A coalition of environmental groups has called on Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to keep the $8.8-billion Site C hydroelectric project out of Canada’s climate strategy at the Paris talks next month.

It’s the latest among several appeals that environmental groups and First Nations have made directly to Trudeau, including on oil pipelines and liquefied natural gas projects, as they hope to capitalize on a federal government more friendly to their interests than the former Stephen Harper-led Conservative government.

Trudeau is already carrying through on a promise to create a moratorium on oil tanker traffic off B.C.’s northwest coast, but he made no pronouncements about the Site C project during the election campaign.

Trudeau is set to meet with Canada’s provincial premiers on Monday, including B.C. Premier Christy Clark, to discuss the country’s greenhouse gas-reduction strategy before the Paris talks, where countries are expected to sign a new climate action agreement.

“We ask that the federal government recognize that Site C is not a climate solution, and that it not give support to the B.C. government in Paris regarding Site C,” said a letter addressed to the prime minister and members of the climate committee chaired by Stephane Dion.

The coalition of environmental groups have long opposed the Site C project, which has already been approved by the B.C. government and the former federal government. Preliminary work is underway that has included clearing land, constructing access roads and building a 1,600-person worker camp.

The groups opposed to Site C include the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society, Peace Valley Environment Association, Peace Valley Landowner Association, Sierra Club of B.C., the Wilderness Committee and the Yellowstone to Yukon Conservation Initiative.

The federal government — through Environment Canada — said Wednesday it needed more time to respond to The Vancouver Sun’s question on how it would address the issue of Site C in its climate strategy.

In an email, B.C. Ministry of Environment spokesman David Karn would only say that the province’s new draft climate plan will be released next month.

However, the B.C. Liberal government has touted Site C as a clean energy project.

In their direct appeal to Trudeau in a letter on Wednesday, the environmental groups argued that Site C is a net contributor to climate change when the loss of carbon sinks from forests and farmland and the use of the energy to facilitate the extraction of natural gas through fracking are factored in.

The joint provincial-federal review process did not conduct an assessment of Site C’s overall carbon contribution including all of these factors.

Sierra Club of B.C. campaigner Ana Simeon said environmental groups are concerned that if Trudeau endorses the project as a climate-change solution for Canada, it will paint the prime minister in a corner and his government will not be able to consider halting the project at a later date in the face of First Nation opposition.

The Prophet River and West Moberly First Nations have lost challenges at B.C. Supreme and Federal Court over approval of the project, and have launched appeals.

Other First Nations — including Doig River and McLeod Lake Indian Band — withdrew their legal challenges.

The Saulteau First Nation has reached a benefit agreement with BC Hydro on Site C.

University of Victoria political scientist Norman Ruff says while there is a legitimate debate on whether Site C is clean energy, he sees little chance of the environmental groups successfully dragging Trudeau into the discussion.

Ruff, a professor emeritus, noted that Trudeau didn’t raise Site C as a major issue during the election campaign as he did with the Northern Gateway pipeline, which he opposed.

“I think it’s a matter of a political tactic rather than a sense (the environmental groups) have a realistic hope of getting some leverage,” said Ruff.

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