Montreal, February 13, 2013 – Canal Argent revealed today on its website that the Alberta pipeline company Enbridge has made “gifts” to Quebec municipalities along the Line 9 pipeline, for which Enbridge has asked permission to reverse the flow to use to bring tar sands oil to Montreal.
“We denounce these ‘gifts’ from Enbridge to Quebec municipalities. It borders on scandal. We have received complaints from residents who are worried that this money could compromise neutrality,” said Steven Guilbeault, spokesperson for Equiterre.
Equiterre points out that this practice may be illegal. Municipalities can play an important role in the assessment and even the approval of a pipeline project such as the Line 9 reversal, especially in relation to drinking water and zoning by-laws.
As Article 8 of the Regulation respecting the application of the Environment Quality Act states: “A person who applies for a certificate of authorization shall also submit to the Minister a certificate attesting that the project does not contravene any municipal by-law. The certificate shall be issued by the clerk or the secretary-treasurer of a local municipality or, in the case of an unorganized territory, of a regional county municipality.”
Equiterre questions whether it is ethical for municipalities to accept money from a company whose project they will later be called upon to help evaluate.
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For more information:
Loïc Dehoux, Equiterre
514 605 2000
