Document reveals influence of oil and gas lobbyists on B.C. officials after Indigenous Rights ruling – The Narwhal

March 2, 2022

Internal documents released through freedom of information legislation show industry lobbyists claim the precedent-setting Blueberry ruling will lead to 10,000 job losses and tens of millions in lost annual revenue for B.C. But government figures and expert analysis suggest calculating the true economic impacts of respecting Indigenous Rights is a more complicated — and potentially more positive — tale than industry is telling

In the wake of a precedent-setting Indigenous Rights case in June 2021, B.C.’s ministry of energy did something rather unprecedented: it immediately cancelled summer auctions for new oil and gas tenures.

This sudden closure of oil and gas opportunities in response to the Blueberry decision — a B.C. Supreme Court ruling, which determined the province violated the Treaty Rights of Blueberry River First Nations by permitting and encouraging damaging industrial development — sent a shudder through the industry that continues to reverberate across the country today.

Read More: https://thenarwhal.ca/bc-oil-gas-blueberry-docs/