Toronto: A broad cross-section of Ontario organizations including the Canadian Manufacturers Association, the Federation of Northern Ontario Municipalities, and the Ontario Chamber of Commerce, have united to speak out in favour of the Energy East Pipeline proposal, just as the Ontario Energy Board released a report questioning whether the benefits to Ontario will exceed the costs.
In a statement signed by 15 organizations, released August 13, the groups said, “We are in agreement that Energy East is a true nation-building infrastructure project that will help Canada achieve energy independence. Today, refineries in eastern Canada import over 600,000 barrels of oil from around the world, despite the fact Canada has the third largest reserves of oil in the world. That just doesn’t make sense.”
The Ontario Energy Board released a report the same day, finding that the proposal in its current form is expected to lead to “an imbalance between the risks of the Project and the expected benefits for Ontarians.” The risks and benefits are distributed differently across the country, with some regions seeing more of the benefits and others experiencing more of the risks.
Among the OEB’s primary concerns is that, “even with the new natural gas pipeline that TransCanada is proposing to build in eastern Ontario, Energy East will reduce the supply and increase the price of natural gas for consumers in that region.” It also raised questions about how the project would remain accountable to affected communities and Aboriginal groups.
In terms of environmental risk, the OEB said, “Where the existing pipeline route is too close to environmentally sensitive areas, TransCanada should reroute the pipeline or justify why rerouting is not necessary. …. We believe TransCanada should be using the latest generation of leak detection systems for Energy East, as the impact of an accident on an oil pipeline is far more profound than with a natural gas pipeline.”
The supporters, describing themselves as “representatives from manufacturers, businesses and Ontario’s construction industry, organized labour and municipalities along the proposed pipeline route,” stress that proceeding with Energy East is important because of “the expected jobs, associated training and skills development, $50 million in annual property taxes paid to communities and $15 billion in new economic growth across Ontario as a direct result of Energy East.”
The Energy East Project, a proposal from TransCanada Pipelines, is undergoing a multi-year regulatory review at the National Energy Board. The Ontario government asked the OEB to assess the costs and benefits of the proposal almost 2 years ago. The OEB spent 18 months consulting with affected communities and preparing its assessment. Its report will be used by the Province as it intends intervene in the National Energy Board hearing process.
TransCanada highlighted the overall benefits of the project, stressing that eastern Canada imports more than 600,000 barrels of oil a day that could be replaced “from a secure supply right here in Canada in the safest possible way, by pipeline.” The company said it wants to address the concerns raised in the OEB report.
The pipeline project, if approved, will deliver 1.1 million barrels a day of Western Canadian crude to eastern refineries and export terminals. Construction of the pipeline would involve converting and redirecting a pre-existing natural gas pipeline as well as building a new extended portion of the line. According to the Conference Board of Canada, Energy East will support more than 4,200 full-time jobs in Ontario during development and construction and create nearly 1,400 jobs when in operation. The OEB found that it would add $12 to $19 billion to the province’s GDP.
The stakeholder statement also noted that, “Pipelines are the safest and greenest means of transporting oil over long distances and Energy East offers an opportunity to reduce the amount of oil being shipped through the heart of our communities by trains and trucks. We are united by an interest in building a stronger Ontario and we support the long-term benefits of Energy East recognizing the project is subject to extensive evaluation by the NEB.”
The OEB report, titled “Giving Ontarians a Voice on Energy East,” is available online at this location.