Legal Challenges Against Petronas LNG Project

The ECOreport reposts a press release from BC about legal challenges against Petronas LNG Project

Press Release from the Union of BC Indian Chiefs, Gitwilgyoots  Tribe, Gitanyow First Nation and Skeena Wild Conservation Trust

VANCOUVER – First Nations and environmentalists from northwest B.C. launched multiple federal court actions today aimed at stopping construction of Petronas’ $11.4-billion…

A group of First Nations plans to launch a slew of legal challenges against the federal government over its approval of the Petronas liquefied natural gas (LNG) project near Prince Rupert, BC.

Calling Justin Trudeau "an outright liar," Donnie Wesley, the highest ranking hereditary chief of Gitwilgyoots tribe, which has jurisdiction over Lelu Island where the LNG terminal would be built, said the project's approval on Tuesday was "a slap in the face."

Wesley told VICE News the federal decision "totally ignored" peer-reviewed, independent science submitted to the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency that showed the project would seriously harm the salmon in the Skeena River, the second-largest salmon bearing river in BC, and a significant body of water for First Nations along the river.

"We don't have a tentative date, but it will be within the 30-day [appeal] period," Wesley said of his tribe's legal action. "We're going to be meeting next week to plan our strategies [and] where we're going to go with this."

Wesley's tribe, along with other First Nation groups and west coast non-profit SkeenaWild, have met with lawyers and are fundraising to apply for judicial review of the decision.

A GoFundMe campaign launched yesterday in support of their legal challenge has raised $3,000 in 19 hours—but Greg Knox, executive director of SkeenaWild, says his group has already raised about $50,000 toward its legal fund, with more fundraising events planned.

Lelu Island’s Environmental Assessment Disgusting

By Roy L Hales

After months of waiting, the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency (CEAA) has released the report that could determine the fate of one of the world’s largest salmon runs. Petronas wants to build an LNG terminal on Lelu Island, beside the eelgrass bed where 88% of the Skeena’s juvenile salmon feed. Though  Simon Fraser University reported that the “proposed development in these…