To the Editor,
Re: Pipeline’s economic boon a myth, Letters, May 14.
Burtt Fidler begins his anti-pipeline argument with a myth – that being the Kinder-Morgan pipeline expansion will result in only 35 new jobs in B.C.
Our economy consists of international, national, provincial and local components, all of which contribute to our well-being and standard of living.
This pipeline will benefit everyone in Canada. Think of the thousands of families who stand to benefit.
Steelworkers, coatings manufacturers, machinists, welders, carpenters, caterers, pump manufacturers, electricians, heavy equipment operators, surveyors, cleaning contractors, safety inspectors, vehicle and equipment retailers, modular housing companies and scores of other businesses will all be kept busy while their employees and families receive paycheques and pay taxes.
Fidler apparently dislikes profit as well, though it underpins the pension income of many Canadians.
He insists that renewable energy is the wave of the future and indeed some day it may well be. But, the Achilles heel of renewable energy is that it must be available in vast quantities, on demand.
Until we can store large amounts of pure electrical energy, renewables will remain costly and unreliable.
While no one can preclude an oil spill into infinity, decades of quantifiable benefits certainly outweigh the small but not negligible risk of transporting Canadian crude oil to overseas markets.
Randy O’Donnell
Nanaimo