EDMONTON – A Canadian pipeline company is cutting its ties with a controversial U.S. public relations firm after leaked documents raised concerns about suggested tactics to promote a planned pipeline.
TransCanada has announced it is no longer working with the multinational firm Edelman on its plans for the Energy East pipeline to bring Alberta’s oilsands crude to eastern refineries.
In documents leaked to the environmental group Greenpeace, Edelman recommended that TransCanada secretly use third parties to attack the pipeline’s opponents.
Edelman also recommended TransCanada cultivate a “grassroots” movement of supporters using social media.
READ MORE: TransCanada documents on Energy East PR tactics raise concerns
TransCanada spokesmen have said they hadn’t implemented the third-party strategy, although the company’s social media program is already running.
In an emailed statement, Tim Duboyce, a spokesperson with Energy East said:
“The Energy East project makes sense for Canada. For the first time, western Canadian oil will be able to travel safely by pipeline all the way to Quebec and beyond to the east coast, strengthening Canadian energy security and offering direct local economic benefit all along the pipeline route.
Regrettably, recent controversy around our communications strategy has created distraction most notably in Quebec. Media reports have incorrectly suggested that TransCanada’s communications practices are unacceptable. The conversation about Energy East has turned into a debate about our choice of agency partner. We need to get back to a conversation about the project itself and as a result we have agreed that it is in the best interests of the project that we do not extend our contract with Edelman.
In the current environment, we can’t have the respectful conversation that we want to have with Canadians and Quebecers about Energy East. We need to discuss the project on its merits, responding to valid concerns such as how we will protect water and marine life, instead of talking about communications tactics.
We are therefore starting a fresh conversation with all stakeholders. We want to be part of eastern Canadian communities for decades to come, and we want to do everything that will enable us to earn the trust of Canadians for the long-term.”
With files from Global News
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