PRESS RELEASE

STATEMENT BY CONSERVATION COUNCIL'S MATT ABBOTT ON THE APPOINTMENT OF THE PANEL TO REVIEW THE PROPOSED ENERGY EAST PIPELINE

January 10, 2017

(Fredericton, NB) The Conservation Council’s Fundy Baykeeper says it should be “back to the drawing board” for the review of the proposed Energy East pipeline project, the largest ever pipeline proposed in Canada – one that would cross over 300 rivers and streams in New Brunswick and would export oil from its terminus in Saint John by supertanker across the Bay of Fundy and down through the Gulf of Maine.

“The announcement of the replacement of the project’s review panel members is but one small part of a complicated, and sorely discredited, process,” said Matt Abbott.

“Federal Natural Resources Minister Jim Carr announced an expert panel in November to make recommendations on how the NEB can be modernized, especially with respect to First Nations consultation and support, improved public participation, credible information on the potential impact to Canada’s water systems, including the Bay of Fundy, and squaring oil export with Canada’s plan to reduce carbon pollution,” said Abbott.

“It’s difficult to see how the new panel could embark on any credible process without first seeing the results of the modernization review.“

CCNB first called for a restart of the project review in August, when conflict of interest allegations forced suspension of public hearings and the eventual recusal of the former EE review panel members.

Unresolved issues with respect to any review on the proposed pipeline include whether or not new panel members will hear from scientists, First Nations and environmental groups and fishermen from New Brunswick; whether they will extend the impact zone under review to include the whole Bay of Fundy and whether they will require a complete analysis of both the business case for the pipeline and the impact of eventual spills from it on the natural environment, said Abbott.

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To arrange an interview contact Matt Abbott at (506) 321-0429

For more information on how the proposed Energy East pipeline would affect the Bay of Fundy, read the National Resource Defense Council’s report on tanker traffic in the Bay of Fundy: Sensitive Marine Ecosystems Threatened by Energy East’s ‘Aquatic Pipeline’.

For a full list of New Brunswick waterways at risk from Energy East, check out our interactive map.

For more information on the risks of Energy East to the communities of the Bay of Fundy and Gulf of Maine, read the Conservation Council’s report: Tanker Traffic and Tar Balls: What TransCanada’s Energy East Pipeline Means for the Bay of Fundy and Gulf of Maine.
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