UNANIMOUS: Supreme Court Shuts Down Horgan’s Attempt To Block Trans Mountain Pipeline Expansion

Good news for the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion.

In a unanimous decision, the Supreme Court of Canada dismissed an appeal by the B.C. government that had sought to overturn a decision that struck down the province’s legislation seeking to block the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion.

As a result, the decision by the B.C. Court of Appeal remains in force, and B.C.’s legislation is struck down.

B.C. had basically sought to control what oil Alberta could send through the province in pipelines. Of course, since pipelines that cross provincial borders are considered a federal jurisdiction as national infrastructure, there were serious doubts as to whether B.C. could exercise control over it.

The judges unanimously shut down B.C.’s argument, needing only about an hour of deliberations to make their decision.

As Justice Rowe said, “If you have a pipeline and you can’t put anything through it, it’s totally useless. That frustrates the federal permitting process does it not? Today, it’s heavy oil. Tomorrow, it could be anything else.”

This is a great decision for Canada, as it reaffirms the ability of the government to approve infrastructure projects, and stops the hypocritical move of the Horgan government to try and control and block Alberta’s oil resources.

Spencer Fernando

Photo – YouTube