What it may come down to is clout.  How BIG and powerful the protests will be.  The Sioux were successful, not because it had "right on their side." but simply because it had MIGHT on its side.  Wow: the Dakota reserve is 3,500 sq. miles of territory, home to a population of close to 8,500. 300 tribes have been represented in the protesters' camp (not "march", but "camp"!) On weekends, the camp's population swells to 5,000 people or more.  Not a chance BC First Nations could mount anything as big, especially when, as Wente states, "native groups are hopelessly divided..."

If the First Nations people directly affected chooses litigation they may not be any more effective than protests in the street would be. I believe the Supreme Court--which legalized the Tsilhqot'in land claims just a few years ago, can can allow any form of industrialization if it is proven to be in the "national interest."  

Better headline: "First Nations Nightmare becomes PM's Dream."