Coastal GasLink is going ahead with site preparation for construction camps along the route of its pipeline from the natural gas fields near Fort St. John to the port at Kitimat, including one approximately 17 kilometres from the site of the anti-pipeline Unist鈥檕t鈥檈n (Dark House) Healing Centre camp at the Morice River bridge south of Houston.

According to the company鈥檚 plans, there will be 14 of these camps along the route, each accommodating between 500 and 800 workers at the height of construction and responsible for construction of approximately 50 to 100 km of pipeline.

A project update on Feb. 5 noted that the company would be installing 10 temporary modular housing units at the Morice River site, which it has dubbed Camp 9A. These units and more that will be added over the coming weeks will accommodate workers preparing the site and access roads for camp construction.

Suzanne Wilton, a CGL spokesperson, said another camp near Houston, the Huckleberry Camp, is slated for construction in July 2020. There are nine camps planned for 2019, with the remainder scheduled in 2020. The company expects construction of the actual pipeline will also begin in 2020.

With the beginning of site preparation, the Unist鈥檕t鈥檈n issued a condemnation of what the group is calling 鈥渕an camps鈥� and the pipeline project in general.

鈥淲e, the Unist鈥檕t鈥檈n (Dark House), do not give our free, prior, and informed consent for Coastal GasLink or any company to establish an industrial work camp on our territories,鈥� the statement said.

鈥淭hey create the social conditions for an increase of violence against Indigenous women and children. The culture and work conditions of 鈥渕an camps鈥� exacerbate isolation, drug and alcohol abuse, violence, misogyny, hyper-masculinity, and racism among the men living there.鈥�

The company countered those assertions in a press release Thursday.

鈥淲e have engaged with Indigenous and local communities to address various alcohol-related concerns and will continue to work with them throughout construction, Coastal GasLink has a zero-tolerance approach to the possession and use of illegal drugs or unacceptable behavior resulting from alcohol or drug consumption. Based on local feedback, our Site 9A workforce accommodation, south of Houston, will not have alcohol on site.鈥�

Hey ! We'll be in your city on February 21. Come meet with local businesses to learn about job opportunities with Pipeline Project. Visit for event and pre-registration details.

鈥� Coastal GasLink (@CoastalGasLink)

The Unist鈥檕t鈥檈n cite RCMP statistics as justification for their concerns.

鈥淭he Fort St. James area has experienced a 38 per cent increase in RCMP-reported sexual assaults in one industrial project鈥檚 铿乺st year,鈥� the statement read.

There was a report titled prepared by The Firelight Group with Lake Babine Nation and Nak鈥檃zdli Whut鈥檈n that uses this statistic and says it is from local RCMP, without naming the project. The February 2017 report lists negative and positive impacts of industrial camps. It was funded by the then-named Ministry of Aboriginal Relations and Reconciliation.

A spokesperson for the RCMP said it is unclear from where the numbers in the report came.

鈥淚 connected with the detachment commander of Fort St. James RCMP who provided their most recent statistics to the mayor and council the night before last during a meeting, and their statistic on sexual offences do not align with the number provided in that article,鈥� wrote Sgt. Janelle Shoihet. 鈥淭here were also no such complaints against individuals who are temporary workers on rotational schedule in the only worker鈥檚 camp nearby.

鈥淚 would like to point out that, according to the detachment, their overall crime rate in Fort Saint James has shown a 10 per cent reduction in 2018 compared to the previous year. There was an increase in sexual offences, but unknown assailant sexual assaults are rare. I cannot go into specific details regarding the reported files to ensure we protect the ongoing investigations and the privacy of victims. However, I can say that this increase in reported sexual offences is attributed to many factors including the detachment鈥檚 ongoing collaboration with the Nak鈥檃zdli Whut鈥檈n Justice center involving self-empowerment programs which could account for an increase in reporting of historical offences.鈥�

The Unist鈥檕ten also reference James Anaya, a former United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples:

鈥淚ndigenous women have reported that the influx of workers into Indigenous communities as a result of extractive projects also led to increased incidents of sexual harassment and violence, including rape and assault.鈥�

Anaya said that in a statement to the International Expert Group Meeting on the theme 鈥淪exual health and reproductive rights鈥� Jan. 15, 2014 in New York City before he made his first visit to Canada.

In his July 2014 report 鈥淭he Situation of Indigenous People in Canada,鈥� he made no reference to similar concerns here.

He did, however, say in his recommendations that, 鈥渞esource extraction should not occur on lands subject to aboriginal claims without adequate consultations with and the free, prior and informed consent of the Indigenous peoples concerned,鈥� and that 鈥淩esource development projects, where they occur, should be fully consistent with aboriginal and treaty rights, and should in no case be prejudicial to unsettled claims.鈥�

Coastal GasLink maintains it has done its due diligence in that regard, and the Province agrees having fully permitted the project.

鈥淲e understand the interest in ensuring that Indigenous and local communities benefit from construction activities and are not negatively affected by construction camps 鈥� we share that interest,鈥� the CGL camp plan states.

The camps are intended to be fully self-sufficient with quarters for men and women, catering, health care and even entertainment opportunities. That, combined with round-the-clock security and a six-day on, one-day off work rotation, the company says, will minimize the impact of an influx of workers on local communities.

鈥淎s part of our commitment to ensuring First Nations participation, contracts were awarded to northern Indigenous businesses who partnered with camp providers for each site,鈥� the Feb. 14 press release said. 鈥淲e are proud to be working with First Nations communities and businesses to provide workforce accommodation and security services at these accommodation sites.鈥�

The Unist鈥檕t鈥檈n, however, continue to take a hard line.

鈥淲e, the Unist鈥檕t鈥檈n (Dark House), know that violence on our lands and violence on our women are connected,鈥� the statement concludes. 鈥淲e do not consent to Coastal GasLink鈥檚 violence destroying our lands, and we do not consent to Coastal GasLink鈥檚 鈥榤an camp鈥� and its potential to violate our women.鈥�

On February 15, the day after vigils and marches for Murdered and Missing Indigenous Women across the country, CGL intends to move man camp trailers onto yintah. We will not consent to the invasion of our lands and bodies. Statement:

鈥� Unist'ot'en Camp (@UnistotenCamp)