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Is it even possible to build a critical public works project any more? You know, something bigger than a bus shelter?

One has to wonder. Pipelines are stalled. The Springbank dry dam faces powerful opposition. Now comes the inevitable fight against the southwest ring road, or major elements of it.

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Governments have ceded so much power to regulatory bodies and the courts that almost any project can be stalled.

Politicians did this to avoid making decisions that infuriate vocal interest groups. They invoke the need for “social licence.” All that has done, across the land, is made the opposition more effective and determined.

Time after time, projects that matter to the vast majority just get stuck in the mud.

Ring road critics under the name YYC Cares will make their case to Alberta Environmental Appeals Board next month.

In August, the board granted a stay of construction work in four wetland areas YYC Cares says are under threat.