Environmental advocates call pipeline deal a \u2018betrayal\u2019 of Canada\u2019s climate goals<\/p>\n
Published 3:00 pm Monday, May 18, 2026<\/p>\n
Environmental advocacy organizations are speaking out against the federal government\u2019s newest deal with Alberta to weaken climate goals and expedite the construction of another oil pipeline to the B.C. coast.<\/p>\n
\u201cWith today\u2019s announcement, Prime Minister [Mark] Carney is taking a sledgehammer to one of the last remaining pillars of Canada\u2019s climate plan,\u201d said Caroline Brouillette, executive director of Climate Action Network Canada, in a Friday (May 15) news release.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, an alliance of Coastal First Nations in northeastern B.C. reiterated local opposition to rescinding the ban on heavy oil tankers docking in the region.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo offer of equity or ownership will change our position, and no proponent is acceptable to us,\u201d said Marilyn Slett, elected chief of the Heiltsuk Nation and president of the Coastal First Nations, in a written statement.<\/p>\n
And Slett says federal Energy Minister Tim Hodgson told the group \u201cno project, no route\u201d would proceed without the support of affected First Nations.<\/p>\n
The new \u201cimplementation agreement\u201d struck on Friday expands on a Nov. 27 memorandum of understanding that exchanges federal support of a pipeline project proposal for Alberta\u2019s promise to work on a slate of climate goals. The new agreement maintains the pipeline objective, while loosening some of the province\u2019s carbon pricing commitments.<\/p>\n
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith must still submit a project proposal to the major projects office by July 1. A news release from her province says the latest deal will create a pathway for construction to begin on a new pipeline \u201cas early as\u201d Sept. 1, 2027.<\/p>\n
While Smith has often said she prefers a route to B.C.\u2019s north coast, which is a shorter sail to Asian markets, she told CTV News after the new deal was announced that a southern route is now on the <\/a>table<\/a>, alongside northern options.<\/p>\n B.C. Premier David Eby criticized the latest deal<\/a> as rewarding Alberta\u2019s separatist threats, and reiterated his opposition to a northern route.<\/p>\n But B.C. Energy Minister Adrian Dix recently called talk of a southern route \u2014 perhaps parallel to the current Trans Mountain pipeline \u2014 a \u201cpositive<\/a> shift<\/a>,\u201d suggesting Eby\u2019s government may be open to such a proposal.<\/p>\n While a southern route would assuage the concerns of the Coastal First Nations alliance by avoiding member nations\u2019 territory, it would do nothing to counter concerns from environmental groups critical of the easing of carbon pricing.<\/p>\n The price companies must pay to emit a tonne of CO2 equivalent in Alberta is set based on an agreement between the federal and provincial governments. This is currently $95 per tonne and scheduled to rise to $170 per tonne by 2030.<\/p>\n But this new deal scales that way back, setting new goals of $115 per tonne by 2030, and $140 per tonne by 2040. The Alberta government estimates the new prices will save companies $240 billion between now and 2050.<\/p>\n West Coast Environmental Law, an advocacy organization, says this lets Canada\u2019s worst polluter off the hook.<\/p>\n \u201cIt will let the province causing the most climate damage pay peanuts for its pollution,\u201d said West Coast staff lawyer Anna Johnston in a news release. \u201cThere is clearly only one province in Prime Minister Carney\u2019s Canada. It\u2019s Alberta, and it gets a free pass while the rest of Canada suffers the consequences.\u201d<\/p>\n