” said Sohi.

He said Canada’s plans to restart consultations with Indigenous communities will be announced shortly.

A source told The Canadian Press recently the government is looking at hiring a retired federal judge to help oversee those consultations with a view to ensuring they follow court-ordered processes exactly this time.

Sohi is also appointing a scientific technical adviser to the NEB review panel to help conduct the oil tanker review.

The expansion project is to build a second pipeline, roughly parallel to the existing one that runs between Edmonton and Burnaby, B.C. It will triple the total capacity, but the new pipeline will only carry diluted bitumen for export to foreign refineries, while the existing one carries a number of products including refined oil.

Sohi was speaking from Halifax, where he is hosting G7 energy ministers for meetings today. G7 environment ministers spent time talking about issues like climate change earlier in the week.

Environment Minister Catherine McKenna said Friday the issue of expanding the pipeline was not raised at those meetings. Canada has been heavily criticized by environmental groups for approving the expanded pipeline, which they argue is incompatible with Canada’s promise to cut greenhouse gas emissions and help slow global warming.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and the cabinet argue Canada needs to continue to develop its resources even as it makes the slow transition to a clean energy economy.

Canada issued cabinet approval for the expanded pipeline in 2016, but political opposition, particularly from the new NDP government in British Columbia that doesn’t want the pipeline, spooked investors from Kinder Morgan Canada enough the company wanted to walk away from the project.

In May, Finance Minister Bill Morneau announced Canada would buy the existing pipeline from Kinder Morgan for $4.5 billion, expand it and then sell it back to a private buyer when the timing was right.

With files from Janice Dickson </s> WINNIPEG, Manitoba (Reuters) - The Canadian government on Friday directed its National Energy Board (NEB) regulator to conduct a new review of its application to nearly triple the capacity of the Trans Mountain oil pipeline, taking into account the impact of additional marine traffic.

FILE PHOTO: A workman walks past steel pipe to be used in the oil pipeline construction of Kinder Morgan Canada's Trans Mountain Expansion Project at a stockpile site in Kamloops, British Columbia, Canada May 29, 2018. REUTERS/Dennis Owen/File Photo

Expansion of the pipeline, which the government bought last month from Kinder Morgan Canada Ltd, has become a political liability for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Alberta Premier Rachel Notley, ahead of federal and provincial elections next year. Delays have frustrated Albertans, prompting Notley to withdraw from Trudeau’s national plan to curb carbon emissions.

The NEB must report to cabinet within 22 weeks, Natural Resources Minister Amarjeet Sohi said in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Canada’s Federal Court of Appeal last month overturned the Liberal government’s 2016 approval for expanding the pipeline, which runs from Alberta’s oil heartland to the British Columbia coast.

The timeline for the review, stretching to late February 2019, allows the government to potentially restart construction before the expected spring election in Alberta.

Sohi declined to say when construction could resume.

“We are not focused on election cycles. We are focused on what needs to be done right,” he said.

Trans Mountain expansion faces opposition from the British Columbia government, environmental groups and some municipalities and aboriginal communities, who fear the impact of spills and expanding oil production.

Canada’s oil producers say the expanded pipeline is critical to addressing bottlenecks that have led to steeply discounted prices for their crude.

Sohi said the government would appoint a marine adviser to the NEB, and will ask the regulator to consider its actions to protect killer whales. The government will announce shortly whether it will appeal the appellate court’s decision to Canada’s Supreme Court, and how it will consult indigenous people, he said.

The appellate court ruled in August that the NEB wrongly narrowed its review to exclude the impact of additional tanker traffic on marine life. Additionally, Ottawa failed to adequately consult indigenous people as required by law, it ruled.

The Trudeau government appears to be conducting a “box-checking exercise,” given statements by senior government leaders that the project will be built, said Keith Stewart, senior energy strategist at Greenpeace Canada.

Delays in expanding the pipeline are harming Canada’s investment reputation, said Shannon Stubbs, a Conservative member of Parliament.

The Trans Mountain pipeline runs from Edmonton, Alberta, to an export terminal in the Vancouver area. </s> WINNIPEG, Manitoba (Reuters) - The Canadian government on Friday directed its National Energy Board (NEB) regulator to conduct a new review of its application to expand the Trans Mountain oil pipeline, taking into account the impact of additional marine traffic.

The NEB must report to cabinet within 22 weeks, Natural Resources Minister Amarjeet Sohi said in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Canada’s Federal Court of Appeal last month overturned the Liberal government’s approval of expansion of the pipeline, which runs from Alberta’s crude oil heartland to the British Columbia coast.

Sohi said the government would appoint a marine adviser to the NEB. The government will announce shortly whether it will appeal the appellate court’s decision to Canada’s Supreme Court, and how it will consult with indigenous people about the pipeline, he said.

