(Mark D’Arcy at last Saturday’s information table by Council of Canadians – Fredericton chapter. The table is set up on ‘Democracy Row’, a public right-of-way in front of the Fredericton Boyce Farmers’ Market. – July 16, 2016)
Speaking with the public about Energy East at the weekly information table of our Council of Canadians Fredericton chapter is a great litmus test of public opinion on this project. Over the last two years, I have witnessed firsthand a significant drop in public support for this project. The doubts and outright opposition to the project are now the majority opinion at our table.
(Terry Wishart answering questions about the proposed Energy East route in New Brunswick. Terry was at last Saturday’s information table by Council of Canadians – Fredericton chapter, set up on ‘Democracy Row’, a public right-of-way in front of the Fredericton Boyce Farmers’ Market.– July 16, 2016)
With the intense scrutiny on tar sands pipeline across Canada, the affected communities and general public are in no mood for the National Energy Board (NEB) to conduct disingenuous public hearings and rubber stamp the approval of Energy East. Yet the restrictive limitations on public participation, imposed on the NEB Hearing process in 2012, are still in place. The Harper Government included these changes in the omnibus budget Bill C-38.
These restrictions only allow a select few to speak or submit written comments to the NEB Review Panel for Energy East. Less than a quarter of Canadians (608 out of 2652 applicants) who applied to make a submission on Energy East will be allowed to make an oral presentation or written submission to the NEB Review Board.
Because this is 2016, there are three (3) essential steps that the National Energy Board must take to ensure open, fair public hearings on Energy East:
#1 – Anyone wishing to make a presentation should be able to appear before the NEB Review Board. The NEB has established this precedent in previous hearings, including the public consultation sessions for the Brunswick Pipeline held in Saint John, New Brunswick in 2006.
SCREEN CAPTURE FROM PAGE 11 – 06-11-06 International Reporting Inc. – Hearing Transcript – Volume 1 (A13946)
#2 – Both video and audio of the NEB Energy East sessions should be webcast. The NEB has established this precedent in previous hearings, including the NEB Trans Mountain Pipeline sessions in Burnaby and Vancouver from December 2015 through February 2016.
SCREEN CAPTURE FROM WEB PAGE – Audio and video links from past hearings
#3 – These sessions should be held in large conference halls that will accommodate all citizens who wish to attend. It is troubling that the summary document released by NEB for these Energy East hearings advise the public that “attendance will be limited based on room capacity and fire safety procedures.”
SCREEN CAPTURE FROM PAGE 3 – Procedural Direction No. 4 – Participant Survey and Panel Sessions (NEB, June 22, 2016)
The first panel sessions by the NEB Review Board are scheduled to start public hearings in August 8-12th, 2016 in Saint John and August 15-19th, 2016 in Fredericton.
It is important to know that a panel of three (3) NEB Board members has been assigned to review the proposed Energy East project. Similar to judges, this NEB Review Board will hear all of the evidence, ask questions during the hearing sessions, and then make the final recommendation to the Government of Canada on whether to approve or deny the project.
The public should be skeptical about the recent NEB News Release and flowchart of the Energy East review process as “innovative”, “comprehensive”, and including “enhanced engagement opportunities”. The details suggest otherwise.
FLOWCHART – Comprehensive Energy East Review Process (NEB, June 16, 2016)
The NEB Review Board will not hear more testimony. Instead, the additional review process will include other NEB Board members who will hold community meetings across Canada in 2017. A written summary report of these meetings will then be submitted to the NEB Review Board. However, this reporting is no substitute for giving a public presentation to the NEB Review Board, the body that will make the final recommendation on this project. An oral argument directly to the NEB Review Board holds greater weight than a written argument.
And the NEB Review Board will not hear any testimony concerning climate change. Instead, the additional review process will include the “Government of Canada” who “will assess the upstream GHG emissions associated with the project and make this information public.” This process will be completely separate from the NEB.
These extra processes will be used by NEB to give the illusion of greater public consultation, when in fact they are a divide-and-conquer strategy for public input.
Open, fair public hearings on Energy East are required. Please, no illusions.
