VANCOUVER—NDP Leader Adrian Dix says if his party wins next spring’s election he’ll tell Ottawa the province intends to hold its own, separate environmental assessment on the proposed Northern Gateway pipeline.

Dix, who looks poised to become premier in 2013, said the NDP would serve Stephen Harper’s Conservatives with 30 days’ notice that it intends to do a “made-in-B.C.” environmental assessment of the controversial project.

Exactly how much teeth a provincial assessment will have next spring remains unclear but flanked by a constitutional lawyer consulting for the party, the NDP leader made clear that his target was the provincial Liberals who, he said, have failed British Columbians by signing over authority to the federal Conservatives.

“The province has abdicated its regulatory responsibility — this is not a responsible approach,” said Dix. “The decision will ultimately be made by the prime minister and the federal cabinet.”

The Northern Gateway Project is billed by Calgary-based Enbridge, the owners, as the most ambitious pipeline proposal in North America. But opponents, who include many First Nation groups and environmentalists and the provincial NDP, say the environmental hazards of the Alberta-to-B.C. pipeline are too great for too little economic gain.

The process is undergoing a Joint Review Panel process, but Dix pointed out Wednesday that the joint partners isn’t between B.C. and Ottawa but between two federal agencies — the National Energy Board and the Canadian Environmental Assessment Authority.

B.C. Premier Christy Clark came out swinging last month at a premiers conference in Halifax, saying her government has five conditions before it would support the pipeline development.

The issue of the pipeline could be a major plank for both the province’s Liberals and NDP when the campaign begins in May 2013. Dix, who has been clear about his opposition to the pipeline, enjoys almost twice as much popular support in the polls as Clark.

Dix said an environmental assessment appointed by his provincial government will be independent and while he was not prepared to say Wednesday that he will support a pipeline if a provincial environmental assessment board approves it, he did say that he will respect the final outcome.

As for whether B.C. is willing to take the issue all the way to the Supreme Court of Canada, Dix said his party has consulted with constitutional lawyers over jurisdiction.

One of those lawyers, Murray Rankin, pointed out that when the fathers of Confederation were deciding on federal and provincial jurisdictions, the issue of the environment did not come up.

“B.C. has the jurisdiction to do what has to be done and take positions on that,” said Rankin. “The question of whether ultimately the approval is federal or provincial will be one that constitutional lawyers will be discussing over the next few years.”

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