The appellate court ruled in August that the NEB wrongly narrowed its review of the project to exclude the impact of additional tanker traffic on marine life. Additionally, the federal government failed to adequately consult indigenous people, as required by law, it ruled.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government agreed in May to buy the pipeline from Kinder Morgan Canada Ltd for C$4.5 billion, betting it would win in the Federal Court of Appeal.

The project faces fierce opposition from the British Columbia government, environmental groups and some municipalities and aboriginal communities. Canada’s oil producers say the expanded pipeline is needed to address bottlenecks that have sharply reduced prices for their crude. </s> The court combined into one case nearly two dozen lawsuits calling for the National Energy Board’s review of Kinder Morgan Canada Ltd.’s project to be overturned

The Federal Court of Appeal has overturned the Trudeau government’s approval of the contentious Trans Mountain pipeline expansion.

In a unanimous decision by a panel of three judges, the court says the National Energy Board’s review of the project was so flawed that the federal government could not rely on it as a basis for its decision to approve the expansion.

The court also concludes that the federal government failed in its duty to engage in meaningful consultations with First Nations before giving the green light to the project.

The decision came mere moments after Kinder Morgan shareholders voted overwhelmingly in favour of finalizing the sale of Trans Mountain to the Canadian government.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government approved the project in 2016 and is so determined to see the line built that it announced plans this spring to buy the pipeline and expansion project for $4.5 billion.

The court ruling requires the energy board to conduct a new review — which the court suggests could be kept short — and means the government will have to redo part of its consultations with Indigenous groups.

The court combined into one case nearly two dozen lawsuits calling for the energy board’s review of Kinder Morgan Canada’s project to be overturned.

First Nations, including the Tsleil-Waututh and Squamish on British Columbia’s south coast, argued that Ottawa did not adequately consult them before the review or the cabinet decision to approve the project.

Lawyers for the federal government told court that Ottawa conducted extensive consultations.

Environmental groups and the cities of Vancouver and Burnaby also challenged the project in Federal Court last fall. They were supported by the province of British Columbia, which acted as an intervener.

Alberta was also an intervener and the province’s lawyer told the court Ottawa’s decision to approve the pipeline expansion was based on broad evidence that considered environmental, economic and Indigenous interests.

The expansion would triple the capacity of the Trans Mountain pipeline from near Edmonton to Burnaby, B.C., to 890,000 barrels a day. It would also increase the number of tankers in Burrard Inlet seven-fold.

The court ruled that the review contained one fatal flaw: it excluded the project’s impact on marine shipping. That, in turn, meant that the energy board did not assess the potential impact of increased tanker traffic on the southern resident killer whale population.

That failure “was so critical that the Governor in Council could not functionally make the kind of assessment of the project’s environmental effects and the public interest that the (environmental assessment) legislation requires,” says the ruling written by Justice Eleanor Dawson.

As for consultations with Indigenous communities, the court found that the government’s representatives “limited their mandate to listening to and recording the concerns of the Indigenous applicants and then transmitting those concerns to the decision-makers.” There was no “meaningful two-way dialogue.”

“The Indigenous applicants were entitled to a dialogue that demonstrated that Canada not only heard but also gave serious consideration to the specific and real concerns the Indigenous applicants put to Canada, gave serious consideration to proposed accommodation measures and explained how the concerns of the Indigenous applicants impacted Canada’s decision to approve the project.”

The Federal Court case was the most significant legal challenge facing the project and the decision may still be appealed to the Supreme Court of Canada.

Representatives from the Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh along with other First Nations spokespeople were expected to comment on the ruling at a media event.

Kinder Morgan had already won several court victories, including one last week when the Supreme Court of Canada dismissed an application from the City of Burnaby to overturn a lower court decision.

The Federal Court of Appeal is expected to release a judgment today on whether the federal government adequately consulted First Nations on the contentious Trans Mountain pipeline expansion.

The court combined into one case nearly two dozen lawsuits calling for the National Energy Board’s review of Kinder Morgan Canada Ltd.’s project to be overturned.

First Nations, including the Tsleil-Waututh and Squamish on British Columbia’s south coast, argued the federal government did not adequately consult them before the energy board review or the cabinet decision to approve the project.

Lawyers for the federal government told court that Ottawa conducted extensive consultation.

Environmental groups and the cities of Vancouver and Burnaby also challenged the project in Federal Court last fall, supported by British Columbia, which was an intervener.

Alberta was also an intervener and the province’s lawyer told the court that Ottawa’s decision to approve the expansion was based on evidence that considered environmental, economic and Indigenous interests.

