Morice River
Status
The Morice River was listed as the 6th most endangered river in British Columbia due to the proposed Enbridge Northern Gateway Pipelines which would have carried diluted bitumen. The report was issued by the Outdoor Recreation Council of British Columbia.
The Northern Gateway Pipeline did not make substantial progress following approval with 209 conditions. Subsequently the approval was quashed by the courts.
The Morice River is also crossed by the approved Coastal GasLink Pipeline which will carry natural gas. Some hereditary chiefs of the Wetʼsuwetʼen oppose the pipeline on the grounds that it will disrupt salmon populations and decrease water quality. The crossing of the Morice is planned to be accomplished by trenchless crossing, though crossing of tributaries are not using this method, leading to concern of increased turbidity. The Wet'suwet'en name for the Morice river is Wet-zuhn-kwa.
The Coastal Gaslink company reported two spills of clay lubricant while tunneling on April 12 2023, one on land and the other in a small tributary west of the Morice River. Coastal Gaslink later said in an email that the size of the spills and what caused them were still being investigated, and that the clay was non-toxic with no expected impact on fish or waterways.
See also
References
- ^ "BC Geographical Names". apps.gov.bc.ca. Retrieved 10 November 2023.
- ^ "The Endangered Rivers List". Outdoor Recreation Council of British Columbia. Retrieved Sep 4, 2011.
- ^ "Northern Gateway pipeline approval overturned". CBC. Retrieved Nov 1, 2021.
- ^ "Pipeline Standoff: Wet'suwet'en Block Effort to Tunnel under Morice River". The Tyee. Retrieved Nov 1, 2021.
- ^ "Coastal GasLink reports 2 spills while tunnelling under Morice River in northern B.C." cbc.ca. Retrieved 10 November 2023.