Letter Linked to Canadian Explosion

A threatening letter is said to have circulated the day before a Canadian northern B.C. gas pipeline was bombed recently, suggesting opposition to the project may be behind the explosion.

The bomb exploded overnight Saturday beside a sour gas line owned by EnCana about 50 kilometres east of Dawson Creek near the B.C.-Alberta border.

A small crater in the line was left by explosion in B.C. over the weekend, which has been temporarily shut off. EnCana said the line didn't rupture and no gas was released.

No one has taken responsibility for the bombing, although the RCMP believe it may be related to the letter sent to local media outlets, which demanded oil and gas projects be shut down by Saturday.

"We will no longer negotiate with terrorists which you are as you keep endangering our families with crazy expansion of deadly gas wells in our home lands," said the anonymous letter, parts of which were published by the Dawson Creek Daily News.

Sergeant Tim Shields said investigators are reviewing the letter. "The time frame is too close to ignore and we're making the logical assumption that the letter is tied to the explosion," said Shields.

Sour gas contains hydrogen sulphide and can be fatal if inhaled, posing a danger to people nearby which is why there are many critics. Observers say residents often grow frustrated if they feel the regulatory systems in place aren't looking out for their interests.

There were more than 150 incidents oil and natural gas facilities in northwestern Alberta between 1996 and 1998, ranging from nails strewn along lease roads to shootings.

The Alberta farmer, who blamed the energy industry and sour gas emissions for harming his land, livestock and family, was eventually convicted of several charges related to oilpatch bombing and vandalism and spent nearly two years in prison.

"The general perception in Alberta and B.C. is that they're poorly regulated," says Andrew Nikiforuk, a Calgary-based author who wrote a book about Ludwig.

"It (vandalism and violence) is generally an indication that people in charge of regulating sour gas activity have failed."

Staff Sgt. Stephen Grant of the Dawson Creek RCMP said he couldn't recall other cases of vandalism directed at oil and gas facilities in the area.

"There's opposition from time to time, but it hasn't taken the form of destruction," said Grant.

EnCana spokesman Alan Boras said the company's facilities in northern B.C. haven't been targeted like this before, and he insisted there isn't major opposition in the area. He said the company has good relations with the communities.

"It doesn't mean we don't from time to time have concerns. We work very hard to work through them," Boras said.

He said leaks are very rare, though he didn't have specific statistics.

Steve Simons, spokesman for the B.C. Oil and Gas Commission, said complaints from the public aren't common.

Simons said the commission has increased inspections of sour gas facilities over the past year and emergency response plans are in place in the event of a rupture.

But Margot Venton, a lawyer with the environmental group Ecojustice, said fears about safety are often coupled with frustration with regulators.

"Hydrogen sulphide is a very dangerous substance, so the stakes are quite high in the communities and the areas where these things are being placed," said Venton.

"Certainly our experience with clients in Alberta has been that there's a lot of frustration because the opportunity for public involvement in the hearings in where these things are placed are extremely limited."

Author: Jo Amey