New Brunswick opens fracking ban review amid trade war pressure, facing push from environmental groups

New Brunswick's Liberal government announced Wednesday it will review its long-standing ban on hydraulic fracturing as part of efforts to boost the province's economy and secure Canada's energy independence amid escalating trade tensions with the United States.

Premier Susan Holt announced the public review into the fracking moratorium, saying she's looking "at all options" to support growth. "We need to double down as trade with our closest neighbour is thrown into question yet again. Now is the time to secure our autonomy and protect our sovereignty," Holt said. The review will run five months and include consultations with First Nations communities, local governments, industry stakeholders, and residents. "This is not a green light to start getting drills in the ground," Holt emphasized. "This is a deliberate five-month-long dialogue with many partners in our province."

Former Liberal Premier Brian Gallant placed the moratorium on hydraulic fracturing in 2014 following concerns from First Nations, scientists, and environmental advocates about the environmental impacts of fracking, including on groundwater supplies. Holt has opposed widespread shale gas fracking throughout her political career but has recently touted New Brunswick as a key player in Canada's goal of being an energy superpower.

New Brunswick currently relies heavily on natural gas piped north from U.S. shale fields via the Maritimes and Northeast Pipeline, with costs that fluctuate drastically day to day. Efforts by the Holt government to persuade Quebec to extend a natural-gas pipeline from Quebec City to New Brunswick have so far been unsuccessful. The province sits on an estimated 77.9 trillion cubic feet of recoverable natural gas that could be worth hundreds of billions of dollars, according to government figures.

Holt noted there is no interested private-sector company at this point and that a return of widespread natural gas development could create an income stream for the government through royalties. The province's cash-strapped government has predicted multimillion-dollar budget deficits until at least 2028. In 2019, a Progressive Conservative government created an exemption to the fracking ban in the Sussex area, allowing natural-gas extraction to continue supplying local industrial users.

Environmental groups say fracking is a threat to water supplies. Opposition Progressive Conservatives have ramped up calls this year for the ban to be removed. The Atlantica Centre for Energy, a non-profit advocacy group, said it backs the province's review process as a discussion rather than a final decision.