Most British Columbians agree the proposed Northern Gateway pipeline could benefit the economy but also harm the environment, yet they are split on whether or not it should proceed, according to a new poll.
Support for the Northern Alberta to Kitimat pipeline is increasing, but serious concerns about the projects potential effects on the environment remain. According to an online survey conducted by Insights West, opposition to the pipeline has fallen from 61 per per cent in May to 47 per cent this month.
The survey showed that strong support from the project increased from 11 per cent February to 16 per cent now and overall support went up from 35 per cent in February to 42 per cent now. That's still less than the 29 per cent of respondents who currently say they strongly oppose the pipeline and 47 per cent who say they either somewhat or strongly oppose the project.
Sea to Sands Conservation Alliance spokeswoman Sonja Ostertag said she was surprised by the results, given the opposition to the pipeline expressed last weekend at rallies around the province, including in Prince George.
"People are still coming out in large numbers to say that they want to protect our environment from oil spills and that we care about our future," she said.
Northern Gateway spokesman Ivan Giesbrecht said the company has noticed a "greater openness" to the pipeline recently as project leader Janet Holder tours B.C. talking to people about the company's plan.
The final decision on the fate of project is expected early next year after the federal cabinet reviews an environmental assessment report. It will likely have to balance any environmental concerns identified in the report with the economic benefits the pipeline could offer.
"At the end of the day I think British Columbians will always value their rivers and their oceans above the prospect of a few jobs," Ostertag said.
According to the survey, British Columbians see both sides of the issue, with most respondents agreeing with arguments both in favour and against the project. For instance 86 per cent either somewhat or strongly agreed Northern Gateway would support economic growth and create new jobs. At the same time 85 per cent said they're concerned about the possibility of an oil spill and the impact the construction the pipeline would have on the environment.
"British Columbians have said they want a strong economy and understand the role projects such as ours play in that. But they've also said very clearly that economic development cannot come at the expense of the environment," Giesbrecht said. "As a team, we will continue this dialogue to ensure we understand people's concerns, and that stakeholders understand our commitment to protecting the environment."
Perhaps more troubling for Northern Gateway were concerns expressed by a large majority of respondents about its parent company Enbridge. Seventy-seven per cent of those surveyed expressed a distrust in the Calgary-based pipeline company and 81 per cent either strongly or somewhat agreed that Enbridge "has a history of incidents including oil spills and poor pipeline assembly."
Although the project is gaining support province wide, the regional result suggest that's not translated into a positive view of the pipeline in the north.
Only one of the 25 people surveyed in northern B.C. said they strongly support the project and three more said they somewhat support it. Meanwhile 13 of 25 said they strongly oppose Northern Gateway and four said they somewhat oppose it. The rest said they didn't know.
Northerners were also more likely than respondents from any other region to say they are very familiar with the pipeline proposal.
The poll found the pipeline is more popular among older people and men and less popular among young people and women. Ostertag said that since the project has a 30-year life span, the views of young people should be seriously considered.
The margin of error for regional and demographic data is higher than for the entire survey due to the smaller sample size.
The survey was conducted online from Nov. 12-15, with 749 people questioned through an online panel. Insights West said it would have a margin of error equivalent to plus or minus 3.7 per cent, 19 times out of 20, if it were a truly unweighted random sample.
