Join three First Nations to confront bitumen threat in court

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Published on Monday, 18 March 2019 05:44
Written by editor
Join three First Nations to confront bitumen threat in court r1 ...

Dear PAOV

This week, the Heiltsuk, Haida and Little Shuswap Nations will be appearing before the BC Court of Appeal in a seminal case focusing on overlapping federal, provincial and Indigenous jurisdictions to legislate environmental protections. The three First Nations will be arguing in favour of BC’s power to pass legislation to protect the province from the threat of a diluted bitumen spill - which the federal government is opposing - while emphasizing the right of First Nations to apply their own laws to federal oil projects.

The bitumen case throws another legal hurdle in the path of the Trans Mountain pipeline, currently in legal limbo after Indigenous legal challenges led to the project being quashed by the federal Court of Appeals in 2018.

Unlike most of the cases supported by RAVEN, the “bitumen reference”, as this case has become known, was brought by the BC government. Without First Nation participation, vital Indigenous interests would have been left undefended. The case would have remained narrowly focused on the jurisdictional tug-of-war between the province and the feds.

This is why we are especially delighted that we were able to support the participation of Heiltsuk, Haida and Little Shuswap with $150K in 2018.

Acting as intervenors in existing court cases brought by governments or corporations is a powerful way for First Nations to bring Indigenous interests, concerns and perspectives before the courts without the burden of filing their own a case. Yet too often even that level of participation can be financially prohibitive for Indigenous communities.

“Interprovincial pipelines and tankers may be matters of federal concern, but the consequences of their spills are borne by local communities, and we ought to have a say about how they are regulated,” said hereditary chief Wiqvilba Wakas (Harvey Humchitt). “The Heiltsuk have been governing our territory through Indigenous laws for millennia, and we hope that the court will recognize the importance of our continued ability to do so.”

Thank you for your support.

Ana, Susan, Laurie, Leah, Andrea + Michelle
The RAVEN team

p.s. Check out the whole story about this case on our website, and share the news!
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