Kinder Morgan shareholders are also set to vote today on whether to approve the sale of the pipeline and expansion project to the Canadian government for $4.5 billion.

Related: Trans Mountain pipeline: How we got here

Related: TIMELINE: Key dates in the history of the Trans Mountain pipeline

Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter. </s> The court combined into one case nearly two dozen lawsuits calling for the National Energy Board’s review of Kinder Morgan Canada Ltd.’s project to be overturned

The Federal Court of Appeal has overturned the Trudeau government’s approval of the contentious Trans Mountain pipeline expansion.

In a unanimous decision by a panel of three judges, the court says the National Energy Board’s review of the project was so flawed that the federal government could not rely on it as a basis for its decision to approve the expansion.

The court also concludes that the federal government failed in its duty to engage in meaningful consultations with First Nations before giving the green light to the project.

The decision came less than an hour before Kinder Morgan shareholders voted overwhelmingly in favour of finalizing the sale of Trans Mountain to the Canadian government.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government approved the project in 2016 and is so determined to see the line built that it announced plans this spring to buy the pipeline and expansion project for $4.5 billion.

The court ruling requires the energy board to conduct a new review — which the court suggests could be kept short — and means the government will have to redo part of its consultations with Indigenous groups.

The court combined into one case nearly two dozen lawsuits calling for the energy board’s review of Kinder Morgan Canada’s project to be overturned.

First Nations, including the Tsleil-Waututh and Squamish on British Columbia’s south coast, argued that Ottawa did not adequately consult them before the review or the cabinet decision to approve the project.

Lawyers for the federal government told court that Ottawa conducted extensive consultations.

Environmental groups and the cities of Vancouver and Burnaby also challenged the project in Federal Court last fall. They were supported by the province of British Columbia, which acted as an intervener.

Alberta was also an intervener and the province’s lawyer told the court Ottawa’s decision to approve the pipeline expansion was based on broad evidence that considered environmental, economic and Indigenous interests.

The expansion would triple the capacity of the Trans Mountain pipeline from near Edmonton to Burnaby, B.C., to 890,000 barrels a day. It would also increase the number of tankers in Burrard Inlet seven-fold.

The court ruled that the review contained one fatal flaw: it excluded the project’s impact on marine shipping. That, in turn, meant that the energy board did not assess the potential impact of increased tanker traffic on the southern resident killer whale population.

That failure “was so critical that the Governor in Council could not functionally make the kind of assessment of the project’s environmental effects and the public interest that the (environmental assessment) legislation requires,” says the ruling written by Justice Eleanor Dawson.

As for consultations with Indigenous communities, the court found that the government’s representatives “limited their mandate to listening to and recording the concerns of the Indigenous applicants and then transmitting those concerns to the decision-makers.” There was no “meaningful two-way dialogue.”

“The Indigenous applicants were entitled to a dialogue that demonstrated that Canada not only heard but also gave serious consideration to the specific and real concerns the Indigenous applicants put to Canada, gave serious consideration to proposed accommodation measures and explained how the concerns of the Indigenous applicants impacted Canada’s decision to approve the project.”

The Federal Court case was the most significant legal challenge facing the project and the decision may still be appealed to the Supreme Court of Canada.

Representatives from the Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh along with other First Nations spokespeople were expected to comment on the ruling at a media event.

Kinder Morgan had already won several court victories, including one last week when the Supreme Court of Canada dismissed an application from the City of Burnaby to overturn a lower court decision.

The Federal Court of Appeal is expected to release a judgment today on whether the federal government adequately consulted First Nations on the contentious Trans Mountain pipeline expansion.

The court combined into one case nearly two dozen lawsuits calling for the National Energy Board’s review of Kinder Morgan Canada Ltd.’s project to be overturned.

First Nations, including the Tsleil-Waututh and Squamish on British Columbia’s south coast, argued the federal government did not adequately consult them before the energy board review or the cabinet decision to approve the project.

Lawyers for the federal government told court that Ottawa conducted extensive consultation.

Environmental groups and the cities of Vancouver and Burnaby also challenged the project in Federal Court last fall, supported by British Columbia, which was an intervener.

Alberta was also an intervener and the province’s lawyer told the court that Ottawa’s decision to approve the expansion was based on evidence that considered environmental, economic and Indigenous interests.

Kinder Morgan shareholders are also set to vote today on whether to approve the sale of the pipeline and expansion project to the Canadian government for $4.5 billion.

Related: Trans Mountain pipeline: How we got here

Related: TIMELINE: Key dates in the history of the Trans Mountain pipeline

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Canada Natural Resources Minister Amarjeet Sohi orders the National Energy Board to conduct a new review of the Trans Mountain Pipeline expansion project.