阿尔伯塔省油砂产区的政界领袖们表示，他们希望这条拟建的西海岸石油管道能够每日输送100万桶原油，同时也能创造大量就业机会并带动经济发展。
Political leaders in Alberta’s oilsands region say they hope the potential one million barrels of oil per day that could flow through a new West Coast oil pipeline will also bring jobs and economic spinoffs.
周四，加拿大总理马克·卡尼与阿尔伯塔省省长丹妮尔·史密斯在访问艾伯塔省的麦克默里堡时宣布，这条现名为“太平洋链接”的管道项目是《建设加拿大法案》项下首个被认定为符合国家利益的项目。
Prime Minister Mark Carney and Alberta Premier Danielle Smith announced during a Thursday visit to Fort McMurray, Alta., that the proposed pipeline – which is now called the Pacific Link – is the first project designated as being in the national interest under the Building Canada Act.
接下来，联邦政府将设法简化审批流程，以加快该项目的推进速度。
Now the federal government will fast-track the project by finding ways to consolidate the approval process.
“如今我们看到的是省级政府与联邦政府密切合作，这种情况已经很久没有出现过了，”伍德布法罗地区市长桑迪·鲍曼在新闻发布会后说道。
“What we’re seeing today overall is a strong provincial government working with the federal government, and that’s something we haven’t seen in a long time,” Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo Mayor Sandy Bowman said following the news conference.
“这可能是近期最重要的公告之一；在并非发生自然灾害的情况下有总理亲临此地，实属难得——通常只有在发生灾害时我们才会迎来总理到访。”这条全长约1200公里的管道起点位于埃德蒙顿东北约47公里处的布鲁德海姆镇，随后将延伸至不列颠哥伦比亚省德尔塔市附近的罗伯茨湾深水港。管道输送的原油将主要装载到前往亚洲市场的油轮上。
“It’s one of probably the biggest announcements we’ve had in a long time, and to have a prime minister here when it’s not a natural disaster is a huge thing. That’s usually when we have a prime minister in the community.”The proposed 1,200-kilometre pipeline would start roughly 47 kilometres northeast of Edmonton in the town of Bruderheim. The pipeline would run towards the Roberts Bank deepwater port near Delta, B.C., and the oil it carries would be loaded onto tankers bound mostly for Asian markets.
据估算，该管道的建设成本在352亿至437亿加元之间。联邦政府与阿尔伯塔省政府均希望能在2032至2033年间完成项目建设。史密斯还表示，她期望到2035年时能将阿尔伯塔省的油砂产量提高一倍，达到每日800万桶的水平。
The estimated cost of the pipeline is between $35.2 billion and $43.7 billion The federal government and Alberta’s government aim to have the project completed by 2032-33. Smith has said she also wants the oilsands to double production to eight million barrels of oil per day by 2035.
在这条管道的股权结构中，阿尔伯塔省政府与联邦所有的跨山管道公司各占45%的股份；总部位于卡尔加里的彭比纳管道公司则持有10%的股份，该公司首席执行官斯科特·伯罗斯也出席了周四的发布会。
The province and the federally-owned Trans Mountain Corporation will each own a 45 per cent stake in the pipeline. Calgary-based Pembina Pipeline, whose CEO Scott Burrows also attended Thursday’s announcement, will own a 10 per cent stake.
在项目完成后，Pembina Pipeline 公司将有机会再购买该项目 10% 的股份。Carney 表示，原住民社区也将至少获得 10% 的项目所有权。
Pembina Pipeline will have an opportunity to purchase another 10 per cent stake in the project once it’s been completed. Carney said Indigenous communities will also be offered a minimum 10 per cent ownership stake.
原住民社区的参与意愿：位于 Fort McMurray 以北约 60 公里的 Fort McKay 第一民族（Fort McKay First Nation）的领袖 Raymond Powder 表示，他对此次合作机会感兴趣，并相信只要在咨询过程中充分考虑环境问题，该项目就能获得原住民社区的支持。
Project will get ‘Indigenous buy-in’: Powder Chief Raymond Powder of the Fort McKay First Nation, which is roughly 60 kilometres north of Fort McMurray, said he is interested in a potential partnership. He said he is also optimistic that the pipeline “will get Indigenous buy-in" as long as environmental concerns are addressed during consultation.
Powder 对记者说：“我认为今天的公告对整个国家来说是有益的；我们希望继续推动国家的发展。”
“I believe that today’s announcement actually brings benefits to the nation because when we think about it, where do we want to go and what do we want to do? We want to continue to sustain the growth of our nations,” Powder told reporters after the announcement.
