EDMONTON—The Alberta government is taking its push for pipelines to the masses, with a $2.75 million ad campaign that has messages promoting the expansion of the Trans Mountain pipeline splashed across buildings and over radio waves in Vancouver, Ottawa and Toronto.

The “Yes to TMX” initiative, announced in late May, is part of the government’s broader “Fight Back Strategy,” designed to galvanize support for the Trans Mountain pipeline and push the federal government to get it built. The ads, which have also been placed online and in print media, are being rolled out in advance of a final decision on the twinning of the pipeline from just outside Edmonton to the coast. A way to get more Alberta crude to tidewater and then overseas has long been considered crucial to the success of the oil industry.

A final decision on the pipeline’s approval is expected from the federal government by June 18.

The price tag for the Vancouver ads sit at around $1.1 million and the Ottawa rollout cost about $1.65 million, according to a government spokesperson. There are also at least two Twitter accounts that engage with people online. One handle is @BCforTMX and another is @YestoTMX. The first has a $35,000 budget for advertising, a government spokesperson told the Star in an email, and its purpose is to “drive home the importance of the TMX pipeline for the Lower Mainland.”

A government spokesperson confirmed that some of the ads are location specific. Ottawa’s campaign underscores the Alberta government’s desire to have the pipeline approved later this month, the spokesperson said. Part of the campaign’s message in Toronto and the surrounding area is “reminding people of the importance of being able to complete essential national projects.”

But in Vancouver, where opposition to the pipeline has been fierce, the ads target drivers’ wallets: the ads there are designed to fight back against B.C. Premier John Horgan’s resistance to the pipeline and highlight how more pipeline access could lower gas prices.

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On Sunday, a group of environmentally-minded locals rallied against the environmental impact of an expanded pipeline, and the next day the Star visited the location of one of the new electronic billboards, perched above the entrance of a mall just outside Vancouver’s Chinatown.

“Want cheaper gas? Try more supply,” it reads in big, black and white letters on a light blue background.

“Tell Premier (John) Horgan to support TMX pipeline.”

Of the roughly dozen people the Star spoke to as they walked past the billboard, none noticed the ad until it was pointed out to them.

“What I’ve learned so far is it’s not good for the environment. That’s my concern. If it’s not good for the environment then it’s probably not for us,” said Fernanda Rodrigues, a 42-year-old Vancouver resident of seven years.

“They’re trying to catch people’s attention, but no.”

Another resident, Omer Ibrahim, who works at a shelter, thought it was a shrewd strategy because it strikes at the heart of a big issue for British Columbians — high gas prices. “Because who wouldn’t want lower, cheap gas? Everyone would say yeah,” he said.

“But the truth is, it will be destroying the environment.”

Still, he said if there’s a safe way to do it, “then fill up the God damn pipes.”

But Daniel Orduna, 29, said the government likely takes environmental issues seriously and has thought it all through.

“I’m from Mexico, I’ve been here for 5 years, and I kind of trust your government,” he said.

Experts say the ad delivers a mixed message.

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Gas prices have soared in the lower mainland, recently reaching heights of around $1.70 per litre. An expanded pipeline would ease prices for Vancouverites, Concordia University economist Moshe Lander said, but the drop would be minimal. He says the ad campaign doesn’t make the right arguments.

“That’s an awful lot to hang your hat on to say that this is why you need to vote for TMX or at least encourage the premier’s support of it,” he said, referring to the few cents he estimated British Columbians would save per litre.

British Columbia gets the majority of the gasoline it consumes from Alberta, according to the National Energy Board, and it’s delivered mostly via the existing Trans Mountain pipeline. Lander said government taxes play a major role in gas prices — however, other economists have argued a lack of market competition, price gouging, and pipeline capacity are part of the cause for the price increase, too.

Lander said he’s in favour of the expansion, but argued the government would fare better with a focus on the broader benefits to the Canadian economy and the world.

“That’s what needs to be sold to B.C.,” he said.

What’s also lacking in the ads is balance between economic benefits and environmental concerns, said Lori Williams, a political science professor at Mount Royal University in Calgary.

“People don’t like to be pushed,” she said.

One of the risks the Jason Kenney government runs is undermining support that was built up while Rachel Notley and the NDP were in power in Alberta, she said. Williams saw support for the pipeline jump from around 40 per cent up to about 60 per cent in 2018, and even saw an uptick in Burnaby, where resistance has been staunch, as that’s where the pipeline expansion’s end point would be.

“Because for a lot of people, they do care about the environment, they know that energy is necessary, they know that Alberta energy is ethical — those are all good messages to send,” she said.

“If it looks too much like a lecture or like a demand, there’s a very real risk that support could be lost,” she said.

Two people the Star spoke to said the ad made them think about the idea of the pipeline and consider the pros and cons after it was pointed out to them, and the other ten said the ad did not change their minds.

For some, including long-time senior resident Carol Dey, the issue is already decided. She cited her concerns with the increase of tanker traffic along the province’s coast that would result from the pipeline expansion.

“I’m totally against Alberta,” she said. “Screw Alberta.”

With files from The Canadian Press

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