Blueberry River First Nations chief and council urge members against ‘escalating situation’ with pipeline protest

FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. — The chief and council of Blueberry River First Nations (BRFN) does not support band members’ protests and blockades north of Fort St. John at a worksite relating to the NEBC Connector project.

Media reports suggest both contractors and band members of BRFN had set up a blockade on 260 Road off Highway 97 at NorthRiver Access 33a related to construction of the project on Monday, March 2nd.

The project is slated to connect NorthRiver Midstream’s highway LNG hub near Wonowon to the Gordondale area of Alberta.

In a statement to Energeticcity.ca, BRFN chief and council acknowledged “members are unhappy” with current contract agreements the First Nation has with industry partners, but do not support the actions of the protesters.

“We do not support escalating situations without first addressing chief and council as a whole, to give them the opportunity to respond and address concerns like this,” reads part of the statement.

“Council will be working with project proponents and our member-owned businesses to create a system that works fairly for everyone, respecting our members while upholding our commitments to industry.”

Energeticcity.ca has reached out to Matt Lamont, who was cited as a protest organizer, and NorthRiver Midstream for further comment but did not immediately hear back before publication.