Woodfibre LNG will increase fracking, lock in climate pollution, put residents at risk, and threaten the recovery of Howe Sound. Learn why Woodfibre LNG must be stopped for good.
Can't trust Woodfibre LNG
Corruption. Illegal donations. Profit shifting and tax avoidance. Pollution disasters. Human rights violations. Animal rights violations, and more...
Will increase fracking
85% of BC’s gas is fracked. Woodfibre LNG will increase fracking in Treaty 8 territories, with major impacts to water, climate, and human health.
LNG is a climate disaster
LNG is a fossil fuel that creates more greenhouse gases than coal. New LNG infrastructure will lock in extreme climate pollution for decades.
Puts residents at risk
If you live within 1.6 km of the LNG tanker route, you are at risk of death by asphyxiation, fire, or explosion if an accident happens.
Threatens wildlife
Underwater noise, light pollution, and habitat destruction threaten herring, endangered Chinook salmon, and southern resident orcas.
Not financially viable
Woodfibre LNG cannot survive without $50 million a year in government subsidies and tax breaks. That’s $500,000 per job per year. That's ridiculous.
Woodfibre LNG is a proposed fracked gas (aka methane) export facility located 7km southwest of Squamish, BC. This project will increase fracking, lock in climate pollution, put residents at risk, and threaten the recovery of Howe Sound.
However, this project is not a done deal. There are key approvals and permits necessary before this project can proceed.
Sign the petition to end this project for good:
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Here's what we can expect from Woodfibre LNG:
Decreased housing availability and affordability, increased violent crime, traffic accidents, and strain on emergency services.
Woodfibre LNG is proposing a floating work camp for 600 workers, while FortisBC is proposing a work camp for 650 workers. Studies have shown that workcamps such as these have significant impacts on nearby communities. The District of Squamish has budgeted an additional $470,000 in policing costs specifically for to this project.
1,600 cubic metres of effluent dumped into Howe Sound
every day.
Maximum daily discharge during construction could reach 30,000 cubic meters — enough to fill 12 Olympic sized swimming pools. This effluent could contain heavy metals, dioxins and furans, total suspended solids, and pH exceeding Canadian guidelines required for protection of marine life.
A 9 kilometer pipeline tunnel under the Squamish Estuary, a Wildlife Management area.
FortisBC will be using bentonite slurry to tunnel bore, a substance that can pollute soil and surface water. Bentonite slurry can be deadly for fish due to increasing suspended sediments and levels of toxic heavy metals that can bioaccumulate.

Flaring at Woodfibre LNG could increase premature birth rates by 50%.
A recent study showed that people living within five kilometers of one flare operating for ten days during pregnancy were 50% more likely to experience pre-term birth and shorter gestation, compared with no exposure. Woodfibre LNG estimates that its 115-metre high flare stack will be in operation 11 days per year. 7,500 migratory songbirds died after flying into a flare stack in Fort St John in 2013.
Exposing seals and sea lions to sound levels loud enough to cause permanent hearing loss.
The LNG export project was granted permission to go back on environmental conditions it was bound to upon approval in 2016. This means that Woodfibre LNG is reducing the monitoring area for sea lions and seals from 7,322 m to 125 m during construction. At this proximity, seals and sea lions will be exposed to underwater sound levels exceeding 160 decibels; louder than shotgun blasts or rocket lift-offs. For reference, 120 decibels is the level at which permanent hearing damage occurs on human ears. Studies have also shown that underwater noise pollution threatens the survival of fish; the health of which entire ecosystem of Howe Sound depends on.
Increased whale ship strikes.
Shipping related to new LNG export terminals in BC is projected to increase whale deaths from ship strikes, particularly humpback whales and fin whales. A peer-reviewed study is predicting six times as many humpback whale ship-strike deaths in the Great Bear Sea once LNG Canada is operational.
Woodfibre LNG is owned by Sukanto Tanoto, a notorious billionaire who holds the “dubious distinction of being the single largest driver of deforestation in the world”.
His companies have been linked to tax evasion and profit shifting, human rights abuses, orangutan graveyards, destruction of endangered species habitat, and exploitative child labour.
Woodfibre LNG will lock in climate pollution for decades.
