Fort St. James

Winding our way across the plateau on our way to Fort St. James, the magnitude of the Enbridge  proposal really began to sink in. The sheer number of rivers and stream crossings and the vast number of lakes, swamps and wetlands the pipeline must navigate through is astounding. The potential risks to not only fish and wildlife but the human communities that rely on these rich resources seems misguided. Everywhere we travelled, the opposition to the pipeline project was overwhelming. The support our project received from native communities was very encouraging and helped us realize the importance of our work; to give a voice and vision to those that have been silenced.

Fraser Plateau, Pipeline Crossing (8x10) oil on panel. Peter Corbett

The proposed route of the pipeline crosses just south of the town Fort St. James and through the territory of the Nak'azdli Band. Once again, governments and corporations are attempting to impose their wishes onto us all "for the greater good of Canadians", while forcing the local communities to assume all of the social and environmental risk.

Stewart Lake, Fort St. James (8x10) oil on panel. Glenn Clark

Heading west from Fort St. James along the extensive network of logging roads that crosses over the proposed pipeline route, we eventually got to a high point of land where we looked west towards Burns Lake and Boer Mountain. This was the terminus of the first leg of our journey back in June. Like a coyote following the scent of its prey, Glenn and I had now wove our way across the breadth of BC in pursuit of the pipeline route from the Douglas Channel at Kitimat to the Alberta/BC border. With brushes in hand, we lay witness to an astounding array of ecosystems, geology and people all connected by this invisible line that if is allowed to become a pipeline, will change northern BC forever.

Tureen Lake, Northern BC (8x10) oil on panel. Glenn Clark

Once again we reluctantly turn the van around and head south for home. With the number of field sketches now mounting in the studio, its time to start thinking of larger scale pieces and the up coming exhibition but not before our return to the Buckley Valley to experience the fall colours of September.