A B.C. First Nation group has reversed its support for the Enbridge Northern Gateway pipeline project; the company says it still has the support of close to half the bands along the corridor. Gitxsan Treaty Society negotiator Elmer Derrik signed the agreement in December, but 36 Gitxsan hereditary chiefs voted to officially reject it during a meeting Tuesday night. The agreement Derrick struck would have given the First Nation a USD 7 million equity stake in the project, but it set off a wave of protest among other Gitxsan members who then staged a blockade of the Treaty Society office in Hazelton. Gitxsan spokesman John Olson said the chiefs may be willing to lift their blockade, but that would be decided in another meeting. The chiefs also said they want written acknowledgment from the Gitxsan Treaty Society that the Enbridge deal is rejected before removing the protest. Spokesman for Enbridge on the Northern Gateway pipeline project, Paul Stanway, said the company is disappointed in the shift, but that Enbridge has not given up on reaching a deal with the Gitxsan. “We understand the concerns that have been raised and our goal here is to reach a long-lasting agreement with the Gitxsan so they can be equity partners in the ownership of Northern Gateway.” Larry Patsey, a hereditary chief, said he didn’t attend the meeting because he doesn’t recognize the treaty society. “As far as we’re concerned all that business is null and void,” he said. “Certainly, we’re happy to hear that the chiefs that were there spoke against Enbridge and the deal was nullified.” Patsey explained that 48 hereditary chiefs signed a 5 December 2011 declaration against Enbridge and the treaty society because they believed the society was not representing them and they felt left out of the process. British Columbia is blanketed virtually entirely by a complicated quilt of overlapping land claims and securing the support of aboriginal groups along the line would allow Enbridge to steer clear of costly and lengthy legal battles to make the pipeline a reality. Stanway said Enbridge has managed to get the support of 20 aboriginal groups among the 45 within 80 kilometres of the pipeline corridor in recent weeks. They have signed equity agreements with the company. The twin pipeline project between Alberta and northwest B.C. will allow Alberta oil to be loaded onto tankers on the West Coast.