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> Last week’s court ruling on the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion would have “killed” the project outright if it were still in private hands, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said.

Trudeau defended his government’s decision to buy the pipeline in remarks to reporters during a visit to Edmonton Wednesday.

His appearance comes one week after the Federal Court of Appeal reversed a cabinet decision allowing construction to begin on the pipeline expansion between Strathcona County and Burnaby, B.C.

“If that project expansion was still in private hands, that court of appeal ruling would have killed it,” Trudeau said to reporters in Edmonton.

Faced with opposition from the B.C. government, some Indigenous communities and environmental groups, the federal government in May opted to purchase the pipeline and all of Kinder Morgan Canada’s core assets.

The $4.5-billion deal closed last Thursday, the same day the appellate court ruling further delayed the project.

Trudeau told 630 CHED radio listeners Wednesday morning that the project would be “dead” if the federal government hadn’t stepped in, citing government’s higher tolerance for risk and the fact it does not need to turn a profit.

“There would be no Trans Mountain expansion if it was still a private proponent doing it,” he said. “So our decision to actually take on the project is the only thing that means that we can still move forward with this project.”

Trudeau’s comments drew criticism from Conservative natural resources critic Shannon Stubbs, MP for the eastern Alberta riding of Lakeland.

“It’s a very damaging message — for the prime minister to basically admit that the private sector can’t build pipelines in Canada,” she said.

She said the project is still stalled despite the government’s purchase.

“If the prime minister knew, as he should have, that there was this risk of this ruling … then why did he not have a concrete action plan that would be launched and announced immediately in the event of that ruling?”

On Wednesday, the head of Suncor Energy Inc. said the company won’t move ahead with additional crude oil production expansion until there’s physical progress on getting pipelines approved.

Chief executive Steve Williams told an investor conference in New York that recent judicial rulings on Trans Mountain and Keystone XL do not have any impacts on its ability to get its product to market in the short term.

However, the company won’t approve additional expansions in production next year and into 2020 until the fate of the pipelines is clear, he said.

The appellate court found the federal government fell short in assessing the pipeline expansion’s impacts on tanker traffic, as well as in its duty to consult First Nations before approving the project.

Martha Hall Findlay, a former Liberal MP who is now CEO of the Canada West Foundation, disagreed with Trudeau’s claim that the court decision would have killed a privately held project.

“We don’t feel that way,” she said. “Very much the thrust of our messaging on (the Trans Mountain expansion) … is that private or not, the decision actually has a lot of positives.”

Among other things, the court outlined specific steps that clarify the National Energy Board’s responsibilities, as well as the duty to consult Indigenous peoples, she said. Appealing the decision would likely take longer than fixing the problems the court identified, she added.

The federal government and proponents have “a much clearer way forward” on energy projects after the decision, Hall Findlay added, predicting the decision would “in fact help Canada’s investment climate.”

“The court went out of its way to talk about (how) what is needed should not actually take much more delay … there’s no question this court was very conscious about not saying that this project (is) a no-go.”

— With files from Clare Clancy and The Canadian Press </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

Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter. </s> VANCOUVER—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.

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. </s> VANCOUVER — 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.

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.
• Trudeau dogged by pipeline protesters as he visits B.C. forestry centre </s> EDMONTON — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will be in Edmonton today, where he’ll face questions about his government’s plans for the beleaguered Trans Mountain pipeline expansion.

The prime minister’s office says Trudeau will meet with Premier Rachel Notley this afternoon. A spokeswoman for Notley says the meeting will be about the pipeline, and that the premier hopes to discuss possible paths forward for the controversial project.

The Federal Court of Appeal last week reversed a cabinet decision to allow construction to go ahead, ruling there was not enough consultation with Indigenous people and that the National Energy Board didn’t properly consider the impact of an increase in oil tanker traffic.

After last week’s court decision, Notley announced she was pulling Alberta out of the federal climate plan until Ottawa gets the expansion back on track. She also demanded that Trudeau appeal the ruling to the Supreme Court of Canada and hold an emergency session of Parliament on the issue.

Trudeau has said Ottawa remains committed to getting the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion built.

The project would triple the bitumen-carrying capacity of the existing pipeline from the Edmonton area and Metro Vancouver.

Minutes after the court ruling was released on Friday, Kinder Morgan shareholders approved the sale of the existing pipeline and other assets to the federal government for $4.5 billion. The purchase closed on Friday, making the federal government wholly responsible for what happens next.

During his visit to the Alberta capital, Trudeau will also tour several facilities and a cultural society with Natural Resources Minister Amarjeet Sohi, who is an Edmonton MP. The prime minister will give a speech at a Liberal fundraising event in the evening. </s> (Reuters) - A Canadian court has overturned approval of the Trans Mountain oil pipeline expansion, leaving the future of the C$7.4 billion ($5.71 billion) project in jeopardy, in a blow to the Canadian government and the country’s oil sector.

The Federal Court of Appeal ruled on Thursday that the government had failed to adequately consult First Nations, sending the project back to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s cabinet.

