December 11 2008 » News Clippings » National Aboriginal News
Foot in the Door No More, For Now
It looked like Shell Canada Limited had got a foot in the door to explore
the Sacred Headwaters of the Stikine, Skeena, and Nass river systems. Shell
signed a Memorandum of Understanding in June 2004 with the Chair of the
Tahltan Central Council, the Chief of the Tahltan Band, and the Chief of the
Iskut First Nation. After the MOU was signed the Government of British
Columbia granted Shell tenure in 2004 for specific rights to coalbed methane
in the Klappan.
Although the BC Oil and Gas Commission granted permission to drill up to
five wells in 2004, Shell drilled only three in the midst of the MOU being
rejected by the community and new elected councils. The Tahltan immediately
resorted to road-blocks and the oil company was unable to access the area in
the ensuing months and years.
As 2008 progressed and Shell’s exploration plans were being discussed the
opposition mounted. At community halls from Hazelton north, “Residents from
all walks of life stated that drilling thousands of wells at the source of
our wild salmon rivers is not an option. The government’s announcement shows
that our voices are starting to be heard,” said Shannon McPhail, Executive
Director of the Skeena Watershed Conservation Coalition.
The magnificent Skeena protected for another two years by B.C. government
moratorium
The magnificent Skeena protected for another two years by B.C. government
moratorium – Credit: Malcolm McColl
“A moratorium is the right decision because it allows all Northwest
residents to come together around a vision for protecting the Sacred
Headwaters, ” said Pat Moss with Friends of Wild Salmon, a coalition of
First Nations, fishermen, and conservationists.
“Shell has demonstrated real leadership with the moratorium. The key
question is around social license – that is, whether the Sacred Headwaters
is an appropriate place for oil and gas development,” said Jaisel Vadgama
with the Pembina Institute.
The decision to impose a moratorium from Victoria, B.C. was based on the
need for more discussion with First Nations and the community, explained
Richard Neufeld, Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources Minister in the B.C.
government. “Government is facilitating this by specifying no activity for
two years,” said the minister.
Shell has said, “Our Klappan project is located within the traditional
territory of the Tahltan First Nation. The communities nearest to Shell’s
tenured land are Iskut, Telegraph Creek and Dease Lake. We have consulted
extensively with the leadership of the Tahltan First Nation as well as the
community regarding all our activities, and will continue to do so in future
planning in the Klappan.”
From the initial three exploration wells Shell determined that “more work is
needed to determine whether gas can be produced in an environmentally
responsible and commercially viable manner.” With the limited drilling
program Shell detected natural gas in coal seams. “More work is required to
determine if a commercially viable CBM project exists. Our current estimates
indicate several years of further work is required in the area.”
In 2005 Shell postponed field activity based on some Tahltan calling for a
moratorium on resource development and some who participated in a blockade
of the access road in the area. The First Nation and others all expressed
concerns about the resource development threatening to unfold within
traditional territory. Shell said, “Through our ongoing public consultation
efforts, we are aware that while many members of the community support
responsible resource development and welcome the economic benefits that come
with it, some members of the community do not share this opinion.”
Even so, Shell planned to resume exploration program in 2007/2008 to
continue the early stages of exploration. The 2007/2008 exploration program
was supposed to consist of re-entering two of the three wells drilled in
2004 and potentially drilling 14 new wells for which they had licences from
the BC Oil and Gas Commission.
Shell noted that from the beginning the project team took care to plan
exploration activities in a responsible manner by consulting with the
elected Tahltan leadership, Elders, the Tahltan community, and other people
who live in the area. Shell’s project team had reviewed the proposed
2007/2008 exploration program with members of the Tahltan leadership and the
Tahltan Heritage Resource Environmental Assessment Team.
The consultations sought to get their input on environmental, archaelogical,
cultural and traditional use considerations. Site-specific environmental
assessments were conducted for each of the proposed drilling sites in the
area by Rescan Tahltan Environmental Consultants. Where concerns were
expressed Shell had taken them in to consideration in the design of its
proposed 2007/2008 exploration program.
Following their commitment to supply jobs, two environmental monitors were
hired through Rescan Tahltan Environmental Consultants to work with a senior
Rescan Tahltan Environmental Monitor. They were to observe the work in the
Klappan during exploration in 2008, and Shell said “We are committed to
exploring for and producing natural gas from coal in a socially and
environmentally responsible way.”
The company had said it would continue conducting additional environmental
studies, baseline assessments and reclamation efforts in the Klappan area.
This activity would assist in integrating regional environmental and social
considerations.
