The Trans Mountain pipeline is a disaster – but Trudeau can make it right | Brian Cladoosby, Leonard Forsman, Teri Gobin and Jay Julius

The pipeline poses grave risk to animals and Indigenous communities. As leaders of four sovereign tribes, we are calling on the government to say no

In February, Canada's National Energy Board released its final report recommending approval of the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion, in spite of devastating risks to the Salish Sea and the salmon, orca and tribal nations that rely on it. On 18 June, the government of Justin Trudeau is expected to issue its final decision.

The Trans Mountain pipeline, first proposed by oil giant Kinder Morgan in 2013, would transport Alberta tar sands oil to a shipping terminal in Vancouver, British Columbia. This would mean a massive increase in oil tanker traffic through the Salish Sea, which comprises the water bodies of Puget Sound, the Strait of Juan de Fuca and the Strait of Georgia. The marine species in these waters know no border, and the risks to Indigenous peoples in both Canada and the US also cross borders. As leaders of four sovereign tribes, we are calling on the Trudeau government to do the right thing and say no.