WATCH: As the contentious Kinder Morgan pipeline project continues to draw attention around the world, the latest opinion polls indicate public support for the project here in B.C. As Mary Griffin tells us though, our premier warns that the Trans Mountain battle is far from over.
Although the B.C. government isn’t wavering from its opposition to the Kinder Morgan pipeline expansion, results from a new survey suggest a slim majority of British Columbians, including on Vancouver Island, want construction to go ahead.
An Angus Reid survey Wednesday morning shows support for the contentious pipeline has increased in the last two months by six points in B.C. to 54 per cent, compared to 48 per cent in February.
The report also shows those in favour of pipeline expansion is above the rate of those against it on Vancouver Island, with 54 per cent saying they support the project.
43 per cent of respondents on Vancouver Island say they do not support the expansion, and three per cent are unsure which side of the controversy they are on.
Angus Reid says outside Vancouver Island and Metro Vancouver, support is at 60 per cent for the rest of B.C.
Those in favour of the pipeline in Metro Vancouver is at 50 per cent compared to 39 per cent opposed.
Expansion of the pipeline to triple oil flowing from Edmonton to Burnaby is supported by 55 per cent of Canadians overall, up from 49 per cent in February.
An oil tanker spill is the single greatest concern among British Columbians at 52 per cent, with overall environmental impact and fossil fuel burning next on the list at 16 per cent.
SURVEY SAYS HORGAN GETS A LUKEWARM RATING IN B.C. OVER HIS HANDLING OF THE DISPUTE
The Angus Reid pipeline survey says British Columbians are split on how Premier John Horgan has handled the Kinder Morgan dispute.
45 per cent of B.C. residents say Horgan has done a good job, but 44 per cent think the opposite.
Horgan’s government has opposed the twinning project over environmental concerns and is looking to the courts to decide who has jurisdiction over the pipeline in the province.
When Angus Reid asked if the court ruled B.C. does not have authority to block construction, 69 per cent of British Columbians think the government should give in and allow the pipeline to be built.
That includes a third of those opposed to the project.
On a national scale, 31 per cent of Canadians think Horgan has done a good job but 38 per cent say the B.C. premier has done a poor job.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has 36 per cent support from Canadians on his role in the dispute, but 46 per cent say otherwise and 60 per cent in B.C. give Trudeau a negative review.
Rachel Notley got a good job response from 42 per cent of those who answered the survey, with that view from 54 per cent of Albertans.
The report shows 64 per cent of Canadians agree with the statement that the B.C. government is wrong to oppose the expansion of the Trans Mountain pipeline.
However, 56 per cent of Canadians do not like the idea of Alberta and the federal government using taxpayer dollars to invest in the pipeline, with 70 per cent opposed in B.C. and Manitoba.
Asked who they would vote for in the next B.C. election if it was contested primarily on the Kinder Morgan issue, the B.C. Liberals get a slight edge at 29 per cent compared to 25 per cent for the NDP, but three-in-ten are undecided.
File photo.
Andy Neal
