Canadian taxpayers could be on the hook for billions of dollars in clean-up and compensation costs if an oil tanker crashed on the west coast, suggests a report released Thursday.
“The funding and compensation scheme that exists under Canadian law would be remarkably inadequate in the event of a catastrophic oil spill,” it reads.
The report was written by the University of Victoria’s Environmental Law Centre and prepared for the Living Oceans Society.
It notes that Canadian law currently provides up to about $1.33 billion to deal with the aftermath of potential oil spills. Yet remediation costs associated with the Exxon Valdez disaster were at least US $3.5 billion, the report reads.
And the U.S. government forced BP to set up a US $20 billion compensation fund for its Gulf of Mexico spill.
Thursday’s report is aimed directly at Enbridge’s plans to build a pipeline from Alberta's oil sands operations to coastal Kitimat, then transport crude oil on supertankers to markets in China and beyond.
In the event a tanker crashed in the notoriously turbulent waters of the Hecate Strait, Enbridge would have little legal liability, the report notes.
“This is because oil corporations, such as Enbridge Inc., no longer own oil tankers but charter them instead,” it reads. “This is common practice among oil corporations since the Exxon Valdez catastrophe in Alaska.”
Last December, federal opposition parties passed a non-binding resolution upholding an informal tanker traffic ban on B.C.’s north coast. Liberal MP Joyce Murray tabled a private member’s bill attempting to formalize the ban shortly after.
Enbridge insists a variety of safety measures – including double-hulled tankers – make the likelihood of an oil spill very low.
The Tyee last September visited the tiny First Nations fishing village of Hartley Bay, ground-zero for Enbridge's tanker plans. Click here to read a dispatch.
Geoff Dembicki reports for the Tyee.
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whatthe
1 year ago
BPs 20 billion dollar "fund"
The Obama administration "forced" them to set it up alright, there is just no evidence they did and it all hinged on new offshore oil revenues.
Oil is to damage control what oranges are to citrus. One in the same.
There is in fact an argument and a damn good one that BP and its players actually made money out of this. We know for sure Haliburton did and its arguable that they were the one company directly responsible in real terms.
No pipe, No drilling, No Tankers = No problem. Simple really.
Sask Resident
1 year ago
whatthe
No pipe, No drilling, No Tankers = No jobs, no economy and no services. Simple really.
If you work for the government, tax revenue is dropping so governments will have to lay off employees. Plus, since most jobs in BC are related to the service industry, if nobody is making money they cannot spend any at Micky D's or at WallMart or the bars or the gas stations, with more people laid off. Welfare comes from government coffers which depend on taxes on people who make money. If governments have no one to tax, they will have to cut welfare or beg for money from Quebec or Ontario.
Just take a drive through Kitimat. Houses are cheap and services are falling, even the retired (with pensions) would move if they could sell their houses.
As for the spills, the headline says "could" and is only a forecast. How many bulk carriers bringing ore into Kitimat have sunk in the last 50 years? How many fuel barges taking fuel to remote coastline and island communities have sunk in the last 50 years? Could have, should have, would have!
Fiat lux
1 year ago
That's right Sask..Let's
That's right Sask..Let's cover the whole world under pollution and money making garbage, fill the hospitals with cancers and diabetes, as there's no other way to make a living.
Or is there ? How about using a bit of imagination ?
Ed Deak.
Talon
1 year ago
let's smarten up, please!
Thanks Ed Deak for your comments. I heartiy concur with you.
Here we are faced with the conundrum of pleasing our egos or getting much smarter - it is not possible to do both. Oil is one of the most valuable products that our precious planet has to offer; let's use it wisely. The use of oil should be limited to the most important of uses, not for the fueling of war, the stroking of egos (my truck is bigger than your truck), or the promotion of vanity (the latest and greatest sportster from any car maker), but for the promotion of a better life for everyone on the planet, not just those who love speed (in whatever form it comes).
A sustainable world is possible for all - just keep the capitalists from controlling the finances; their greed has been amply demonstrated over the past decade. Thanks for listening. Talon