A new Angus Reid Institute poll suggests most Canadians, including British Columbians, support the idea of a northern Alberta-BC pipeline, but fewer agree the project should be fast-tracked.
Overall, 59 per cent of respondents across Canada indicated they “support” or “strongly support” a pipeline, with Albertans showing the highest support at 78 per cent.
And although BC Prime Minister David Eby has been firmly opposed Compared to the pipeline proposal, the poll shows 56 per cent of British Columbians support the idea.
The poll comes as Eby and Alberta Premier Danielle Smith have engaged in a back-and-forth over Smith’s decision. proposal for a new bitumen pipelineannounced last week.
The province plans to develop and submit a formal application to the federal Major Projects Office, committing $14 million to the proposal and acting as a proponent.
Eby has called the proposed pipeline “un-Canadian” and “unconstitutional” and cited concerns about Alberta being the sole proponent and restrictions on Ottawa tankers. implemented in 2019 in the waters of northern British Columbia
The poll showed that Canadians are slightly more resistant to the idea of “fast-tracking” the pipeline project than the project itself, with 55 per cent of Canadians indicating support.
Jon Roe, a research associate at the Angus Reid Institute, says: “Canadians support this project, but I think they want to make sure certain requirements are met.” [like] environmental protections [including those in consultation with Indigenous peoples] …they are not ignored as we move forward with this project.”
The poll found that 46 per cent of Canadians (and 52 per cent of British Columbians) say any province on whose land a pipeline is built should have veto rights unless its conditions are met.
The Trump factor is changing Canadian priorities
Richard Masson, an executive fellow at the University of Calgary’s School of Public Policy and former executive director of the Alberta Petroleum Marketing Commission, said the survey may reflect how Canadians feel since President Donald Trump shook up Canada’s relationship with the United States.
“People are starting to say that we should be able to take care of ourselves and that we should do the things that we can do within our country to manage our relationships with the rest of the world,” he said. “And selling products that we can produce is part of that.”
In a 2021 Angus Reid poll, 63 per cent of Canadians said environmental protection should be prioritized over economic growth.
Now, the recent poll shows that 57 per cent of Canadians say economic growth is the most important factor.
“I think as we’ve seen circumstances change and … especially with the arrival of U.S. President Donald Trump and these threats about tariffs and annexation of Canada, it means that they’re more likely to look at economic growth as the more important factor than environmental protection,” Roe said.
Tanker Ban Challenge
Nearly half of Canadians want the federal government’s ban on oil tankers overturned (23 per cent) or exempt from the pipeline project in northern British Columbia (26 per cent). Nearly 30 per cent of Canadians want to keep the tanker ban in place.
In BC, 44 per cent favor opening the province’s north coast to tanker traffic, either completely or at least for this project.
Smith has previously said that she made his position on tanker restrictions “very clear” to Prime Minister Mark Carney and is “optimistic” that Ottawa will review the law.
Last week, Canada’s Energy Minister Tim Hodgson dismissed questions about whether or not Ottawa would repeal the tanker ban, saying “it’s a hypothetical question at this point because we don’t have any projects before us.”
“The fear of a pipeline wreaking all kinds of havoc is probably a little less than it might have been before.” [the Trans Mountain] The pipeline was built because people recognize, yes, we built it safely,” Masson said.
“It’s working just as promised. And tankers, like any other ship, follow the rules.”
Hodgson said Thursday that Alberta need to get approval of the British Columbia government and the affected indigenous communities so that the project could continue.
Whether or not public sentiment for a pipeline influences British Columbia’s premier remains to be seen.
“Part of the challenge with pipelines is that they become symbols and wedge issues for different parts of the political spectrum,” Masson said.
“Democrats and Republicans in the United States used Keystone XL as a political football and canceled Keystone XL twice after its approval.
“What we need to do as a country is really understand what the risks and rewards are of building a pipeline.”
