OTTAWA — The federal government is advancing the process to designate a proposed oil pipeline to the West Coast as a “national interest” project. Naming a project in the national interest under the Building Canada Act allows the government to fast-track approvals and skirt some environmental laws. A notice published in the Canada Gazette on Aug. 1 sets a Sept. 18 deadline to submit comments on the national interest designation. The proposed pipeline project has been referred already to the government’s major projects office, with the Alberta government listed as the proponent. The proposed pipeline is a central component of an energy agreement between the federal and Alberta governments.