In Resistance To The Planned PRGT Pipeline.
Gitanyow Hereditary Chief Watakhayetsxw (Deborah Good) says: “As of tonight, I am closing the Cranberry Connector from 11 kilometers to 31 kilometres. …I am closing the road and I will keep it closed. There will be no trucks permitted through the territory. No LNG equipment will be permitted through the territory.”
The Nass Forest Service Road, Highway 13, Nisga’a Highway and Cranberry Connector appear to be interchangeable names for the same road.
Simogyet Watakhayetsxw of the Lax Ganeda, or the Raven Frog clan, adds: “The BC government, the federal government, defending PRGT. I am putting you on alert. There will be no trucks on my territory. And I will defend the territory as best I can.”
She further notes: “For those people that are defending the Gitanyow, the Gitxsan and the Wet’suwet’en, I invite you to stand on the lines with the Gitanyow. Come and stand with my Wilp [house groups of the clans].”
On August 22, the Gitanyow Hereditary Chiefs and the Gitanyow Fisheries Authority posted on Facebook:
“URGENT!
As trucks arrive to begin construction this weekend on the PRGT pipeline, the Gitanyow Hereditary Chiefs invite you to witness the burning of our Pipeline Benefits Agreement today at Ravens Nest Ranch.
The proposed Ksi Lisims LNG terminal is inextricably linked to the Prince Rupert Gas Transmission (PRGT) pipeline, which could cut through over 50 kilometres of Gitanyow Lax’yip [land/territory], including four Wilp (House Group) territories.
In 2014, PRGT’s Environmental Assessment was approved, but at that time, the pipeline was intended to connect to a different LNG terminal on Lelu Island. Without our consent, they also want to add a new route along the seafloor to Pearse Island.
This is a clear breach of trust and transparency. The pipeline we consented to no longer resembles the original proposal or agreement.
A decade later, we have new information about climate change and the severe impacts of LNG development. Both federal and provincial governments have since endorsed the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP).
Stand with us in demanding that the B.C. government respect our rights and future. PRGT must undergo a new Environmental Assessment review.”
The Hereditary Chiefs then posted “Thank you all for standing with us on such short notice! T’ooyaks’y nisim [meaning: we thank you all]” along with video of the burning of the Pipeline Benefits Agreement.
The Skeena Watershed Conservation Coalition also posted photos, including these:
About the PRGT pipeline
Construction on the Prince Rupert Gas Transmission (PRGT) pipeline is scheduled to begin on Saturday August 24.
The proposed pipeline is being presented as a “joint venture” between Houston, Texas-based Western LNG and the Nisga’a Nation. The Reston, Virginia-based engineering company Bechtel will “oversee and manage the execution of the PRGT natural gas pipeline” while BC-based Ledcor will “support the 2024 work plan”.
If completed, the 800-kilometre pipeline would carry fracked gas from Hudson’s Hope in northeastern British Columbia across an estimated 120 kilometres of Gitxsan territory as well as about 50 kilometres of Gitanyow territory until it reaches the proposed the Ksi Lisims LNG terminal near the Nass River estuary on Nisga’a territory in northwestern BC.
From this proposed LNG terminal, the gas would be exported to countries including Japan and South Korea.
The environmental certificate for the pipeline says it must be “substantially started” before November 25, 2024.
Abolish C-IRG
Given the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) Community-Industry Response Group (C-IRG), now renamed the Critical Response Unit (CRU), has been deployed against Indigenous land defence struggles in British Columbia, we express our concern about their potential use against this blockade.
The RCMP C-IRG is now under systemic investigation by the Civilian Review and Complaints Commission (CRCC), an independent federal agency, after nearly 500 formal complaints had been filed alleging excessive force, illegal tactics, unprofessional behaviour, racism, discrimination and Charter violations.
Media coverage
We note that some media is on its way to provide more about the situation.
We continue to follow this.
Further reading: Bechtel, implicated in the Water War in Bolivia, will “oversee and manage the execution” of the PRGT pipeline on Gitxsan and Gitanyow territories (PBI-Canada article, August 12, 2024).