The Wet’suwet’en First Nation says it plans on fighting the LNG Canada natural gas pipeline that the province announced as a go-ahead on Tuesday.
Hereditary Chief Na’moks says they will dispute the project by any means necessary where it be in the courts or on the lands.
“We are the authority on the land and regardless of whether or not this final investment decision was made it is still up to our people on whether or not this goes through our territory and we are adamantly opposed to it.”
The pipeline will deliver natural gas from Dawson Creek all the way to Kitimat.
The project is estimated to generate $23 billion in public revenue over the next 40 years.
The elected chiefs gave approve for the pipeline, but Chief Na’moks believes it is the Hereditary Chiefs that have jurisdiction over all of the land and the elected chiefs only have authority over their reserves.
According to Chief Na’moks, the pipeline would go through a home sight where people live all year round, and he says the construction would disturb the lands and the waterways.
“There is no guarantee on this planet that man built items will not break. The risk we have to our territory do not match up to the befits that they say are there. Money comes and goes, land, clean air, water, and salmon, those are forever if we look after them properly.”
Despite opposition, a lot of people are excited about the revenue and job opportunities the project would bring.
The project is estimated to employ 10,000 people in the construction of the pipeline and then 950 people once they finish construction.
Skeena-Bulkley Valley MP Nathan Cullen says that the pipeline is going to give a lot of opportunity to local contractors.
“One of the things that were negotiated in this is that there is a high amount of service contracts that will be awarded to local business. We have seen mega projects in the past where that was not the case.”