(OTTAWA) – The Green Party of Canada is calling for the replacement of National Energy Board Commissioners overseeing the TransCanada Energy East pipeline hearings, so that legitimacy in the process can be restored.
“Public trust in the NEB’s Energy East hearings is broken. We are urging Natural Resources Minister Jim Carr to replace these NEB Commissioners for conflict of interest reasons, and to restore people’s faith in the process. Many Quebecers are angry because they believe that the approval for Energy East has been predetermined,” said Daniel Green, Deputy Leader of the Green Party of Canada.
“Even the Mayor of Montreal, Denis Coderre, called the hearings a ‘circus’ earlier today. It’s clear that the legitimacy of the process has dissolved,” Green said. “To restore some faith in these NEB hearings, we need independent Commissioners above reproach who hold the public trust.”
Elizabeth May, Leader of the Green Party of Canada (MP, Saanich-Gulf Islands), said: “The NEB’s environmental assessment process is flawed and unfair. Under the 2012 omnibus budget Bill C-38, the responsibility for environmental assessment was thrust onto the NEB. Since then, the NEB has demonstrated it is completely unsuited to conduct environmental reviews. This continues to be the case with the Energy East hearings,” Ms. May concluded.
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For additional information or to arrange an interview, contact:
Dan Palmer
Press Secretary | Attaché de presse
dan.palmer@greenparty.ca
m: (613) 614-4916