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“Where valid provincial laws conflict with valid federal laws in addressing interprovincial undertakings, paramountcy dictates that the federal legal regime will govern,” said Macintosh.

“The provincial law remains valid but becomes inoperative where its application would frustrate the federal undertaking.”

Macintosh ruled the city’s bylaws were lawful but constitutionally inoperative and inapplicable.



“Burnaby appears from the filed evidence to be using the bylaws to make Trans Mountain’s preliminary work on the expansion project difficult, if not impossible, to undertake,” he added.

A spokeswoman for the City of Burnaby said officials received Macintosh’s ruling on Monday and will be reviewing the decision and considering an appeal.

Ali Hounsell, with the Trans Mountain expansion project said in an email that the court’s decision simply reaffirms earlier rulings upholding the NEB’s jurisdiction as it relates to the project.

Macintosh decided not to rule on a separate constitutional question raised by the city, calling the question “an abuse of process.”

In that question, the city asked the court to rule that the energy board did not have the “constitutional jurisdiction” to direct or limit the enforcement of bylaws by the city.

Macintosh declined to answer the question, noting the city had failed to win the same argument in earlier hearings before the Federal Court of Appeal and the energy board.