The fate of the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion is literally hanging by a limb, after a British Columbia native group is opposing proposed route changes due to a sacred tree..And if it isn’t allowed to proceed, completion of the 890,000 barrel-per-day conduit to the West Coast could be delayed months and incur hundreds of millions in additional costs, the Crown-owned corporation said in its response to the Canadian Energy Regulator (CER) on Thursday..Earlier in August, the company applied to change the route of a 1.3 km section of the line near Kamloops using alternate tunnelling methods. The company had previously agreed with the Stk’emlupsemc te Secwepemc Nation to use ‘trenchless’ drilling methods on its traditional lands to avoid surface disruption.. TransMountain (TMX) expansion routeTransMountain (TMX) expansion route .In a public filing, it now says horizontal hard rock ‘micro-tunneling’ methods for a 48-inch pipe are impractical and “infeasible” for that particular segment of the route and now wants to use a combination of both drilling and trenching to avoid a faulted rock feature that threatens the geotechnical integrity of the line..“Given the length of tunnel remaining to be completed and the formations expected to be encountered, Trans Mountain maintains that proceeding… is highly risky. If the risks identified materialize, they have the potential to delay tunnel completion by months or jeopardize Trans Mountain’s ability to complete the tunnel at all,” it said..The Stk’emlupsemc te Secwepemc, which have a ‘mutual benefits agreement’ with the company, is accusing Trans Mountain of breaking that agreement by applying to cross what it says are “culturally significant” features — namely a so-called ‘directional tree’ it considers sacred..Directional trees — also known as ‘trail trees’, ‘prayer trees’ or ‘thong trees’ — were commonly used by both native and European cultures as markers or signposts to distinguish geographical landmarks such as water sources, safe river crossings or hunting grounds..A prime example is the Burmis Tree in the Crowsnest Pass..In its submission, Trans Mountain said it respects the fact it is crossing a culturally significant area but notes the tree in question lies in an area that would already be tunnelled..In any event, “Trans Mountain confirms that all culturally significant features identified will be avoided and protected,” it said..In its own submission the Stk’emlupsemc te Secwepemc accused Trans Mountain of deliberately delaying construction in the area by two years and now finds its back up against a Jan. 1 deadline to have it in service. .Trans Mountain said that characterization is “incorrect.”.“The commencement of trenchless construction was also impacted by several factors that were outside of Trans Mountain’s control, including severe flooding, forest fires and air quality, and the onset of the global COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020, which delayed planning along the entire TMEP route.”.Trans Mountain CEO Dawn Farrell attempted to smooth over the differences in a special meeting on July 6, to no avail..“In her comments, Mrs. Farrell was expressing regret that Trans Mountain could not start micro-tunnelling earlier due to factors that were outside of its control (including severe flooding, forest fires, and the global COVID-19 pandemic, as discussed above), which affected every aspect of TMEP construction,” it said..“If Trans Mountain could turn back the clock and somehow avoid construction delays due to those factors, it would. But it cannot.”
