December 13, 2010

The National Energy Board is expected to rule soon on the proposed Mackenzie Valley gas pipeline. It's a major step in the approval process. But some supporters say it may come too late and that we may have already missed the window of opportunity in which the pipeline would be viable.

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PART ONE

It's Monday, December 13th.

A Swiss travel agency is selling organized tours to the war-torn nation of Afghanistan.

Currently, Defence Minister Peter McKay has ordered 28-hundred tickets. Departure date, 2012.

This is The Current

Mackenzie Valley Pipeline - Doug Matthews

We started this segment with a clip from Nellie Cournoyea, the former Premier of the Northwest Territories. She's talking about the proposed MacKenzie Valley Gas Pipeline. And as you may have guessed, she supports it.

The idea is to run about 1,200 kilometres of pipe to carry natural gas from the Beaufort Sea to markets in the south. The proposal has been on the table since the 1970s. And business owners such as Kurt Wainman in Inuvik are getting tired of waiting. Kurt Wainman is the owner of Northwind Industries in Inuvik, Northwest Territories. We aired a clip.

It's important to point out that many environmentalists and some native groups have opposed the proposal from the beginning. But now, it appears to be tantalizingly close to being approved. The National Energy Board is expected to rule on the proposal this week. And if it comes out in favour, it would set the stage for Parliament to give final approval.

But for some long-time supporters of the proposed pipeline, that news is bittersweet. That's because, after close to 40 years, they think they may have missed the window in which their pipeline could be viable.

Doug Matthews is a Calgary-based energy consultant. He worked for the government of the Northwest Territories for 25 years, living in Inuvik, Tuktoyaktuk and Yellowknife. He was involved in pushing the proposal forward. He was in Ponoka, Alberta.

Mackenzie Pipeline - Fred Carmichael

Despite the mounting economic challenges, many still believe in the proposed pipeline. Fred Carmichael is among them. He's the Chair of the Aboriginal Pipeline Group. He was in Inuvik.

Related Links:

• Observers split on reality of $16.2-billion Mackenzie Valley pipeline project
• Pipeline or pipedream?
• CBC News In Depth: The Mackenzie Valley pipeline
  
  

Other Segments from today's show:

• Strip Searches
• Dr. Stanley Vollant