Anyone who’s walked along the Trans Mountain Trail in North Burnaby has probably noticed that some of the trees are marked with orange tags.

That’s because Kinder Morgan, whose property the trail is on, has tagged them.

 

It’s all part of a tree assessment the Texas-based company needs to complete to meet the City of Burnaby’s information requirements for its Trans Mountain expansion project.

“(They) will not be removed. They have been tagged for inventory purposes,” read an email statement from Trans Mountain. “We are required to tag trees around Burnaby terminal.”

Geoff Gooderham, a landscaped development technician with the City of Burnaby, confirmed the statement.

“If they need to do any work on their property, they need to provide us with a survey of trees. The only way they can count them up is by tagging them,” he told the NOW.

Kinder Morgan is in the process of applying for what’s known as preliminary planning applications (PPA) for the pipeline project.

“As a standard requirement for any applicant that wishes to remove trees, the city requires a tree management plan which identifies (tags) any trees to be removed or retained,” reads a write-up on the city’s website. “The city has not approved any (PPAs) and has not received any tree-cutting application for this portion of the pipeline project.”

Pictures of the tagged trees were uploaded to Twitter on Nov. 9 by Peter McCartney, a member of the Wilderness Committee. The group, a Vancouver-based non-profit society, has long been opposed to the $7.4-billion expansion project.

The photos caused some confusion on social media as to why the trees were being tagged.

Since the city has not issued Kinder Morgan any permits related to its tree-cutting bylaw, McCartney thought the company was “jumping the gun.”

The City of Burnaby and Kinder Morgan are at an impasse. The company has asked the National Energy Board (NEB) to intervene to continue allow it to work.

Last week, the NEB announced oral hearings on the matter will take place on Nov. 29 and Dec. 4. The provinces of B.C., Alberta and Saskatchewan will also participate. 

Kinder Morgan has warned if things don’t get moving, the project could be delayed by up to nine months.