Woodfibre LNG’s “Roadmap to net zero” only focuses on local emissions, ignoring upstream emissions from fracking; and downstream emissions from shipping, regasification, and final consumption; not to mention the fugitive methane leaking into the atmosphere at every step.
70-100 tanker transits per year.
The proposed LNG carrier route runs along the shore of West Vancouver and through Howe Sound, cutting across three BC Ferries routes.

What you can do:
References
Amnesty International (2016) Out of Sight, Out of Mind: Gender, Indigenous Rights, and Energy Development in Northeast British Columbia, Canada.
Kevin Maimann (2018) Link between rural work camps and violence against women is real, researchers say. The Star Edmonton, published 2018-12-04
Northern Health (2018) Health and Safety During the Opioid Overdose Emergency:Northern Health’s Recommendations for Industrial Camps. Office of Health and Resource Development. Version 1.5. August 2018.
Northern Health (2017) Communicable Disease Control Plan Best Management Guide for Industrial Camps. Office of Health and Resource Development. Version 2.2. July 2017.
Secwepemcul'ecw Assembly (2019) What are man camps? Accessed 2019-04-20
"“Camp culture” has been reported to exacerbate isolation, mental illness, drug and alcohol abuse, violence, misogyny, and racism among the men living there. Away from family, friends, and social supports, these men face stressful, difficult, and potentially dangerous working conditions, including long hours, shift work, and ‘two-week in, two-week out’ work schedules. In this environment, and with heightened disposable incomes, increased substance abuse is well documented."
Clarice Eckford and Jillian Wagg (2014) The Peace Project: Gender Based Analysis of Violence against Women and Girls in Fort St. John. Prepared for the Fort St. John Women’s Resource Society.
Joanna Smith (2016) Fort St. John 'a dangerous place for our women,’ indigenous activist says. The Star, published 2016-04-03
Peter Rugh (2013) Inside Fracking's 'Man Camps', Where Sex, Drugs, and Gonorrhea Run Rampant. Motherboard, published 2013-10-18
http://www.justiceforgirls.org/uploads/2/4/5/0/24509463/20220909_jfg_submission_to_eao_on_emp.pdf&sa=D&source=docs&ust=1691519868506133&usg=AOvVaw0v-bz2uzqJYK9N13jeKCFe
BC Energy Regulator Report
Timeline
Woodfibre LNG initially planned to begin construction in 2015 and be operational by 2017. People power has successfully delayed construction by eight years so far, and shovels are yet to get in the ground.
2021
Coordinated key stakeholders to respond to Woodfibre LNG’s application for a Crown Water Lease.
2020
Mobilized local governments to reiterate opposition to Woodfibre LNG through the application for a five-year extension to its environmental assessment certificate.
2019
Delivered the Howe Sound Declaration with over 18,600 signatures to key Ministers, MPs, and MLAs.
2019
We worked with local residents to stop the proposed LandSea workcamp at Britannia Beach.
2018
My Sea to Sky was featured at VIMFF, sharing our story to a packed audience and applauded by David Suzuki for our work.
2017
After sharing concerns about the impacts of seawater cooling on herring and other wildlife, Squamish Nation forced Woodfibre LNG to switch to air cooling, improving the project design.
2017
1,600+ people boycotted the Environmental Assessment process to draw attention to illegal donations from Woodfibre LNG staff to the BC Liberal government, which threatens the integrity of the process.
2016
We called out Woodfibre LNG for making a fake Final Investment Decision two days before the BC Liberal Convention.
2016
Skwomesh Action hosted a demonstration on the Stawamus Waterfront to stand with water protectors everywhere in opposition to LNG development.
2016
We made it easy to participate in the Environmental Assessment process and generated the most public comments of any assessment, twice, with more than 1,300 comments.
2015
Municipal Councils and Regional Districts around Howe Sound passed resolutions stating strong opposition to the proposed Woodfibre LNG project.
2015
We stopped FortisBC from drilling test boreholes in the Squamish estuary.
2014
We stopped the District of Squamish from accepting a $2 million tax agreement with Woodfibre LNG (now valued at $7-9 million).
2014
We held our first demonstration, which made Premier Christy Clark cancel a visit to Squamish.