UBCIC Battles Pipeline Plans: 'Tie Them Up in Court for Next 20 Years'

The Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs (UBCIC) is calling for Prime Minister Mark Carney and Alberta Premier Danielle Smith to halt plans for a new oil pipeline to the West Coast.

The proposed pipeline, which would carry one million barrels of tar sands oil per day, has already been submitted to the Major Projects Office for approval as a 'national interest' project.

However, the UBCIC argues that this is a violation of 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 First Nation Chief Allan Adam has pledged to launch court cases against the pipeline, stating 'We will start launching court cases, and we will tie them all up in court for the next 20 years.'