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Bring it on

IF PIERRE Berton was still with us, his bushy white eyebrows would no doubt be lifted in surprise as Enbridge sharpens its tactics in preparation for next year’s Northern Gateway pipeline hearings.

IF PIERRE Berton was still with us, his bushy white eyebrows would  no doubt be lifted in surprise as Enbridge sharpens its tactics in preparation for next year’s Northern Gateway pipeline hearings.

That’s because the author of The National Dream would be taken aback with Enbridge equating its $5.5 billion pipeline plan with the construction of the Canadian Pacific Railway railway across the country.

There’s no indication yet of who will become a latter day Sir John A. Macdonald or if Enbridge’s board wants to mimic the hammering in of the last spike but Enbridge is clearly positioning the Northern Gateway pipeline as a patriotic exercise in nation building.

Combine this with its other tactics, saying it is relying on the National Energy Board to ultimately judge the Northern Gateway project on its scientific merits and, just lately, asking its supporters to challenge every assertion made by its opponents and it’s clear the company is gearing up for a gargantuan battle.

Company officials are also saying they’ve anticipated and expected every move made to oppose the project. It’s a clever tactic for it very much blunts the opposition message.

So for those who may have thought that the company somehow would melt away into the night, think again. Enbridge, like any other large company, has the ability to absorb punishment while moving forward to its ultimate goal.

This editorial appears in the June 1 edition of the Terrace Standard.