Stk’emlúpsemc te Secwépemc Nation

In a letter to the regulator dated Wednesday, a lawyer representing the Stk’emlúpsemc te Secwépemc Nation (SSN) said the decision to grant the route deviation Monday without providing its reasons has left the First Nation without the ability to decide its next steps.

Trans Mountain Corp. insists it is committed to "meaningful engagement" with Indigenous communities after it was given the green light to move its pipeline route despite the objection of a First Nation.

In its regulatory filing, Trans Mountain Corp. said it has run into engineering difficulties related to the drilling of a tunnel in B.C. and wants to alter the route slightly for a 1.3-kilometre stretch of pipe, as well as the construction method.

The Stk’emlúpsemc te Secwépemc Nation in southern British Columbia is serving as a model to indigenous communities across the Canada in its historic fight against the Ajax mine.