Coastal GasLink says it temporarily shut down work in Wet’suwet’en territory Thursday due to safety concerns.
CGL says a number of unauthorized people entered an active construction zone to place traps, which it says puts both heavy equipment crews and trappers at risk.
Unist’ot’en members say Coastal GasLink workers blocked access to Wet’suwet’en traplines. They say they’re also concerned about their sweat lodge, which they fear might be damaged in the future.
The developments follow accusations earlier this week by Unist’ot’en members that CGL crews conducting preliminary work for the Coastal GasLink pipeline bulldozed through one of their trap lines.
In a Facebook post, the Unist’ot’en said the damage represented a direct attack on their healing center, the wellness of the Wet’suwet’en, and is a violation of the Wildlife Act.
Coastal GasLink says it is working with the RCMP to address what it says is unauthorized access to the construction site.
CGL has deferred further questions to the RCMP.
