A group of demonstrators made their way to Parliament Hill Saturday protesting the federal government’s plan to purchase the Trans Mountain pipeline.
Sunday marks the deadline for the Government of Canada to find a third party buyer for the pipeline system and expansion project. Once the deadline passes, the federal government will own the pipeline for a price tag of $4.5 billion dollars.
“We are here to make sure that deadline doesn’t go unnoticed by Canadians,” says demonstrator Lauren Letour.
Letour, “We are already starting to see the effects of climate change. a pipeline like this will only exacerbate problems like this.”
Protestors dressed in hazmat suits carried a 10ft long pipeline to the steps of the Peace Tower.
The group then proceeded to approached people on the Hill to explain why they were demonstrating.
Katie Perfitt dressed in a hazmat suit, she says, “I think a lot of people consider the Kinder Morgan issue as a west coast problem, that it doesn’t effect people in Ottawa.. But climate change affects everyone everywhere.”
Perfitt wants people to know what the pipeline could cost them “They owe a hundred and some dollars to the federal government because all of us are buying this pipeline. It’s tax payer dollars.”
The July 22nd deadline marks the latest development in the pipeline’s controversial expansion in Canada. The B.C. provincial government has long opposed the expansion, and has threatened legal action.
Federal Finance Minister Bill Morneau made the announcement in May 2019 that the government would take over ownership of the pipeline.
In May Morneau said, “This $4.5 billion investment represents a fair price for Canadians and for shareholders of the company and will allow the project to proceed,” he said. “Our government’s position is clear, it must be built and it will be built.”
Once the deadline has passed and the deal is finalized, a new Crown corporation will manage the project.
