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Hydro One gets temporary injunction

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Demonstrators preventing work from being done on the Niagara Reinforcement Line have been told to cease and desist.

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Ontario Superior Court Justice Liza Sheard, in a decision handed down Tuesday, ordered demonstrators to remove any obstructions and to stop preventing Hydro One employees from working on the hydro line. The order applies to 18 people named in a court action taken by Hydro One and follows a Monday afternoon hearing.

The issue is scheduled to return to court on Monday for further arguments.

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The Haudenosaunee Confederacy Chiefs Council and the Haudenosaunee Development Institute are also identified in court documents.

The court order was issued Tuesday, a day after the two sides spent an afternoon in Ontario Superior Court in Brantford arguing over legal action taken by Hydro One.

Hydro One went to court seeking an injunction against the HCCC and its supporters to ensure the project is delivered on time, meets the electricity system’s needs and delivers millions of dollars in community benefits. Members of the HCCC were in court for the proceedings.

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One representative of the HCCC spoke in court and the council issued a statement condemning Hydro One’s actions, calling it an outrage, and a sneaky disgusting move.

“We are here to oppose Hydro One’s move and seek more time to respond to a legal action that has serious and long-lasting implications for the people of the Confederacy,” Aaron Detlor, senior adviser to the confederacy council, said in the statement.

However, in a statement issued earlier this week and after Monday’s court appearance, Hydro One said the project is being done through a partnership with the Six Nations of the Grand River and Mississaguas of the Credit First Nations to deliver ongoing economic benefits through an equity partnership that provides both communities with 45 per cent ownership of the line once its completed.

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“We are committed to our partnership with the elected council of the Six Nations of the Grand River and Mississaugas of the Credit and supporting the completion of this important project,” Hydro One said in its statement. “Hydro One is disappointed that a positive resolution has not been reached between the elected council of the Six Nations of the Grand River and the Haudenosaunee Confederacy Chiefs Council, however we continue to urge them to respectfully come to a mutually beneficial agreement to get this project completed.”

The HCCC, in its statement, said that is has always been committed to partnering with Indigenous leaders and provincial entities, including Hydro One.

“We want to make it clear that we are willing participants to such discussions,” the HCCC statement said. “But that cannot happen when Hydro One is proceeding in a manner that is condescending, colonist and patriarchal.”

Hydro One says it is pleased with the court’s decision adding that if the project is not allowed to move forward, millions of dollars will have been wasted on a project needed to meet the needs of the electricity system.

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