This is an overview of the Yellowhead Institute Special Report, Buried Burdens: The True Costs of Liquified Natural Gas (LNG) Ownership.
As federal and provincial governments pass legislation to fast track resource development, a long-delayed liquefied natural gas (LNG) pipeline in B.C. has been approved. The contentious Prince Rupert Gas Transmission Project (PRGT) and Ksi Lisms facility are expected to transport and export millions of tonnes of fracked gas annually, making it one of the country’s largest LNG projects. It is contentious because the Project is championed by the Nisg̱a’a Government, a significant investor, but crosses Gitxsan and Tsimshian territory. This Special Report considers the Project’s fraught history and identifies a number of issues, including an outdated environmental assessment, changes to the pipeline route, and costly construction risks.
Part I offers an analysis of the rise of Indigenous equity ownership in resource development, loan guarantee programs, and the financial risks associated with LNG production generally, but also specifically with PRGT and Ksi Lisims.
Part II draws on interviews with Tsimshian and Gitxsan community members on the Project against the backdrop of environmental, social, cultural, and legal risks, all of which form the basis of their resistance to the Project. Taken together, this analysis forms the argument that PRGT and Ksi Lisims present significant and potentially devastating risks to investors, communities and the land and water. It must be reconsidered.
