To the editor:

Our federal government is paying $4.5 billion for the 70-year-old Trans Mountain Pipeline (valued in 2007 at ~$650 million) and has committed an additional $10 billion for its expansion.

Goal No. 1 - ship unrefined bitumen to the US and offshore countries for refining.

Goal No. 2 - export well-paying job opportunities from Western Canada to the US and offshore countries.

Does Canada have an inferiority complex? We cansa国际传媒檛 refine our own resources while others are happy to do it for us?

Building bitumen refineries to meet tougher environmental standards will require a lot of high quality steel, brass and aluminium alloyssa国际传媒攁nd lots of brain power. Canada has an abundance of all these crucial ingredients. Letsa国际传媒檚 put this to good use. Given recent US tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminium maybe we should look to another marketsa国际传媒攃alled Canada.

Letsa国际传媒檚 invest in Canadasa国际传媒檚 oil sector refining technology.

Letsa国际传媒檚 invest in our high end technical capabilities and training. Letsa国际传媒檚 build Canadian manufacturing capacity. We do that in other sectors such as ship building and aircraft manufacturing. Why not the oil sector? Constructing and running these refineries will create more immediate and long term job opportunities than expanding capabilities to export bitumen.

Letsa国际传媒檚 consider the many other side benefits. We reduce the environmental hazard, cost and pollution of shipping toxic, unrefined bitumen from Alberta. We refine bitumen in Canadian regulated, sa国际传媒渟tate of the artsa国际传媒� refineries. Will offshore refineries meet that high standard? We assert ourselves and remind other countries that we operate in the best interests of Canadians, not those that seek to exploit us. Wesa国际传媒檙e past that.

Steve Burke

West Kelowna