The National Energy Board (NEB) released 16 additional considerations for the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion, adding to the existing 156. It is again recommending that the expansion continue, despite the “significant adverse” impacts it could have on B.C.’s killer-whale population due to increased shipping traffic. (Globe and Mail)

Talking point: The board said the benefits—which include diversifying Canada’s markets for oil and considerable revenues for government—outweigh environmental concerns. The federal government’s approval of the project was halted in August 2018, when a federal judge found that certain First Nations weren’t adequately consulted on the project, and that the NEB had not properly considered the impact of increased marine traffic. With the NEB’s assessment complete, the federal government’s focus will be on consulting First Nations, which must be completed before the project can move ahead.