Protesters in Nelson joined others around the province to denounce Kinder Morgan’s Trans Mountain pipeline expansion.
The group walked up and down Baker Street on Saturday chanting their disapproval of the $7.4-billion project, which will run oil between Edmonton and Burnaby.
“Folks in Nelson came out in a big way to join what’s going to be an historic provincial movement to stop the Kinder Morgan pipeline. This is only the beginning,” said Keith Wiley, one of the organizers of the rally, in a statement.
The pipeline, which will increase the amount of oil barrels from 300,000 per day to 890,000, was approved by the federal government in 2016. It’s expected to be completed by December 2020, pending approval of the pipeline’s route.
It’s unclear however if that will ever happen. In January, the B.C. government proposed new restrictions on transporting crude oil, which would essentially scrap Kinder Morgan’s plan.
Premier John Horgan had campaigned on a promise to end the pipeline’s expansion prior to his election last year.