# NewsForBC source note: West Coast Oil Pipeline Nations on-reserve counts

Date: 2026-07-10
Article: `https://newsforbc.com/west-coast-oil-pipeline-first-nations-on-reserve-counts.html`
CSV: `https://newsforbc.com/research/west-coast-oil-pipeline-first-nations-on-reserve-counts-2026-07-10/nations-on-reserve-table.csv`

## Lead captured

- User URL: `https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1838EmM39h/?mibextid=wwXIfr`
- Resolved URL: `https://www.facebook.com/groups/betterbc/posts/1549131716939660/`
- Public metadata title: `BetterBC | Reconciliation in reality`
- Public metadata description excerpt: `Reconciliation in reality !! How does EXTORTION looks like in Canada ? These are the First "Nations" that will require "consultation" aka cash or equity stake bribes to build the oil pipeline from...`
- Public metadata image preserved as `facebook-betterbc-report-excerpt.jpg`.
- OCR showed the image page heading `WEST COAST OIL PIPELINE PROJECT` and a section `7.2.2 British Columbia` listing 85 B.C. groups identified for engagement.

## Data method

1. OCR/read the screenshot and reconstruct the 85 B.C. entries.
2. Match each entry to a Government of Canada First Nation Profiles band number where the entry corresponded to a single federal profile.
3. Pull `FNRegPopulation.aspx?BAND_NUMBER=<band>&lang=eng` for each match.
4. Calculate `On own reserve` as `Registered Males On Own Reserve + Registered Females On Own Reserve`.
5. Also record `on other reserves`, `on any reserve`, `off reserve`, and `total registered population`.

## Summary

- B.C. screenshot entries: 85
- Matched to single federal band profiles: 84
- Not matched to one profile: `Ktunaxa Nation` because the screenshot wording is broader than a single federal band profile.
- Total registered people on own reserve across matched profiles: 22,694
- Total registered people on any reserve across matched profiles: 26,418
- Total registered population across matched profiles: 62,931

## Caveats

- Registered population data does not measure Aboriginal title, treaty rights, traditional territory, consultation rights, citizenship or ancestry.
- On-reserve residence is narrower than community membership.
- The Facebook post’s `extortion` wording is political rhetoric, not a legal finding.
- NewsForBC could not locate an indexed public source copy of the `West Coast Oil Pipeline Project` report from the screenshot alone; the image is treated as a social-media lead.