The Unist’ot’en clan of the Wet’suwet’en has set up a protective camp south of Houston and has been physically impeding pipeline proponents such as Coastal GasLink and Chevron from entering their territory.
While the initial route for the proposed Coastal GasLink pipeline would run about one kilometre south of the Unist’ot’en camp, the alternate route would be approximately five kilometres north of the camp.
The B.C. Environmental Assessment Office and the B.C. Oil and Gas Commission are currently reviewing Coastal GasLink’s application for the new route and a decision is expected for the first quarter of 2016.
Meanwhile Chevron, which also proposes a natural gas pipeline passing through the area, says the company has no plans to change the proposed routing for its Pacific Trail Pipeline (PTP).
“Chevron believes the proposed pipeline route is the safest and most environmentally sound,” said Gillian Robinson, Chevron-Kitimat LNG Spokesperson.
The PTP is a proposed 480-km pipeline that will deliver gas from Summit Lake, B.C., to the Kitimat LNG facility, passing directly through Unist’ot’en territory.
According to Chevron, the pre-construction work for the proposed pipeline was close to reaching the Unist’ot’en camp last summer. Between early July and October of 2015, Chevron undertook pre-construction work along a portion of the PTP route that traverses Wet’suwet’en traditional territory and was near the location of the Unist’ot’en camp at the Morice River bridge.
Even though organizers of the Unist’ot’en camp have sent several letters to Chevron saying the company does not have permission to access their lands, Chevron representatives have made several attempts to conduct pre-construction work on Unist’ot’en territory.
One of these attempts, which took place on July 23, 2015, was recorded and posted on You Tube. In the video, Rod Maier, Manager of External Relation and Communications for the Kitimat LNG Project, asks for permission to enter Unist’ot’en territory so that Chevron can conduct environmental field studies. After being denied access, he offers bottled water and tobacco to Unist’ot’en camp members as an offering.
“We’ve got clean water right here that’s good to drink; and that’s pollution [the plastic]; that adds to the landfill,” responds Freda Huson, Unist’ot’en camp Spokesperson.
While the Unist’ot’en clan has strongly opposed the proposed pipeline, Chevron has made agreements with 16 First Nations bands along the proposed route, including five Wet’suwet’en bands.
Robinson said Chevron continues to engage with Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs, the Office of the Wet’suwet’en and other Unist’ot’en house members, and that Chevron is committed to seeing the blockade resolved through “dialogue and discussion.”
“We are always open to meeting with the organizers of the Unist’ot’en camp at any time to listen to their concerns and to share information about our project if they would like to meet with us,” said Robinson.
The PTP’s environmental assessment certificate was issued by the B.C. Environmental Assessment Office in 2008. Robinson says all work done to date has been permitted by the B.C. Oil and Gas Commission, including last summer’s pre-construction work program.
Full construction of the PTP will begin once the project proponents have reached a final investment decision. However, there is still no estimate date for that to happen.
