BC Business
A poll conducted between May15 – 21 2014 by Rushbrooke Communications on behalf of Pacific Future Energy was released to the pubic on Tuesday in the aftermath of the Northern Gateway Pipeline approval from the Harper government. This poll demonstrated that the majority (50%) of British Columbians agree that there should be an oil refinery built on the North Coast of BC. The results showed that more than 2/3 of British Columbians believe that, “refining oil in Canada means more value is added and Canadians get more benefit in terms of price, jobs and tax revenues” and that “a refinery would allow us to open new markets and be less dependent on the US.” The poll also demonstrates that for British Columbians the economic benefits and the job creation potential of such a project are clear. With controversy surrounding the environmental risks of the proposed pipeline and of the resultant increase in oil tankers off BC’s coast, the poll concentrated on environmental factors as well. A majority of 67% agree that “building an oil refinery allows Canada to take environmental responsibility for the full processing of oil from Canada’s oil sands” and 61% agree that the high labour and environmental standards in Canada make it a better place to build an oil refinery. That said, only 42% agree that by building a refinery the BC Coast could be saved from a major crude oil spill and only 39% agree that refined products offer less risk to BC’s coast than raw bitumen.
Pacific Future Energy has announced its plan for a $10 billion dollar oil refinery which they call “the world’s greenest oil refinery” to be built on the North Coast of BC. This refinery is being presented as a protective measure to help mitigate the risk of raw bitumen spills off BC’s Coast and will full participation of First Nations. Pacific Future Energy is a company dedicated to the strategic advantage inherent in exploring diversified markets for Canadian oil and is commited to doing so in a socially conscious and environmentally responsible way.