Alberta government displaying billboards across B.C. supporting Trans Mountain Pipeline

Alberta has started a new campaign in B.C. that hopes to highlight the benefits and “counter the misinformation, harassment and obstruction” that the Trans Mountain Pipeline project has faced.

The controversial pipeline has caused a long standing feud between Alberta and B.C., prompting Alberta to boycott B.C. wines for a while.

The billboards are part of the Alberta government’s Keep Canada Working campaign, which aims to “speed up market access for Alberta’s energy products,” or in other words, the pipeline's "speedy construction.”

To date, the Albertan government has spent $1.29 million on the nationwide advertising campaign, with about $700,000 of that dedicated to advertising in B.C.

The “Keep Canada Working” message will be shared via billboards, television, radio, search engine marketing, online display and social media. Billboards and digital advertisements have been running since April 30. Television and radio advertisements are in production.

Advertisements feature messages like “Trans Mountain Pipeline means more money for roads, schools and hospitals” and “Trans Mountain Pipeline puts Canada first, making us less reliant on American markets.”

The campaign is supposed to run until the pipeline is in operation.

The two provincial leaders did meet with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in April to discuss the project. After the meeting, Trudeau said that it is ultimately a decision for the Federal Government, but it will require compromise. He added that they are in financial discussions with Kinder Morgan to “remove uncertainty” from the project, and are pursuing legislative options as well.

Update on the Trans Mountain Expansion project 🇨🇦Mise à jour sur le projet de l’oléoduc Trans Mountain: https://t.co/MKO3lmQwTd

— Justin Trudeau (@JustinTrudeau) April 15, 2018