2c. 1974 to 1977: The Mackenzie Valley Pipeline Inquiry

The Mackenzie Valley Pipeline Inquiry

The Mackenzie Valley Pipeline Inquiry was a pivotal point in the development of the EA process and resource management in Canada and set the precedence of how an EA should be conducted (Gibson and Hanna, 2016). 

Image of MacKenzie River Delta

The 1970s were characterized by increased interest in oil and gas development across the Canadian Arctic. In 1974 two gas companies, Canadian Arctic Gas Pipeline Ltd. and Foothills Pipe Lines Ltd, proposed the development of a pipeline that crossed through the environmentally sensitive Mackenzie River Valley (see Figure 1).

On March, 21st, 1974 the Canadian Federal government established the Mackenzie River Valley Pipeline Inquiry, lead by Mr. Justice Thomas Berger,

“to consider the social, environmental and economic impact of a gas pipeline and an energy corridor across our northern territories, across a land where four races of people – Indian, Inuit, Metis and white – live, and where seven languages are spoken. The inquiry was also empowered to recommend terms and conditions that ought to be imposed to protect the people of the North, their environment, and their economy, if the pipeline were to be built.”

Berger Inquiry/The Report of the Mackenzie Valley Pipeline Inquiry: Volume 1, 1977:33

The inquiry was the first to consider the potential social impacts alongside the potential environmental ones resulting from resource development. Prior to the inquiry the Canadian North was seen by much of Canada as an isolated and desolate place – the last frontier. A place that, other than for resource development, held little value. Thomas Berger changed this view – he opened up the North to the rest of Canada, showing that this region was rich in nature and the people who lived in this region were themselves rich in culture. 

Image of proposed pipeline map
Figure 1. Map of proposed Mackenzie Valley Pipeline, 1977. (View full size image)

In order to understand what impact this gas development would have on this region, Thomas Berger travelled to all 35 communities across the Mackenzie River Valley. He spent as much time as was needed to hear the concern of each and every community member. He hired local translators to help facilitate the community meetings. Further, he broadcasted each of the local meetings on CBC radio – he did this in each of the local languages and in English. This allowed the rest of Canada to hear the community meetings and the perspectives of each community member. By doing this, Thomas Berger showed that this region is not the last frontier it was considered by most to be, but was in fact a homeland. Each meeting allowed for the inquiry to gather evidence from the communities across the Mackenzie Valley – close to 1000 people.

 

Image of Thomas Berger and two children behind him

 

Together with this traditional knowledge, Thomas Berger collected evidence from 300 northern experts. This was the first time that traditional knowledge was held to the same level as scientific knowledge. Based on this collection and synthesis of information Thomas Berger came to the conclusion that:

“the evidence led irresistibly to the conclusion that, if a pipeline were built now in the Mackenzie Valley, its economic benefits would be limited, its social impact devastating, and it would frustrate the goals of native claims.”

Berger/Mackenzie Valley Pipeline Inquiry, Volume 2, 1977:X
Image of Mackenzie river pipeline with sign that reads Mackenzie River crossing Maximum weight limit 20,000 kgs

In the 1970s, gas producers proposed a pipeline route that travelled the Mackenzie River Valley of the Northwest Territories.

 

 

According to his report to the Federal Government, Thomas Berger advised:  

“that certain adverse consequences of the construction of a pipeline and the establishment of an energy corridor could not be mitigated, and that it was unrealistic to proceed as if they could. I did say, however, that if the pipeline were postponed, and if steps were taken now to strengthen native society and the native economy through a settlement of native claims, the pipeline might be built in ten years’ time, when the benefits of pipeline construction could be enlarged, and the adverse consequences mitigated”

Berger/Mackenzie Valley Pipeline Inquiry, Volume 2, 1977:XI

 

Key Term

Traditional Knowledge:

  • According to the Assembly of First Nations there is no universal definition of traditional knowledge, However, this term is: 

"commonly understood to refer to collective knowledge of traditions used by Indigenous groups to sustain and adapt themselves to their environment over time. This information is passed on from one generation to the next within the Indigenous group."

