Oil and gas review panel members must be removed because of perceived bias, conservationists say

February 16, 2004 -

VANCOUVER – Two of the three members of a federally-appointed panel reviewing the offshore oil and gas moratorium on Canada’s West Coast must be removed because of perceived bias and potential conflict of interest, says a legal opinion obtained by British Columbia environmental groups.

The David Suzuki Foundation, Living Oceans Society and Greenpeace have learned that panel Chair Roland Priddle is a director of Talisman Energy, a company with offshore oil and gas interests, and a consultant to the energy industry. Panel member Don Scott, ex-mayor of Prince Rupert, initiated a public relations campaign in 2001 to have the moratorium lifted.

This information draws into question whether the public can reasonably expect Priddle and Scott to be impartial and open to all viewpoints on the moratorium, the groups say. They retained Sierra Legal Defence Fund to provide a legal opinion on whether Priddle and Scott’s activities could undermine public confidence in the process. 

“After examining publicly-available documents we learned that Mr. Priddle is a director of Talisman Energy, and that Mr. Scott tried to organize local governments to support lifting the provincial and federal moratoria,” said Jim Fulton of the David Suzuki Foundation. “It is incredible that the federal government believes these two individuals are the best candidates to hear submissions on a very contentious issue in British Columbia.”

Lawyer Tim Howard of Sierra Legal says there are concerns about perception of the panel members’ objectivity.

“Given both men’s backgrounds and comments, the public may reasonably question whether they can impartially hear all points of view on the moratorium,” he said. “The panel’s sole purpose is to hear from the public, and it is critical that the public have confidence that all panel members will listen impartially. The information we have reviewed could certainly lead people to question whether that is in fact the case.”

Also, First Nations have had no involvement in the process or representation on the panel, said Jennifer Lash of Living Oceans Society.

“This is a major concern as are the potential environmental impacts,” she said. “The federal government is planning to make a decision based on input from a director of an offshore oil and gas company, and a man who has already stated that the moratorium should be lifted. British Columbia deserves better than this. If the government insists on reviewing the offshore oil and gas moratorium, we deserve an unbiased and fair process that will consider all of our concerns.”

Even Environment Canada’s Regional Director General for the Pacific and Yukon Region, Don Fast, raised his concerns in May 2003.  

“NRCan (Natural Resources Canada) intends to appoint Roland Priddle as chair of the public review panel. Considering Mr. Priddle’s background, he is on the Board of Directors of Talisman Energy, stakeholders are likely to express concerns that the process will be biased towards industry interests. Environment Canada needs to suggest nominees on the public hearings panel that will have a credible track record with the conservation community and a high level of respect with the public and the scientific community,” Mr. Fast said in a briefing note to the minister, which was obtained through a freedom of information request.

The panel was created by the former Natural Resources Minister Herb Dhaliwal and is mandated to provide a fair and unbiased forum in which citizens can share their views about the moratorium, after which the panel will report and make recommendations to the government. 

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Media Contact:

Tim Howard – staff lawyer, Sierra Legal Defence  
Ph: 604.685.5618 Ext.225

Jean Kavanagh, Senior Communications Specialist
David Suzuki Foundation Ph: 604.732.4228 Ext.229, 604-721-9332 cell

Jennifer Lash, Executive Director, Living Oceans Society            
Ph: 250.741.4006