Eby’s Northwest Visit Links North Coast Protection With Terrace Infrastructure Needs

PRINCE RUPERT and TERRACE, B.C. — British Columbia Premier David Eby visited Prince Rupert and Terrace this week, using the two-community trip to highlight North Coast environmental protections and the infrastructure pressures facing Northwest B.C. municipalities.

Eby’s visit began in Prince Rupert, where he met Indigenous and municipal leaders at the Crest Hotel and spoke about the future of the North Coast oil-tanker moratorium.

He was joined by B.C. Environment and Parks Minister Tamara Davidson, Coastal First Nations president Marilyn Slett, Council of the Haida Nation president Gaagwiis Jason Alsop and Prince Rupert Mayor Herb Pond.

The Prince Rupert gathering focused on the federal Oil Tanker Moratorium Act and the provincial government’s commitment to maintaining restrictions on large vessels carrying crude and other persistent oils along much of B.C.’s North Coast.

Eby connected the tanker protections to the broader Canada–B.C. Cooperative Prosperity Agreement reached earlier in July between the provincial and federal governments.

The premier said the North Coast can continue attracting major investment in ports, electricity transmission, LNG, mining and critical minerals without opening the region to large-scale crude-oil tanker traffic.

The appearance at the Crest Hotel also emphasized the role of Indigenous leadership in protecting coastal waters.

Coastal First Nations and the Council of the Haida Nation have long opposed large crude-oil tanker traffic because of the potential consequences of a spill for fisheries, marine ecosystems, traditional harvesting and coastal communities.

The Prince Rupert meeting placed those concerns alongside the province’s plans for economic expansion across Northwest B.C.

Mayor Herb Pond’s participation also brought attention to the infrastructure challenges facing Prince Rupert.

Despite the city’s importance as a national trade gateway, Prince Rupert continues to deal with aging water systems, roads, housing shortages and other municipal pressures connected to industrial and port growth.

The Prince Rupert event did not include a major new municipal infrastructure announcement, but it reinforced the city’s central role in the province’s Northwest economic strategy.

The following day, Eby visited Terrace, where Mayor Sean Bujtas took him around the city and showed him projects supported by the Northwest Resource Benefits Alliance funding agreement.

Bujtas publicly confirmed the visit and said the tour was intended to demonstrate how the funding is being used and why Terrace needs a long-term arrangement with the province.

Terrace receives nearly $7 million annually for five years under the agreement signed in 2024.

One of the main stops was the 4600 block of Lakelse Avenue, where the city has directed approximately $4.8 million in Resource Benefits Alliance funding this year.

The project is one of the largest visible examples of how Terrace is using the regional agreement to rebuild municipal infrastructure.

Bujtas said the city used the funding last year for the reconstruction of Thomas Street and is now focusing a significant portion of this year’s allocation on Lakelse Avenue.

The mayor told Eby that Terrace needs predictable, long-term funding as industrial growth increases pressure on roads, water systems and other local services.

“With so much industrial growth in the area and around our community, we more than ever need a long-term sustainable deal to build our infrastructure up,” Bujtas wrote following the visit.

Bujtas said this was a central part of his discussion with the premier and that he would continue pushing the province for a longer-term agreement.

No extension or permanent replacement for the existing five-year funding arrangement was announced during the visit.

Bujtas also informed Eby that Terrace had secured a $5.2-million grant from the province and the Union of B.C. Municipalities for an upgrade to the Frank Street well.

He described the project as essential to the city’s continued growth, even though it is less visible than downtown road construction.

Eby also toured Heritage Park Museum and stopped at The Garage in Terrace, where he met community members and joined in wishing Sharon a happy 65th birthday.

The Terrace portion of the trip had a more local focus than the formal Prince Rupert meeting.

In Prince Rupert, Eby spoke about the tanker moratorium, coastal protection and the province’s wider economic strategy.

In Terrace, the discussion centred on the practical cost of supporting that growth and whether local governments will receive enough sustained funding to maintain essential infrastructure.

The two stops highlighted the central challenge facing Northwest B.C.: major projects are being promoted across the region, but communities such as Prince Rupert and Terrace continue to depend on provincial support to keep local infrastructure from falling behind.