Kitimat, B.C., residents to weigh in on whether they support Northern Gateway pipeline project

The federal government's final decision on the controversial Northern Gateway oil sands pipeline is months away but residents of Kitimat, B.C., could be having their say about it sooner.

Kitimat District Council agreed Monday to hold a plebiscite on whether or not citizens support the $8-billion Enbridge Inc. project, which would see the north-coast town become the terminus for the pipeline and port from where supertankers would carry the bitumen crude to Asian markets.

Kitimat, which currently has a population of less than 10,000, stands to become a boom town if the project goes ahead. It's also the potential site for major liquified natural gas (LNG) export projects.

The town, which was created in the 1950s by the Aluminum Co. of Canada to host its smelting operations, has been in the economic doldrums for years. As Canadian Press noted in a story last year, Census Canada found Kitimat had the greatest population decline in Canada in 2007.

[ Related: Northern Gateway project gets conditional review panel approval ]

But it's recently shown signs of life as Rio Tinto Alcan upgrades the aluminum smelter and several LNG projects are being talked up.

The district council promised last month that it would give residents a chance to weigh in on Northern Gateway after the federal Joint Review Panel issued its long-awaited report on the project. The panel gave conditional approval but set 209 conditions to be met.

Council initially considered a hiring a polling firm to do a survey but Coun. Rob Goffinet proposed a plebiscite so that every adult resident would have a chance to express their view on the project, CP reported.

"That gives everybody (a chance), just like in an election," Coun. Phil Germuth told CFTK-TV. "A few people don't come out – they don't come out. But that gives everybody that opportunity to go out if they so chose to be for or against."

The vote would be held under the B.C. Local Government Act, which sets the rules on such things as voter eligibility and the use of campaign signs, CP said. Council and district staff will determine the date of for the vote and what the question will be in coming weeks.

The district council has been officially neutral on Northern Gateway but Coun. Mario Feldhoff expressed his support for the project at Monday's meeting, CP said.

[ Related: Kitimat resident speaks in favour of Northern Gateway ]

Although the plebiscite is non-binding and open only to local residents, the campaign is likely to become a major battleground for both sides in the larger debate over the contentious project.

Expect Enbridge and its supporters to push the economic benefits of the export terminal and play down the possibility of an oil spill as tankers navigate the island-strewn Douglas Channel.

First Nations along the proposed pipeline route and environmentalists undoubtedly will inundate residents with information about the potential for an eco-disaster if a tanker runs aground en route to or from the terminal.

It's possible Kitimat residents might feel they're able to turn down Northern Gateway because of the prospect that LNG development, which is seen as less problematic, will give the region enough of an economic boost without risking the a bitumen crude spill.

The Vancouver Sun reported last week that Kitimat led all of B.C. in the rise of property assessments for 2014 as newcomers move to town and speculators bet on a coming boom. The average value of a single-family home shot up 26.7 per cent from a year ago – to $228,000 from $180,000.

Whatever the outcome, the results of the plebiscite would be a powerful statement that could affect the future of Northern Gateway. It would be a harder sell if residents reject it.

In 2003, Vancouver residents voted 64 per cent to support the city's bid for the 2010 Winter Olympic Games. The results were seen as a factor in the International Olympic Committee's decision to choose Vancouver over Salzburg, Austria and Pyeongchang, South Korea a few months later.