Majority of Canadians support both pipelines, but Alberta-B.C. project is favoured: poll

Prime Minister Mark Carney and Alberta Premier Danielle Smith announced the submission of the West Coast Pipeline Project at Trans Am Piping Products in Calgary on Thursday, July 2, 2026. Photo by Gavin Young/Postmedia

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A new poll finds that the majority of Canadians support both the Alberta-B.C. pipeline and the Alberta-Ontario pipeline, though one of the two was favoured by survey respondents.

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The poll, conducted by the Angus Reid Institute, revealed that the proposal for a new pipeline from Alberta to B.C. received 63 per cent support, while the plan to bring oil to Sarnia, Ontario, received 55 per cent support.

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Interestingly, 62 per cent of respondents in B.C. itself supported the pipeline proposal, despite, the research foundation notes, being a province where pipeline resistance has been a persistent story for two decades.

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The arguments that proved most persuasive in the case to build the pipelines were economic, with 55 per cent of respondents saying they support the Alberta-B.C. pipeline because it helps Canada sell oil to markets outside the U.S.

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Other compelling arguments that respondents pointed to included the general importance of oil to the economy (51 per cent) and the creation of jobs and economic growth (45 per cent).

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On the other end of the scale, 41 per cent of respondents, including half of respondents in Quebec, felt the most persuasive argument against the Alberta-B.C. pipeline was that Canada should be investing in renewable energy instead.

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Elsewhere, 34 per cent said the economic benefits may not be concentrated enough to justify the project, and 30 per cent pointed to environmental and oil spill risk.

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After being presented with arguments for and against the project, support for the Alberta to B.C. pipeline rose slightly in every region, from 61 per cent to 63 per cent nationally.

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Support was highest in Alberta, at 76 per cent, and lowest in Quebec, at 50 per cent.

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The Angus Reid Institute poll revealed that the proposal for a new pipeline from Alberta to B.C. is supported by 63 per cent of Canadians. Photo by Gavin Young/Postmedia

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Nearly nine-in-10 Canadians (88 per cent) said they’ve heard at least a little about the project, while awareness of the Alberta-Ontario pipeline was much lower, with 41 per cent of respondents saying they hadn’t heard of it at all.

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The Angus Reid Institute notes that, in both cases, only about half of Canadians say they have truly made up their minds about the projects, suggesting the proposed pipelines sit on shifting ground.

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On the Alberta to B.C. pipeline, for example, 47 per cent said they are fixed in their position on it, while 53 per cent say they could change their mind.