Is the Trans Mountain pipeline really an ocean-murdering hellspawn like B.C. says it is? – by Tristin Hopper (Financial Post – March 14, 2018)

http://nationalpost.com/

Opponents say it’s not just a pipeline, it’s an unprecedented destroyer of worlds that must be stopped at all costs

If you ask the B.C. government why it’s trying to block the federally approved Trans Mountain pipeline, it will say it’s all about protecting the ocean. “I’m standing up for the coast, man,” B.C. Premier John Horgan said last month.

Rather than crude oil, the Trans Mountain pipeline will carry diluted bitumen, a heavier and more viscous petroleum product. Pipeline opponents maintain that this makes the project a uniquely dangerous environmental threat.

There may be some truth to that, but it’s safe to say that B.C. is currently awash in a galaxy of pipeline fears that don’t necessarily square with reality.

Below, our attempt to explain the risks, debunk the myths and illustrate, as best as possible, whether the Trans Mountain pipeline really is the destroyer of worlds that activists say it is.

The pipeline makes a coastal B.C. spill more likely

It’s bad when a tanker hits something and spills fossil fuels into the ocean. The Trans Mountain pipeline will raise the amount of tankers in B.C. waters, thus statistically increasing the chances that one of them will hit something and cause a spill.

For the rest of this article: http://nationalpost.com/news/is-the-trans-mountain-pipeline-really-an-ocean-murdering-hellspawn-like-b-c-says-it-is