Open houses set for TransCanada's Energy East pipeline

The company TransCanada is hosting open houses around Saskatchewan to answer questions about a pipeline project called Energy East.

TransCanada plans to convert an existing below-ground natural gas pipeline to instead move about 1.1 million barrels per day of crude oil from Alberta to New Brunswick.

Jason Bashutski lives in Harbour Landing, in Regina, near the line. He told CBC News he likes the open space associated with the line.

"It's the only way we get so many parks, to be honest, and at least I'm not beside the train tracks," he said.

TransCanada's open houses will include communities such as White City and Moose Jaw.

Peter Prebble, of the Saskatchewan Environmental Society, told CBC News he has concerns.

"The risk of a spill grows as infrastructure ages," Prebble said. "So one really has to look over the medium term and think about what are the risks, 23 to 30 years from now, not just what are the risks today."

Prebble said Canada should be looking at ways to reduce its dependence on crude oil.