CCNB staff spoke with media after TransCanada announced it has cancelled plans to build a second export terminal for its Energy East bitumen pipeline proposal in Quebec.
In a Nov. 6 article in the New Brunswick Telegraph-Journal, Matt Abbott, the Fundy Baykeeper warned that a tanker spill in the Bay of Fundy could irreparably damage the fishery and regional tourism, while adding that noise from tanker traffic causes heightened levels of stress in right whales. He said the Bay of Fundy is poised to get a lot more crowded with the addition of a new marine terminal, estimating between 115 to 290 tankers per year. For more information on risks to the Bay of Fundy from this export project, see our August 2015 report.
Intern and francophone spokesperson Pascale Ouellette spoke with the French-language daily newspaper Acadie Nouvelle about TransCanada’s announcement that Saint John will be the sole Energy East export terminal for an article published Sunday, Nov. 8.
The article was about the potential additional impacts this change could have on the Bay of Fundy and its surrounding population.
Ouellette told Acadie Nouvelle that TransCanada’s announcement does nothing to address the risks this project poses for the Bay of Fundy and Gulf of Maine. She said cancelling plans for the project’s second export terminal in Quebec only raises more questions for what this project means for New Brunswickers and reinforces the call from the council and those who stand to be affected for more research and study into the potential impacts.
“We need more answers, more information, and more studies. We are worried about the noise coming from tanker traffic and it’s impact on whales. We need more information from TransCanada. Will there be more tanker traffic in the Bay of Fundy now that there is only one terminal? How will this announcement affect the durable fishery and tourism jobs in the area?” said Ouellette.