Great news from the North

A good legal decision from Canada's Supreme Court. From Saskatoon, Saskatchewan station CKOM:

Supreme Court dismisses Indigenous appeal of Trans Mountain approval
The Supreme Court of Canada will not hear a new appeal from British Columbia First Nations over the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion.

The court on Thursday dismissed the appeal from the Squamish Nation, Tsleil-Waututh Nation, the Ts’elxwéyeqw Tribes and Coldwater Indian Band, effectively ending the years-long legal battle over the project.

As is customary, the court did not give reasons for its decision.

First Nations leaders were planning a news conference later Thursday to respond to the court’s decision.

The Trans Mountain project was first approved in 2016, but stopped by the Federal Court of Appeal two years later after First Nations and environmental groups successfully argued the approval process was flawed.

Ottawa approved the project a second time in June 2019 after undergoing additional consultation with the affected communities, but the bands still felt the government did not fulfil its duty to consult and again appealed the decision.

The Federal Court of Appeal ruled in February the approval would stand, saying the government had made a genuine effort to hear and accommodate concerns raised. But the First Nations disagreed and asked the Supreme Court to hear the case.

From the very beginning, it was a shakedown for cash and they got way too greedy. The enviros started it and got the Tribes involved to add a veneer of legitimacy. The pipeline people have seen this many times before and they did not blink. They said no and stuck to their rights. They won. Wonderful news - sends a strong message to other groups thinking about trying to pull the same shit.

The Tribes could have gotten a lot more by asking for a little bit less. And realizing that the enviros are not their friends. They ARE fellow travelers but they are not friends.