The Trans Mountain pipeline expansion is the last major energy project standing in Western Canada..The Northern Gateway, Energy East, and Mackenzie gas pipelines all succumbed to an unreasonable regulatory environment where the goalposts are constantly moved by an ideologically driven federal government..Among L.N.G. projects, Pacific Northwest, Aurora, Prince Rupert and WCC have all been canceled. Only the half-built Kitimat L.N.G. remains standing, and it is under serious threat as Chevron has divested their investment in it, and the possibility of the Coastal Gaslink pipeline being completed in order to feed the project is in serious question due to years of illegal blockades hindering construction..The Frontier oilsands mine project has now been shelved as Teck Resources has withdrawn its application after nearly a decade of fruitless efforts to get government approvals..In total, we have seen nearly $150 billion in energy projects shelved in Canada in the last decade. Only the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion remains, and only because the federal government stepped in and bought the project while Kinder Morgan retreated from Canada’s unreasonable regulatory environment..Both the Coastal Gaslink pipeline project and the Frontier oilsands mine followed all the rules. They danced to the government’s tune. Years passed by while billions were spent. Studies were done, licenses were gained, consultations were held and deals were made with every First Nation which could possibly be impacted by the project. Their efforts were for naught. The mythical “social license” never was gained and mob rule calls the shots in Canada. It is little wonder that Teck bailed out and it will only be a matter of time before the Coastal Gaslink project is permanently halted if we don’t see some definitive government action soon..Since it is clear that playing by the rules is futile, and mob rule is the only way to get things done in Canada, it is time that we stopped playing by the rules..Jason Kenney said it best when he described the national eruption of civil disobedience over the construction of the Coastal Gaslink pipeline as a “dress rehearsal” for what will come once the Trans Mountain pipeline begins real construction in B.C..Activists have been threatening to “warrior up” in order to stop T.M.X. and it is clear that they are not bluffing. The weather will be nicer and students will be off for the summer holidays soon. What better job for a student than to sit in an encampment for the summer in order to block pipeline construction, while being paid a few bucks through the Tides Foundation? Ideologues, left-anarchists and eco-extremists from all over North America will be converging on British Columbia in order to shut down this last major energy project..Playing by the rules means waiting for the government to negotiate, fail and then attempt to enforce the law on people illegally hindering the pipeline project. That will mean that nothing will get done and the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion will lose yet another construction season. Governments have proven themselves too callow to deal with illegal blockades where the protesters number in the dozens. There is no way they will find the strength of will to take on hundreds or possibly thousands of illegal blockaders..If the only way to get things done is through mob rule, then it is incumbent on energy proponents to build a bigger mob. If the state will not enforce the law when illegal actions hinder T.M.X. construction, then citizens must step up and enforce the law. The silent majority can no longer afford to let the state capitulate to the radical minority..It is clear that the state will only act against criminal protesters when they are absolutely forced to. When it came to rail blockades which lasted weeks, it was only when it became clear that Quebec was going to run out of propane before authorities finally began to act. Blockades on the T.M.X. will not hinder Quebec, so it will take something more in order to prompt an unwilling government to enforce the law. I can’t think of a better way to encourage state action on this than for there to be a large and organized contingent of people heading out to B.C. in order to ensure that the pipeline construction remains unhindered by illegal activists..There are tens of thousands of unemployed and underemployed Westerners who will not be taking kindly to seeing the last hope for their industry being killed due to government inaction in light of illegal construction blockages. It won’t take too much to encourage many of them to take a weekend road trip this summer in order to express their feelings towards the activists who are blocking their ability to make a living..Groups are already forming and coalescing in preparation for summer actions. We watched as a small group of people in Edmonton managed to take down an illegal rail blockade within hours, while the rest of Canada remained somehow paralyzed in fear of these small groups of activists. Every new blockade is being met with growing numbers of counterprotesters and it is prompting the state to clear the blockades. People are no longer content to wait for the government to solve this issue any longer..Whenever we play by the rules, we lose; so we have nothing to lose when we toss out the rulebook..The Trans Mountain pipeline is where the line will be drawn in the sand. Westerners are not going to stand by and let a complacent state let a minority of activists kill this final, critical project. To let this project die would be to admit that we have given up on our energy industry and are content to let foreign powers supply Canada’s energy needs. That is simply unacceptable and the West won’t let this happen without a fight..Illegal blockages on the Trans Mountain line will be cleared whether by the state, or through citizen action. The choice is up to the authorities. Doing nothing is not an option..I see a number of trips to BC in my future..Cory Morgan is a Columnist for the Western Standard
