Supreme Court dismisses Burnaby's case against Trans Mountain pipeline

The Supreme Court has dismissed an appeal by the City of Burnaby on construction of the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion, one of the last court challenges to a project that has pitted British Columbia and First Nations against Alberta and Ottawa.

Burnaby asked the country's highest court last spring to consider a lower court decision that denied the port city leave to appeal a ruling by the National Energy Board.

That ruling allowed Kinder Morgan to bypass local bylaws during construction of the pipeline expansion, which would triple the amount of diluted bitumen and other oil products moving between the Edmonton-area and port facilities in Burnaby.

The federal government approved the pipeline expansion in 2016, but the project faces significant opposition in B.C.

Thousands of people have rallied in protest and the provincial government has raised concerns about the pipeline’s possible environmental and economic impact.

Burnaby had appealed the NEB’s decision to the Federal Court of Appeal, which dismissed the appeal with costs on March 23.