The new head of the National Energy Board says he has work to do when it comes to the regulator’s increasingly uncomfortable position between the vocal opponents and staunch supporters of energy projects.
Environmentalists, First Nations and even municipal governments are challenging the federal board’s powers to choose who participates in hearings into major pipelines as well as what gets discussed. It even had to shut down in-person proceedings for Enbridge Inc.’s Line 9 reversal project over fears about safety in the room when protesters became raucous last year. Meanwhile, the NEB has been criticized for not taking into account increasing carbon emissions from oil sands development in pipeline approval decisions.
Chairman Peter Watson says the agency knows it is “in the eye of the storm” in the energy debate as it has intensified. This is why he is launching one push to familiarize Canadians with its responsibilities and workings, and another to demand a greater emphasis on safety among operators of projects, he says.
JEFFREY JONES – The Globe and Mail – Oct. 06 2014.
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