Technical Review of the Telkwa Coal Mine Proposal
2023
This review was conducted by Dr. Patrick Littlejohn, P.Eng., Senior Chemical/Metallurgical Engineer with Source and a Qualified Professional in BC in the area of mine water treatment and discharge planning. It provides a third party technical review of the Tenas Coal Project Environmental Assessment Certificate Application and was conducted to support the Northwest Institute during the public comment period for the Application. Download the report here.
Open letter: Allow public input on Enbridge’s fracked gas pipeline extension application
2023
Open letter: Allow public input on Enbridge’s fracked gas pipeline extension application
The undersigned organizations sent the following letter to Minister George Heyman to express our concern regarding the environmental implications and lack of public input on the decision-making process to extend the Westcoast Connector Gas Transmission (WCGT) pipeline certificate. Enbridge Inc.’s application to push the deadline to start building the pipeline for another five years, until November 2029, and the process for granting this extension deserves to be informed by the people and communities who will be impacted.
Liquefied Natural Gas
2023
The Northwest Insitute has produced a number of publications about Liquefied Natural Gas proposals in BC including a fact sheet, an analysis of greenhouse gas emissions, an up-to-date table of proposals and a request for a Strategic Environmental and Economic Assessement of BC LNG proposals.
Table of LNG Projects in Northwest BC
2023
A table providing details on the proposed Liquified Natural Gas projects in Northwest British Columbia. Last updated July 2023.
Cost Benefit Analysis of the Telkwa Coal Mine Proposal
2022
On behalf of the Northwest Institute, Swift Creek Consulting has prepared an assessment of the Telkwa Coal Mine's net economic benefits and comment on the Project’s public interest case. Economic benefits play an out-sized role in public interest evaluations, and therefore it is crucial to closely examine economic net benefits so that the BC government is properly informed.
Critical Review of the Telkwa Coal Mine Socio-Economic Assessment
2022
This report provides a critical review of the socio-economic components of the environmental impact assessment prepared for the proposed Tenas (Telkwa) coal project, which would be located seven kilometres southwest of Telkwa. It includes an analysis of project need and benefits, and economic, demographic, infrastructure and methodological issues.
Telkwa Coal Mine Plan - Key Issues Related to Water
2022
These comments are based on a preliminary review of the Telkwa Coal Mine application by Patrick Littlejohn, PhD, P.Eng., a mining professional with more than ten years of experience in mine water treatment and management in BC. He will conduct a more fulsome review and contribute written comments to the Northwest Institute as part of the Environmental Assessment process. June 21, 2022.
Forestry Dialogue
2019
During March 2019, a series of community conversations were held around the province. The locations were chosen to hear a range of community concerns, values and experiences with forest management around BC. The purpose of these meetings was to provide a process for bringing the community voice into the April 9-10 discussion.
Rio Tinto Alcan Environmental Appeal Board Hearing Summaries April - June 2015
2015
The Environmental Appeal Board is hearing an appeal launched by Kitimat residents, Lis Stannus and Emily Toews, of a provincial Ministry of Environment decision to allow Rio Tinto Alcan to increase its sulphur dioxide emissions from its Kitimat aluminum smelter by 55 percent above current permit levels and not require scrubbers on the smelter.
The Hearings are expected to take four weeks. The first two weeks of hearings will be held in Victoria from April 27-May 1 and May 11-15. Then there will be two weeks of hearings in Kitimat from June 1-5 and June 8-12.
Summaries of the hearings will be posted to this page daily.
Brochure: What you need to know about Petronas and its impacts on Skeena Salmon
2014
This brochure provides an overview of the impacts that Petronas' proposed Pacific Northwest LNG facility poses to juvenile salmon habitat in the Skeena Estuary. It was created in November 2014 and distributed widely to communities in the Skeena watershed. Download the PDF here (3.2 MB).
Documenting the Enbridge Joint Review Panel Hearings
2013
If built, the proposed Enbridge Northern Gateway Pipeline would carry diluted bitumen from the Alberta oil sands westward to a new tanker port at Kitimat, and carry condensate (a bitumen diluent) eastward to Alberta. The issue is of critical concern to Northwest British Columbians and people from across Canada. Currently, the proposed project is being reviewed by a Joint Review Panel headed by the National Energy Board. The panel travelled throughout Northwest B.C. and elsewhere in B.C. and Alberta to hear from citizens on the matter. The Northwest Institute documented the hearings throughout the Joint Review process.
To read summaries of the community and technical hearings, visit our Enbridge Joint Review Panel page.
Potential Effects of an Oil Pipeline Rupture on Reach 2 of Morice River
2012
A Northwest Institute Submission to the Joint Review Panel, Enbridge Northern Gateway Project.
Comparison of the British Columbia and Federal Environmental Assessments for the Prosperity Mine
2011
The BC Environmental Assessment Office's recommendation to approve the proposed Prosperity Mine was based on incomplete evidence and was the result of a hurried, flawed and less than objective process.
Enbridge Joint Review Panel Workshop
2010
A workshop organized by the Northwest Institute to familiarize the community with aspects of the Joint Review Panel process.
Environmental Assessment Workshop - Smithers, BC
2009
The Northwest Institute organized a 2009 workshop in Smithers on the Environmental Assessment Process.
Valuation of the Wild Salmon Economy of the Skeena Watershed
2006
The Northwest Institute commissioned IBM Business Consulting to conduct a valuation of the wild Salmon economy of the Skeena River Watershed.
Community Futures and Choices in the Bulkley Valley
2001
This paper raises questions about the economic future of the Bulkley Valley using the proposed Telkwa Coal Project as the point of departure for its discussion.
Status of Salmon Spawning Stocks of the Skeena River System
2000
This report is part of a review of the status and prospects for Skeena salmon stocks and the fisheries they support.
Mushroom Project II
1999
his mushroom project has provided information on the distribution and habitat requirements of pine mushrooms in the Skeena-Bulkley Region and helped foster cooperation among stakeholders.
Mushroom Project
1998
Our first report on pine mushrooms review community issues and concerns around the sustainability of the resource.
