EDMONTON - Federal Natural Resources Minister Joe Oliver is “concerned about excess delays” in the public hearing process for a proposed pipeline that would carry Alberta oil to tankers off the west coast of British Columbia.

In an email Tuesday, Oliver responded to questions about newly public documents that show as recently as September politicians in Ottawa expected hearings on the Enbridge Northern Gateway pipeline project to be completed by mid-2012.

In December, the joint review panel evaluating environmental and safety impacts of the pipeline released a hearing schedule which makes room for as many as 4,000 people to present evidence between January 2012 and April 2013. The new schedule pushes any final decision on Gateway back by at least a year.

“We respect the process but are concerned about excess delays,” Oliver said, noting, “consultations ... with aboriginal and other organizations have been ongoing since 2008.”

The pipeline has prompted widespread criticism in recent months, particularly among First Nations in British Columbia and environmental groups that question not only the impacts of more bitumen being pumped from the oilsands, but of worst-case scenarios if there was a spill.

At the same time, pipeline supporters, including the Alberta government, see Gateway as a solution for exporting oilsands products to new overseas markets and being less dependent on the U.S.

Briefing notes to Oliver, dated Sept. 20 and released to the Edmonton Journal under access to information laws this month, outline Ottawa’s “key messages” on the project, explaining the economic benefits of the proposed pipeline and “federal ‘support.’” The documents emphasize Ottawa will not make any decisions on the project until after the panel completes its review.

To date, Oliver has been a vocal supporter of the project. He has said he will respect the regulatory process, but has also called the proposed bitumen-carrying pipeline from Bruderheim to Kitimat, B.C. a “nation-building” project.

He has said he would not be cowed by protesters.

The briefing documents provide further insight into the government’s position on the project, which is expected to broaden Canada’s and Alberta’s oilsands exports to customers in Asia. In a section entitled, “If asked about Federal ‘support’ for Northern Gateway,” the notes say: “I have indicated that it is very important for Canada to diversify markets for its natural resources, including energy.”

The same documents highlight economic benefits of the pipeline, such as a “peak workforce” of 3,000 during construction and an “estimated $21-billion increase in net revenues for Canadian crude oil exports” during the first decade of the pipeline’s operation.

Opposition to the project is described as coming from “some members of the public as well as certain municipalities, environmental groups and First Nations because it would transport ‘tar sands’ crude oil to B.C. for loading onto super-tankers for transport through Canadian waters before reaching the open Pacific Ocean.” The documents note project opponents often make reference to tanker spills and pipeline ruptures like the 1989 Exxon Valdez spill in Alaska, the 2010 well blow-out in the Gulf of Mexico, and the Rainbow crude oil pipeline spill in northern Alberta in April 2011. Calls via social media, demonstrations and letters for the federal government to “create a permanent ban on B.C. north coast tanker traffic” are dismissed, however, because such a move “would be inconsistent with shipping practices in other parts of the country.”

Edmonton-Strathcona NDP MP Linda Duncan said there’s “a lot of interests that are going to be at play here. If they haven’t figured out yet that this cannot be rubber-stamped, then they better wake up.”

The documents are in keeping with the federal government’s stance on the pipeline project.

Ottawa may take opposition to the project seriously, “but that’s different than are they actually delivering (on) their responsibilities,” Duncan said, describing Oliver as “trying to fast-track” the pipeline approval.

A hearing process tis expected to start Jan. 10 in Kitimat. The joint panel will travel through northern British Columbia and Alberta in the next four months, including six days of hearings in Edmonton at the end of January. Still more hearings are scheduled through April 2013.

“Initially, there was not really a timeline,” for release of the panel’s final report, said Annie Roy, spokeswoman for the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency. She noted it was difficult to anticipate the length of time it would take to hear all the evidence.

“Each process is different and in other processes you don’t necessarily have the same method of participation,” Roy said.

“For sure it’s a high rate of participation, but the panel wants to hear from everyone ... who has valuable information. It will help them in making a decision.”

taudette@edmontonjournal.com

To see the documents released by the federal government, visit edmontonjournal.com