As Canada looks to untangle itself economically from the US, the country's landlocked oil patch is eyeing new customers in Asia through a pipeline to the Pacific. Not everyone is on board.
The oil-rich province of Alberta has had one demand for Prime Minister Mark Carney: Help us build an oil pipeline — and fast.
It's no small task — in fact, some argue it has become near-impossible to build a pipeline in Canada because of laws designed to bolster environmental protections. Three oil pipelines have died on the vine in the past decade over fierce opposition.
But Alberta Premier Danielle Smith is not deterred.
Her conservative government has taken the unusual step of drafting its own proposal for a pipeline from the Alberta oil sands to British Columbia's northern Pacific coast, aimed at reaching Asian markets. Still in the early stages, Smith hopes that by doing the groundwork a private company will eventually take over and build it.
