Miller's quest for oil finds critics on the North Coast

When he was the NDP MLA for the North Coast and then the Premier of the Province, few in Prince Rupert ever said a discouraging word about Dan Miller.

But put him on the side of those agenda with those who feel that the time has come for the development of offshore oil and gas reserves and well, Miller may find more than a few of his old allies and supporters aren't on side any more.

On Tuesday, Miller called for the moratorium on gas and oil exploration to be lifted, in effect since 1972 it occasionally comes back to the surface over the ongoing debate over energy exploration and economic development on the North coast, and each and every time it seems to be a case of a lot of talk and not much in the way of development arriving on the scene.

Mr. Miller's high profile attachment to the issue this year, is providing to be a magnet for those who are against the prospect for any number of reason, from current MLA Gary Coons (also and NDP member) to the Dogwood Initiative, the consensus seems to be that Miller is wrong on the issue.

While he has been consistent with his approach to the prospects of offshore drilling along the North coast and Queen Charlottes basin, there are many that feel that his current comments show that perhaps he's a tad out of touch with his old riding and the wishes of some of the people that reside there.

With the party that he formerly led seemingly quite happy to be on the No side of the lift the moratorium debate, it will be interesting to watch the reaction from former supporters in this community, as he pushes forward with his vision on the issue.

The Daily News provided details on some of the backlash to Miller's comments in the Wednesday paper.

Miller slammed for pro oil and gas talk

MLA Gary Coons says former NDP premier is 'wrong on this one'
By George T. Baker
The Daily News
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
Page three

Comments from former North Coast NDP MLA Dan Miller about offshore oil drilling along the B.C. coast is not sitting well with the current North Coast NDP MLA, Gary Coons.

Miller said on Tuesday that he would like to see the 1972 moratorium on offshore oil and gas resources lifted so that the province can avoid serious economic perils in the future by saying 'yes' to offshore oil.

"Dan (Miller) is wrong on this one," said Coons, who listed the environment and the views of North Coast residents as reasons for Miller's misjudgment.

Whether or not Miller is capable of making an unbiased opinion is also questionable, said another critic, given that Miller is a lobbyist for Enbridge Inc., a North American oil distributor that has in the first six months of their 2008 fiscal year raked in almost $1 billion in revenues.

Dogwood Initiative executive director Will Horter does not believe that Miller is the best source of unbiased information on this matter.

Horter said that Miller had always been "rah-rah" as it pertains to resource extraction and that the offshore oil drilling was Miller's "personal pet project."

"I don't think there are many people backing this up and the last time there was a public process on this question, the Priddle Report, 85 per cent of those who responded said they were against offshore oil," said Horter.

The Priddle Report was published in October of 2004 by Natural Resources Canada under the Liberal government. It was a summary of discussions held with North Coast First Nations to feel out whether or not they would be agreeable to lifting the moratorium.

The report said that, "First Nations are objecting to lifting the moratorium because the ocean is their primary source of food, and the gathering of those resources is inextricably linked to their culture and their ultimate survival as distinct peoples.

"It is their view that the current science indicates to them that the impacts to marine species are too significant to offset the potential economic benefits of offshore exploration and development.

"Several have also commented that until the issues of ownership and jurisdiction are resolved - no further resources should be exploited in their traditional territories."

The Haida Nation, to name one First Nations group, has said in the past that it does not support offshore oil drilling along the North Coast.

Horter believes the next provincial government will not resolve the issue regardless of which party holds the keys. He said to lift the moratorium in the next four years would be too monumental of a task.

"I would say they may try to do that (move forward) but the reality is the First Nations along the coast have said it very clearly 'over our dead bodies' and legally that is a massive obstacle and risk for this project and to combine that over the next four years, it's very unlikely even if the government went full-tilt boogey, we are going to do this," said Horter.

According to Coons, prior to 2001, while Miller was still an NDP MLA, the NDP policy was to maintain the moratorium and revisit if resource revenue was shared among stakeholders, and if First Nations of the whole North Coast and all stakeholders agreed to lift the moratorium.

The NDP's policy is now to maintain the moratorium, which has Coons wishing Miller all the best.
"I wish Dan well in his retirement from politics," said Coons.