Randi-Marie Adams

By Randi-Marie Adams

Enbridge responds to Lheidli T’enneh pipeline rerouting request

Sep 15, 2021 | 5:10 PM

PRINCE GEORGE – Enbridge has responded to the demand from the Lheidli T’enneh First Nation.

On Tuesday, the First Nation formally requested a ministerial order to reroute the Enbridge pipeline, which lies across 130 kilometers of its territory and 1.5 kilometers of its Fort George No. 2 Indian Reserve. One edge of the reserve is less than 500 meters from the site where the pipeline ruptured and exploded in October 2018, terrifying nearby residents.

The First Nation says rerouting the pipeline is good for all involved because Enbridge can continue to move natural gas without addressing costly safety upgrades on the reserve, while the Lheidli T’enneh can again feel safe on their own lands.

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CKPG reached out to Enbridge Tuesday morning and received this response:

“Enbridge values our relationship with the Lheidli T’enneh First Nation, and we are committed to continuing to work with leadership and the community on strengthening that relationship.

Following the Shelley incident, we undertook a comprehensive pipeline integrity program on our natural gas pipeline system in B.C. to significantly improve pipeline safety. This was the most aggressive integrity program ever undertaken in B.C. It included increased pipeline inspections, enhanced criteria to evaluate pipeline inspection data, and improvements to the scheduling of proactive maintenance work. At Enbridge, our goal is to continuously improve the safety of our pipeline systems and we are committed to ensuring that happens.

Enbridge has been working cooperatively with Indigenous communities throughout British Columbia for more than 60 years and has strong relationships with many Indigenous communities near our pipeline system. We continue to remain focused on building and maintaining respectful relationships, engaging Indigenous groups over the lifecycle of our natural gas assets.

As always, we are happy to meet with the Lheidli T’enneh First Nation or any government agency to discuss the safety of the pipeline system or any other matter, including the small segments of pipeline that traverse their reserve.”

We also reached out to the provincial government for comment, all they said was:

“We’ve received the correspondence and are in the process of reviewing it.” and “This is a federally regulated pipeline.”

Chief Dolleen Logan says that’s the provincial government passing the buck.