Hundreds of opponents to the Trans-Mountain Pipeline gathered in a loud show of defiance in North Vancouver Saturday.

The “Salish Sea Summer Gathering” saw protesters flock to Cates Park on Burrard Inlet and voice concerns over the proposed expansion of the pipeline, which runs from Edmonton to Burnaby.

“Today is a celebration of the Salish sea,” said Ben West of ForestEthics, an environmental advocacy group. “It’s a coming together of First Nations people and non-native people to really look for themselves at what’s at stake with the proposed expansion of the Kinder Morgan pipeline.”

West and others fear a pipeline leak could potentially destroy the fragile ecosystems that surround it.

“We believe it’s not a First Nations problem, it’s not an environmental person problem – it’s all of our problem,” said Sundance Chief Reuben George.

The controversial project is currently making its way through regulatory channels while environmental groups and politicians alike campaign to stop the construction of a second pipeline next to the existing one.

Critics say the twinning of the Kinder Morgan line would dramatically increase tanker traffic, while proponents argue it would double capacity and give a boost to the economy from exporting the oil.

“[It’s] probably the biggest infrastructure development we’ve had in B.C. for a long time,” said NDP MP Kennedy Stewart. “It goes through 80 First Nations territories, it goes through all sorts of municipalities that are officially opposed to it, it goes through people’s backyards, it goes through school grounds.”

The project has captured the attention of people around the province and continually faces fierce opposition at public information sessions.

Kinder Morgan has insisted all along it holds environmental safety in high regard. A spokesman told CTV News that of all the tankers that have loaded in Burnaby – not one has had a spill.

“So far we’ve been pretty lucky, but if any company tells you that they can guarantee they can have a flawless record indefinitely, they’re not telling you the truth,” West said.

Both sides of the long-debated project will have a chance to voice their opinions in the fall, when the National Energy Board will seek input from landowners, Aboriginal groups and not-for-profit organizations on Kinder Morgan’s proposal.

With a report from CTV British Columbia’s Penny Daflos