争议与担忧：然而，原住民领袖们也提出了担忧：
"But within that support, of course, we're going to have to address some of the challenges." AFN chief warns Carney against 'abusing' majority to pass new major projects bill‘Environmental racism’: Fort Chipewyan residents protest proposed treat-and-release plan for tailings water Mikisew Cree First Nation Chief Melody Lepine said she is not ready to endorse the pipeline. At the same time, Lepine said she is also not yet prepared to oppose the project.
AFN（原住民联合会）的负责人警告 Carney，不要利用多数优势强行通过新的重大项目法案。
Lepine, who leads an Indigenous community downstream from the oilsands in the Fort Chipewyan area, said local First Nation leaders met with Carney on Wednesday evening. She said they raised their concerns with equity stakes and environmental impacts.
Fort Chipewyan 地区的居民抗议该项目的尾矿水处理方案；Mikisew Cree 第一民族的领袖 Melody Lepine 表示，她目前既不支持也不反对该项目。
“I’d say it’s too early to tell, but we’ve got the commitment that we’re going to work on these things, and I can say I’m committed to do that work,” Lepine said in an interview with CBC News. “If this pipeline is the opportunity to address a number of these concerns, then we’re going to take advantage of that.”The Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation (ACFN), which is also based in the Fort Chipewyan area, issued a statement Thursday evening that said economic opportunities “do not diminish our responsibility” to address the First Nation’s ongoing health and environmental concerns stemming from industrial development in the oilsands.
Lepine 指出，当地原住民领袖们已在周三晚上与 Carney 进行了会谈，他们提出了关于股权分配和环境影响的关切。
“We want to emphasize that participation in these discussions does not constitute ACFN’s consent to the proposed pipeline,” the statement said.
“我认为现在下结论还为时过早，但我们已承诺会着手处理这些问题，我本人也决心完成这项工作，”勒皮纳在接受CBC新闻采访时说道。“如果这条输油管道能成为解决诸多相关问题的契机，我们定会加以利用。”同样位于奇佩瓦恩堡地区的阿萨巴斯卡奇佩瓦恩原住民部落（ACFN）于周四晚间发表声明称，经济机遇“并不能减轻我们的责任”——即必须解决因油砂产业开发而引发的该部落所面临的健康与环境问题。
“This is the beginning of a process and its outcome is not predetermined.”Fort McMurray prepares for economic boom ahead of new pipeline September 30 Duration Steady growth, not a boom: Bowman In Edson, Alta., which sits on the pipeline’s path, Mayor Kevin Zahara said the community is going through a “mini-boom” thanks to two unrelated pipeline projects being built by TC Energy and Atco. He said he is ready to prepare for an influx of new construction workers for Pacific Link.
“我们想强调，参与相关讨论并不等同于ACFN同意修建这条拟议中的输油管道，”声明中这样写道。
“I’m heartened to see the positive relationship between the province and the federal government, but it takes action,” he told CBC News Network’s on Wednesday.
“这只是一个过程的开端，其结果尚未确定。”随着新输油管道即将于9月30日动工，麦克默里堡正为经济繁荣期做准备。鲍曼指出，这将是稳步增长而非爆发式繁荣。在位于输油管道沿线地区的艾伯塔省埃德森镇，镇长凯文·扎哈拉表示，由于TC能源公司和阿特科公司正在建设两个互不关联的输油管道项目，当地正经历一场“小型经济繁荣”。他表示自己已做好迎接大量建筑工人涌入的准备，以参与太平洋连接线的建设。
“When you actually see shovels in the ground and things moving forward, I think that will have a bigger impact on residents.”Bowman said he doubts the pipeline’s construction will signal a return to the lucrative days of the last oilsands boom, a period that saw record population growth and tax revenues rise across the oilsands region.
“看到省政府与联邦政府保持良好合作关系令我倍感欣慰，但关键在于实际行动，”他周三在接受CBC新闻网采访时说道。“只有当工程真正动工、各项建设有序推进时，才能对当地居民产生更大影响。”鲍曼认为，这条输油管道的修建不太可能重现上次油砂产业繁荣期那种创纪录的人口增长与税收激增景象。不过他相信该地区仍将实现“稳步增长”。他指出，2025年的人口普查数据显示，伍德布法罗地区十年来首次出现人口小幅增长。
However, Bowman said he believes the region will experience “steady growth.”He pointed to the 2025 census, which reported a slight population bump for Wood Buffalo for the first time in a decade.
鲍曼还表示，如果需要新建住房，目前已有大量土地可供开发商使用。
Bowman also said there is plenty of land ready for developers if new housing is needed.
他说：“这个社区已经从一个小城镇发展成一个繁荣的城镇，如今更像是一个充满归属感的家园。”
“This community has gone from being a small town to a boomtown, which is now kind of a hometown,” he said.