True or political
environmentalism?

Carney and Smith ethically bound to submit West Coast Pipeline environmental impact study

By Georges Dupras

July 9, 2026

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and Alberta Premier Danielle Smith recently announced the formal proposal to build a second pipeline between Alberta and British Columbia. This venture would create jobs, economic growth and possibly appease Alberta separatists.

The West Coast Pipeline, a multibillion-dollar investment, will create 140,000 jobs in the offset sector and eventually some 50,000 permanent jobs in the operational sector. Overall, the objective is to combine bitumen (tar sands) output from the Trans Mountain Pipeline and the West Coast Pipeline. Proponents argue that these mega-projects are needed to meet the world’s oil demand and create much-needed employment.

Though demand for more fossil fuels is diminishing at present (1.1 million barrels a day globally), due to geopolitical factors and the resulting higher fuel cost, it is projected to increase significantly and remain stable until 2050. The fastest-growing economies in the world, China and India, are a primary market for this resource.

The impact

The short-term benefits of this mega project appear economically positive – but the long-term costs are prohibitive. The Prime Minister has stated that Canada will not meet its 2030 Paris Agreement target to reduce carbon emissions. The United States has already walked away from that same agreement.

The elephant in the room

In all the press releases and discussions about pipelines crossing Canada, there is much to say about economics, job creation and sovereignty. Though proponents of the pipelines boast of the advantages, they skillfully avoid the elephant in the room.

We are presently experiencing only the beginning of the effects of our obsession with growth. Our relentless pursuits to monetize animal, vegetable or mineral resources will come at a far greater cost. Whether resulting in Climate Change, Global Warming, pandemics or something else, the worst is yet to come. We are just now realizing the impact of micro- and nanoplastics. Industry spokespersons and politicians are good at projecting profit and loss, but never at environmental costs.

The short-term benefits of this mega project appear economically positive – but the long-term costs are prohibitive. The Prime Minister has stated that Canada will not meet its 2030 Paris Agreement target to reduce carbon emissions.

The government’s practice of deflecting responsibility under the banner of “industry standards” is a gross violation of the public trust. This has happened not only in the energy sector but also in the agricultural and animal industries. Our efforts at developing solar and wind energy are nowhere near as advanced as they could be if governments and industry benefactors invested a fraction of what is put into the fossil fuel industries.

Freedom, responsibility, accountability

Benefactors in the oil/petrochemical industry are ethically bound to inform the public of the environmental costs of their ventures. Where there is a job, there is an environmental cost. Where there is economic gain, there is environmental pain.

The Trump walk-away

This lack of accountability is not exclusive to the oil/petrochemical sectors; it also exists in the animal industries.

Donald Trump is the master of the “walk-away”. When the Supreme Court in the United States ruled his tariffs illegal, he simply walked away, leaving the American taxpayers with a mess. He has done the same by pardoning corporations that have violated the Clean Air Act, leaving present and future generations to deal with airborne pollutants.

Prime Minister Carney and Premier Smith are ethically bound to submit a professional environmental impact study, subject to peer review and public consultation, for the new Coastal pipeline in the interest of biodiversity.

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of WestmountMag.ca or its publishers.

Feature image: Vilius Kukanauskas – Pixabay

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