WATCH: It’s setting up to be a showdown in Ottawa this weekend. The Prime Minister is cutting short his trip to Peru to deal with the festering B.C.-Alberta standoff over the Kinder Morgan pipeline expansion. He’s called a meeting to deal with the feuding NDP premiers, Alberta’s Rachel Notley, and B.C.’s John Horgan.
The province’s environment minister says the government’s focus is defending the B.C. coast in the feud over the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion.
George Heymen says the environment and jobs could see potentially serious impacts in case of an oil spill and doesn’t expect B.C. to back down from its position when Premier John Horgan sits down with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Alberta Premier Rachel Notley Sunday.
I will be meeting with Prime Minister @JustinTrudeau and Premier @RachelNotley this coming Sunday in Ottawa. I'll be there to represent BC, our coast and economy.
— John Horgan (@jjhorgan) April 12, 2018
The province is asking the courts to decide jurisdiction over the pipeline that will triple the flow of oil from Kinder Morgan sites in Edmonton and Burnaby and Heyman said the federal government has rejected invitations to join the process.
B.C. Green Party leader Andrew Weaver says Trudeau and Notley should consider more inland refineries, rather than pipelines.
Horgan, Trudeau and Notley are set to meet Sunday when the Prime Minister returns from his Summit of the Americas trip to Peru in an effort to find a resolution to the project expansion.
Kinder Morgan has given a May 31 deadline for the government to convince the company that construction will be completed without further disruptions.
Kinder Morgan stopped non-essential spending on the $7.4 billion dollar project Sunday because of opposition delays.
B.C. Environment Minister George Heyman. File photo. (CBC).
Andy Neal