Canada agreed in May to buy the pipeline for C$4.5 billion from Kinder Morgan Canada, betting it would win the court battle and be able to build an expansion, which faces fierce political and environmental opposition.

The expansion would nearly triple capacity on an existing line from Edmonton, Alberta to a port in the Vancouver area for export and was approved by the federal government in 2016. Alberta oil companies say the pipeline is needed to ease transport challenges and allow them to fetch better prices.

In its ruling, the court said that Canada’s efforts to meaningfully consult with indigenous people, as required by law, fell short. It also ruled that the National Energy Board (NEB) regulator wrongly narrowed its review of the project not to include tanker traffic related to the project. </s> In a unanimous decision, the federal court of appeal said the government failed to consider the concerns of some First Nations

This article is more than 1 year old

This article is more than 1 year old

A Canadian court has overturned Ottawa’s approval of a hotly-contested pipeline project – throwing plans to nearly triple the flow of Alberta’s landlocked bitumen to the west coast into limbo – in a ruling hailed by environmentalists and Indigenous groups.

In a unanimous decision released on Thursday, the federal court of appeal said the Liberal government – led by Justin Trudeau – failed to adequately consider the concerns of some First Nations regarding the Trans Mountain expansion project.

The ruling also found that the country’s energy regulator, the National Energy Board, did not properly consider the impact of increased tanker traffic due to the project.

'Our land is our home': Canadians build tiny homes in bid to thwart pipeline Read more

The scheme had been a crucial test for Trudeau and his government, who swept into office in 2015 on promises of striking a balance between economic growth, environmental concerns and repairing the country’s fraught relationship with Indigenous peoples.

While the project could allow Alberta to get its bitumen to markets in Asia and reduce its reliance on the US market, there has been opposition over the potential for oil spills and the impact that a dramatic rise in tanker traffic could have on the region’s southern resident killer whales, a population already on the knife edge of extinction.

The court ruling will halt construction of the 1,150km project, spearheaded by Texas-based Kinder Morgan, until the energy regulator and government can show they have complied with the court’s demands – a process that could take years.

Several Indigenous groups and environmentalists applauded the ruling, which emerged from a legal challenge backed by more than a dozen groups, including the city of Vancouver, several First Nations and environmental organisations.

“Thankfully, the court has stepped in where Canada has failed to protect and respect our rights and our water,” Coldwater Indian Band chief Lee Spahan said in a statement.

Recent months have seen increased Indigenous-led protests against the project, with thousands of people demonstrating in the streets. Hundreds – including two federal MPs – have been arrested for blocking the entrance of a facility belonging to Trans Mountain.

The federal government, who earlier this year announced it would spend $4.5bn to purchase the pipeline in a bid to push the expansion forward, said it was reviewing the decision.

“We are absolutely committed to moving forward with this project,” Bill Morneau, Canada’s finance minister, told reporters on Thursday, saying that the government had yet to decide whether it would appeal.

The court’s decision was announced minutes before Kinder Morgan shareholders voted to approve the sale of the pipeline to the Canadian government. Morneau defended the purchase, describing it as a “sound investment”, given that any private sector company would have found it difficult to bear the risks involved with the project.

“We believe this project is in the national interest, we believe that it’s critically important for our economy, critically important to allow us … to get to international markets,” said Morneau.

Thursday’s ruling puts the government in a difficult position, said Stewart Phillip, grand chief of the Union of British Columbia Indian Chiefs. “They actually bought the pipeline that nobody wanted,” he said. “And they paid too much for it.”

The ruling also exposes the federal government’s shortcomings when it comes to meaningful dialogue with Indigenous peoples – despite Trudeau’s oft-repeated promises to do better. “Clearly the eloquent words of Prime Minister Trudeau do not reconcile with his actions on the ground,” said Phillip.

Describing the decision as a “massive victory”, Greenpeace Canada noted that the ruling offers the federal government a second chance of sorts. “Now it’s time for Prime Minister Trudeau to read the writing on the wall, dump this pipeline and shift the billions of public dollars slated for this problem-plagued project into Canada’s renewable energy economy,” Mike Hudema of the organisation said in a statement.

He added: “This summer’s fires, floods and choking smoke make it impossible to ignore the rising costs of climate inaction, so the prime minister should welcome the opportunity created by today’s ruling to get on the right side of history.” </s> VANCOUVER – The Federal Court of Appeal has quashed Ottawa’s approval of the contentious Trans Mountain pipeline expansion.

READ MORE: Cost to twin Trans Mountain pipeline now $1.9B higher, Kinder Morgan says

The decision means the National Energy Board will have to redo its review of Kinder Morgan Canada’s project.

In a written decision, the court says the energy board’s review 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.

That decision means the government will have to redo part of its consultations with Indigenous groups.

READ MORE: ‘I’ve lived my 70 years abiding by the law’: B.C. grandma jailed for Trans Mountain protest

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

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

The expansion would triple the capacity of the Trans Mountain pipeline that carries oil from near Edmonton to Metro Vancouver for overseas shipping.

Kinder Morgan shareholders are to vote later today on whether to approve the sale to Canada.
A Canadian court overturns Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s decision to expand the Trans Mountain Pipeline.