Federal plan for BC oil spill relies on using banned chemicals – The Globe and Mail
The federal government’s backup plan in the event of a catastrophic oil spill in British Columbia’s waters relies on using chemical dispersants that are currently banned from marine use by the Department of Fisheries and Oceans.
B.C. Environment Minister Mary Polak says her province is not prepared to sign off on the federal oil-tanker safety plan rolled out last month as part of an effort to address concerns about marine environmental safety in advance of Ottawa’s Enbridge Northern Gateway pipeline decision.
The federal Conservative government is expected to announce this week whether the pipeline can go ahead, a decision anxiously anticipated by environmental and aboriginal groups who maintain a spill from tankers carrying the oil delivered by the pipeline will cause long-lasting cultural and environmental devastation.
