Premiers renew calls for west-to-east pipeline at Muskoka Summit

Three of Canada’s premiers have renewed calls for a pipeline that would run from Western Canada to refineries located in the east, making the country less reliant on the United States and elsewhere.

Three of Canada’s premiers have renewed calls for a pipeline that would run from Western Canada to refineries located in the east, making the country less reliant on the United States and elsewhere.

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith, Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe, and Ontario Premier Doug Ford told reporters on Tuesday that the time for a cross-country pipeline was “long overdue.”

Canada’s premiers and Prime Minister Mark Carney are currently gathered in Huntsville, Ont., for the Muskoka Summit.

The summit is a three-day assembly to deal with the ongoing trade dispute with the Trump Administration.

“It should give us pause that we, in eastern Canada, are overly reliant on oil, that either has to come by way of the United States or has to be shipped in from overseas. We could have addressed that years ago with the Energy East pipeline. Energy East is now no longer an option that’s available to us because those pipelines are now full of gas,” said Smith.

“But if we can begin by creating a pipeline option that will at least help us to get to Ontario so that we can satisfy the needs of this market. I think that will give energy security to the country, and that’s probably something that’s long overdue. We probably should have done it decades ago.”

Their calls come after the House of Commons passed Bill C-5 last month, which aims to accelerate the building of infrastructure, including pipelines.

The legislation will permit proposals deemed in the “national interest” to receive expedited environmental impact reviews, with a target of having major projects approved within two years.

Moe agreed with Smith, adding that Canada must have “access through line” to refineries in eastern Canada.

“I think that would be important to those that live in central and eastern Canada as well, so that we have that energy security as a country. I would point out the comparison of what happened most recently in Eastern Europe,” he said.

“When European countries learned that they had been entirely reliant for a significant amount of their energy security on Russia, not a country that today they want to be reliant on.”

A poll conducted by Juno News last month found overwhelming support for building more pipelines in Canada, with 98.5 per cent of respondents voting in favour of pipeline expansion.

The survey, which collected 6,903 responses across the country, found strong majority support in every province, with the lowest support still reaching over 90 per cent in Prince Edward Island and Quebec.

Newfoundland and Labrador recorded unanimous support, with 100 per cent of respondents backing more pipelines.

According to the poll data, support was strongest in Ontario, where 2,124 out of 2,142 respondents (99.16 per cent) answered “yes.”

Alberta followed closely behind with 98.80 per cent, and Nova Scotia with 98.73 per cent.

“We can’t chance it any longer. We need to be independent. We need a pipeline going to southwestern Ontario to one of the refineries and be self-reliant,” Ford told reporters on Tuesday.