AFN Environmental Stewardship, 2018

 

 

WCELaw. (2013, October 15). Tom Berger, O.C., Q.C., on why local voices matter. [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QNhDg1N6ses

 

References

  1. Gibson, R.B., Hanna, K.S. (2016). “Progress and Uncertainty: The Evolution of Federal Environmental Assessment in Canada,” in Kevin S. Hanna, editor, Environmental Impact Assessment: Practice and Participation, Third edition. Toronto: Oxford University Press. pp.15-34.
  2. Protect the Peel. (2017). The geographical diversity of the Peel Watershed is perhaps unparalleled in North America, from rugged mountain ranges and deep canyons to sweeping alpine tundra, boreal forest and expansive wetlands. The six crystal-clear rivers that flow into the Peel River – the Ogilvie, Blackstone, Hart, Wind, Bonnet Plume and Snake Rivers – are the lifeblood of the watershed, traveling north to the Arctic Ocean via the Mackenzie River Delta.  Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society (CPAWS), Yukon Chapter and Yukon Conservation Society. [Photograph]. Retrieved from http://protectpeel.ca/why-protect/for-nature-and-wildlife. 
  3. Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre. (1977). The Report of the MacKenzie Valley Pipeline Inquiry, Volume 1. Government of Northwest Territories. Retrieved from https://www.pwnhc.ca/extras/berger/report/BergerV1_complete_e.pdf. p. 33.
  4. Minister of Supply and Services Canada/NWT Archives Library. (1977). Map of the proposed Mackenzie Valley Pipeline from Northern Frontier, Northern Homeland, A Report of the Mackenzie Valley Pipeline Inquiry: Volume One. By Mr. Justice Thomas R. Berger. [Map]. Retrieved from https://www.nwttimeline.ca/1950/Popups/map_berger.htm.
  5. Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre. (1977). Photograph of Justice Thomas Berger. To study the impacts of the pipeline on the people who lived in its path and would most be affected by it, the Liberal government at the time appointed a Canadian judge, Mr. Justice Thomas Berger of British Columbia. From the NFB Blog, Carolyne Weldon, November 17, 2016. [Photograph]. Retrieved from https://blog.nfb.ca/blog/2016/11/17/water-protectors-fort-good-hope-standing-rock/
  6. Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre. (1977). NORTHERN FRONTIER, NORTHERN HOMELAND - Mackenzie Valley Pipeline Inquiry - Volume 2. Letter to the Minister from Commissioner Mr. Justice Thomas R. Berger. Government of Northwest Territories.  Retrieved from https://www.pwnhc.ca/extras/berger/report/BergerV2_letter_e.pdf. p. x.
  7. Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre. (1977). NORTHERN FRONTIER, NORTHERN HOMELAND - Mackenzie Valley Pipeline Inquiry - Volume 2. Letter to the Minister from Commissioner Mr. Justice Thomas R. Berger. Government of Northwest Territories.  Retrieved from https://www.pwnhc.ca/extras/berger/report/BergerV2_letter_e.pdf. p. xii.
  8. Coyle, J. (2017, June 24). In the 1970s, gas producers proposed a pipeline route that travelled the Mackenzie River Valley of the Northwest Territories. From the article, How a Canadian judge helped preserved the Artic. The Star. [Photograph]. Retrieved from https://www.thestar.com/news/canada-150/2017/06/24/how-a-canadian-judge-helped-preserve-the-arctic.html.
  9. Assembly of First Nations (AFN) (2018). AFN Environmental Stewardship: Respecting Mother Earth. Traditional Knowledge. Retrieved from https://www.afn.ca/uploads/files/env/ns_-_traditional_knowledge.pdf.
  10. WCELaw. (2013, October 15). Tom Berger, O.C., Q.C., on why local voices matter. [Video]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QNhDg1N6ses.