Canada's Pipeline Plans Spark Indigenous Resistance

The Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation and the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs are opposing a new oil pipeline to the West Coast, citing concerns over the project's impact on Indigenous rights and climate change.

In July, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and Alberta Premier Danielle Smith signed an agreement to fast-track a one-million barrel a day tar sands pipeline to B.C.'s southern coast. The pipeline would follow a similar route to the existing Trans Mountain pipeline.

The Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs argues that this proposal violates the duty to free, prior and informed consent enshrined in multiple sections of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, which Canada adopted as law in 2021.

Athabasca Chipewyan Chief Allan Adam stated, 'If the B.C. chiefs say no, I respect what the B.C. chiefs want.' He also expressed concerns about the health impacts of tar sands extraction on downstream communities and fears that releasing treated tar sands tailings fluids into the Athabasca River would exacerbate these issues.

The federal government plans to submit the proposed pipeline to the Major Projects Office for approval as a 'national interest' project by October 1, which would then force the project to proceed.