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. “I think the Liberals are hoping they can begin construction next late spring, but I don’t know whether that’s feasible.”

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The professor noted consultations with Indigenous communities could take even longer than six months. 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.
Canada Natural Resources Minister Amarjeet Sohi orders the National Energy Board to conduct a new review of the Trans Mountain Pipeline expansion project.