Sierra Club BC hails Trans Mountain decision

VICTORIA – Sierra Club BC hailed today’s decision of the Federal Court of Appeal on the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion as a major victory.

Reaction from Sierra Club BC conservation and climate campaigner Mark Worthing:

“It’s time for Prime Minister Trudeau to walk away from this pipeline and tankers project. Today’s decision should be a lesson to politicians: your days of being servants to multinationals and fossil fuel corporations are coming to an end. We will no longer wait for climate justice.

“If the Trudeau government takes its commitment to reconciliation and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples seriously, then these rigged and superficial approaches must become a thing of the past. Indigenous peoples have the right to free prior and informed consent.

“The decision making processes have been rigged for too long. It’s time for a more modern, democratic process that subjects projects like this to much closer scrutiny, especially of the many environmental, social and economic dangers they pose.
“Fossil fuel infrastructure must be subject to a robust and thorough climate test that considers their impact on emissions and whether there are less carbon-intensive alternatives.”

Reaction from Sierra Club BC campaigns director Caitlyn Vernon:

“Today’s court ruling is a victory for orca whales, for our climate, for Indigenous peoples defending their title and rights, and for the rights of all of us to defend the land and waters we love and call home.

“We are thrilled that the courts have overturned federal approval of this dangerous pipeline and tankers project that would have put so much at risk.

“Climate leaders don’t build pipelines. It’s time for Trudeau to walk away from this dinosaur fossil fuel project and focus on building a clean energy economy instead. We can create more jobs by investing in renewable energy.”

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Media contact:

Mark Worthing
Conservation and Climate Campaigner, Sierra Club BC
(250) 889-3575
mark@sierraclub.bc.ca