53 Percent of British Columbians Support a New Pipeline From Alberta: Poll

Workers lay pipe during construction of the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion on farmland, in Abbotsford, B.C., on May 3, 2023. The Canadian Press/Darryl Dyck

The majority of Canadians and British Columbians would support a new oil pipeline from Alberta to the B.C. coast, a new poll suggests.

In the Angus Reid poll released Nov. 27, 60 percent of Canadians nationwide said they would support a pipeline from Alberta to B.C. Of the B.C. residents surveyed, 53 percent said they would support a potential pipeline, with a considerable amount of those opposed concerned primarily about a partial lifting of the oil tanker ban on B.C.’s north coast.

“Support outweighs opposition in B.C. (53% to 37%), representing a significant increase in amenability compared to the prior decade. These data are also similar to results from seven weeks ago,” Angus Reid wrote in a Nov. 27 release regarding the poll, adding that support is highest in Alberta and Saskatchewan, where 74 percent support a pipeline.

About a decade ago, a poll regarding the federal government’s conditional approval of the ultimately unsuccessful Northern Gateway pipeline found that 38 percent of British Columbians thought it should be approved, and 37 percent of Canadians overall agreed.

Data for the latest public opinion poll was collected Nov. 26 to 27, has a margin of error of plus or minus 1.5 percentage points 19 times out of 20, and was gathered among 1,851 Canadian adults who belong to the Angus Reid Forum.

The poll comes amid news that Alberta Premier Danielle Smith and Prime Minister Mark Carney have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) between Ottawa and Alberta agreeing to lift various Trudeau-era environmental restrictions and work toward the approval and construction of a pipeline from Alberta to the West Coast.

The MOU also agrees to potentially lift parts of the ban on large oil tankers on B.C.’s north coast if a future pipeline is approved as a project of national interest by Ottawa’s Major Projects Office.

The MOU potential carve-out for the oil tanker ban is supported by 26 percent of Canadians as well as 21 percent who say the oil tanker ban should be removed entirely, for a total of 47 percent. In B.C., 38 percent of respondents said the oil tanker ban should remain in place as is, with 88 percent of this cohort opposing the pipeline entirely.

In terms of opposition, the poll found that 25 percent of Canadians oppose an Alberta–B.C. pipeline, while 15 percent aren’t sure or don’t have an opinion. When it comes to party affiliation, 35 percent of those who voted for the Liberals in the last federal election oppose or strongly oppose the pipeline, though more (49 percent) support it, while 89 percent of those who voted Conservative in the last federal election said they support the pipeline.

A strong party split is especially noticeable in the poll when it comes to lifting the oil tanker ban entirely, with 42 percent of Conservatives wanting to do so compared to only 8 percent of Liberals.