I can understand why it might not be the best time to admit that I’m from B.C.
The province hasn’t exactly endeared itself to people in other provinces with its stance over Kinder Morgan’s Trans-Mountain Pipeline Expansion. While people in Alberta and Saskatchewan (and the rest of the country) want to see the expansion proceed to get the oil to market and to free up some of the oil backlog, the B.C. government is fighting the pipeline, creating delays and building acrimony with its fellow Western Canadian provinces.
For the longest time, the biggest source of friction between former B.C. residents who relocated to Saskatchewan would be our beloved B.C. Lions faced the Saskatchewan Roughriders in the CFL playoffs. Only the bravest of Lions fans would dare have a B.C. Lions flag affixed to their vehicles; it only takes one hotheaded or inebriated Rider fan to spoil the fun of the sport.
But now there’s a far more important reason than a Lions postseason victory for people from Saskatchewan to harbour animosity towards people from B.C. This one is about the economy and jobs, and right now, the oil backlog is costing us money.
It should be said that most people in B.C. back the Kinder Morgan project. And outside of a few small pockets of B.C., the support for Kinder Morgan is pretty strong.
People often cast B.C. residents as a bunch of environmentalists, hipsters and some words that can’t be printed.
There are some staunch environmentalists on Vancouver Island, in the western half of the Greater Vancouver Regional District and along the coastal areas. Some of them are pretty smart, well-read people who are great people, even if they don’t have a clue when it comes to energy and the economy.
Some of them just don’t have a clue in general.
But there are many pockets of B.C. that are among the most conservative in the country.
It likely is the most polarized province in the country, and the voice of moderates seems to get smaller with each passing generation.
Do I believe that Saskatchewan and Alberta should curtail energy shipments to B.C.? Yes. It’s about sending a message to B.C., with its loophole government holding a tenuous grip of power.
Do I believe it would make much of a difference? No.
You would hope that if energy shipments to B.C. are curtailed or blocked, then it might remind a the hardcore environmentalists about the importance of the energy sector and the value of oil. Some people in B.C. might not like it, but they still need oil, and will continue to need it for some time.
But this wouldn’t change their opinions one bit.
Meanwhile, the people who aren’t happy with the B.C. coalition government really won’t be happy if the oil supply is slashed. They will be fuming when they have to pay a much higher price at the pump.
The only minds it would change would be those who are on the fence about the pipeline expansion and the B.C. government’s stance. They might not be too happy.
It should be noted that B.C. Premier John Horgan is not taking this stance because of his own personal beliefs when it comes to the pipeline. It is because of the Green Party MLAs who are propping up his party to be the government. Nobody voted for an NDP-Green Party alliance in the last provincial election. They’re the government because they got in through a loophole.
And, again, it should be noted a majority of B.C. residents support the pipeline expansion.
By capitulating to the Greens, B.C.’s government risks hurting the people they’re elected to represent, and the country as a whole. They’re hurting their province because they’re taking it into a legal fight that they don’t have the mandate to fight. Pipelines are national jurisdiction. The federal government says Trans Mountain should proceed. For once, I agree with the Liberals.
The people of B.C. stand to suffer if there are much higher prices at service stations, or widespread fuel shortages. It would be especially hard on those in remote areas.
The country suffers when pipelines aren’t built. I’m skeptical about the claims from the Fraser Institute, who state that the backlog costs this country $15 billion. But it does hurt the country. Each day that pipelines aren’t build, this country loses money.
And if Kinder Morgan decided to pull the plug on this pipeline, then it could have ripple effects on Canada when it comes to investment.
So there’s a lot on the line in this latest showdown involving Saskatchewan and B.C. A lot more than a football game in November.
