decision day

Deadline for cabinet to decide future of Trans Mountain expansion is today

Jun 17, 2019 | 6:06 PM

OTTAWA — The federal government is widely expected to green light the Trans Mountain expansion project a second time today but, even with a Yes vote, construction is likely weeks, if not months away.

The federal cabinet will be reconsidering the project at its weekly meeting this morning, nine months after the Federal Court of Appeal shelved the original approval, citing faulty Indigenous consultations and environmental reviews.

Any decision isn’t likely to be announced until after the markets close for the day.

International Trade Minister Jim Carr says the pipeline decision is “very significant.”

Trans Mountain Canada, the federal crown corporation now running the pipeline and which will oversee the expansion, says if the expansion is approved again, there are still a number of regulatory and commercial steps that have to happen before construction can restart.

After the court decision last summer, Natural Resources Minister Amarjeet Sohi ordered the National Energy Board to look at the impact more oil tankers will have on marine life and hired former Supreme Court justice Frank Iacobucci to oversee a new round of consultations with 117 affected Indigenous communities.

The Canadian Press


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