The Canadian Press Opponents of shale gas development in Quebec have warned that they might engage in civil disobedience to keep the industry from taking off in the province. One protest leader said people would tie themselves to gas companies’ machinery and block their trucks if exploration activities went ahead. Several dozen opponents of shale gas are marching through Quebec to warn of its possible environmental impact. Event spokesman Philippe Duhamel said Monday that the march was just the beginning. He said there would also be training sessions on how to organize sit-ins and occupy …
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Writing and photos on the Marcellus Shale Protest web site On May 23, 2011, Marcellus Protest picketed the Shale Play Tubulars Conference that took place at the William Penn Omni Hotel in Pittsburgh. Protestors sought to draw attention to yet another harm that fracking causes: the massive proliferation of pipelines throughout the region. Drilling and pipeline companies would cut down forests, kill wildlife, ruin homes, and create more risk of gas explosions everywhere. Natural gas producers are already facing a gas surplus, and some are “turning off the taps” because they lack the …
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Martin Lukacs in The Guardian “Stephen Harper’s government, allied with big oil, is lobbying Europe not to regulate tar sands oil, but the pushback has begun” A certain powerful North American country has been brazenly meddling in Europe’s affairs, bullying and twisting arms to advance a corporate agenda on the most pressing environmental issue of our time. A phalanx of its lobbyists has descended on European capitals to covertly scheme with oil companies and menace EU parliamentarians who would dare address climate change. It’s not who you might think … but …
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Mike on a Platform blog Today, a Shell-chartered tanker is scheduled to dock in the Syrian port of Tartous. The Heidmar TBN will collect almost 600,000 barrels of crude oil purchased by Shell. The shipment, worth over $55 million, has been marketed to Shell by state company Sytrol, an integral part of Assad’s regime of power. Repression of the democratic uprising in Syria has seen the regime kill over 1,000 and imprison 10,000. Yet Shell, one of the largest foreign investors in Syria, continues its close co-operation with the Ba’ath regime – extracting oil, meeting with …
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A video on the Media Co-op “Only weeks after protesters packed up the South Fraser Protection Camp under threat of an injunction, the tables have been turned and freeway opponents have gone on the offensive and taken legal action to stop construction of the $1.2 billion South Fraser Perimeter Road (SFPR) freeway. Bertha Williams of the Tsawwassen Band, Coast Salish Nation and William Burnstick, of the Cree Sioux First nations, are suing the B.C. Government to stop construction of the riverfront freeway through sacred burial sites and B.C.’s oldest and most important archaeological …
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Dawn on the Vancouver Media Co-op Earlier this month in a blog post, Amy Larkin, the Solutions Director of Greenpeace USA asked a question of her organization that many of us have been wondering about. “Why are we working so closely with these corporations?” wrote Larkin. “Because corporations now govern how we live, where we live, what we eat, wear, and desire… and also whether or not our natural world retains its bounty, its beauty and its beneficence,” she wrote. Even though I’ve been critical of Greenpeace for some time now, it still irked me when I read …
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A video from Rising Tide North America Rising Tide documents it’s week of “Action against Extraction” marking the April 20th, 2011 anniversary of BP’s Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Across North America and as far as Helsinki and Wellington the destruction wrought by BP, Halliburton, TransOcean, and a complacent government was not just remembered, but resisted. Equally important, Rising Tiders and our allies demonstrated to communities, energy companies, and government agencies that it’s not just this oil spills, but the toxic coal pollution, …
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Writing, photos, and video links posted by Toban Black on the Media Co-op Some of us have started to campaign against shale gas fracking around Ontario. On May 19th, we had a rally outside of a North American shale gas conference at Holiday Inn Sarnia — which actually is located in Point Edward. At our protest, we focused on threats to water supplies from the toxic stew of fluids injected into fracking wells, as well as methane, radium, and other substances that can be let loose from around the shale rock that the gas is extracted from. The shale gas conference was about profits that …
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An update from Northern Rockies Rising Tide “Court Hearing for Injunction Against Megaloads Wraps Up in Missoula, Exxon Continues to Lose Time and Money, Kearl Mine Still on Hold” Ken johnson, the manager for Exxon’s insane Tar Sands transportation project, complained last week: “Right now, we’re adjusting our plans, but we’re getting to the point where we’re going to have to be doing out-of-sequence work. In addition, we’re going to have to assemble [the modules] in the wintertime.” “When you’re working on a multibillion dollar project, you need to do this so …
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Gordon Hoekstra in the Prince George Citizen First Nations in Western Canada are joining aboriginal groups in northern British Columbia in support of their opposition of the $5.5-billion Northern Gateway pipeline. First Nations from north-central B.C., represented as the Yinka Dene Alliance, and the Alexander, Blood and Lubicon Cree First Nations in Alberta, as well as the Roseau River First Nation from Manitoba, signed a solidarity statement Wednesday. The Yinka Dene oppose the 1,170-kilometre pipeline that will carry crude from the Alberta oilsands to the B.C. northwest coast because of the …
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A press release from a few campaign organizations In the lead up to the 7th Arctic Council meeting in Nuuk, Greenland May 12, the Council of Canadians alongside the Indigenous Environmental Network and REDOIL Network (Resisting Environmental Destruction on Indigenous Lands) with support of the Alaska Inter-Tribal Council, coordinated an open letter sent by organizations in six Arctic Coastal states – Canada, U.S., Russia, Greenland, Denmark and Norway – demanding a moratorium on offshore drilling in the Arctic. … [Read more] …
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Shawn Jeffords in The Observer A landmark Charter of Rights challenge launched by two members of the Aamjiwnaang First Nation over the health impacts industrial pollution has on their community is moving forward. More than 2,100 pages of evidence have been filed with an Ontario District Court is support of the lawsuit, which names the Ontario government and Suncor Energy. Band members Ron Plain and Ada Lockridge allege pollution from the Chemical Valley is violating their human rights. … [Read more] …
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Stephanie Merrill on the NB Media Co-op The groundswell of New Brunswickers waking up to the potential shale gas industry our provincial government is banking on is gaining momentum across the province. Spurred by screenings of Gasland, information presentations and the gearing up of exploration programs by industry, communities along the eastern shore are dismissing shale gas as a possibility and are instead, rallying against it. On Wednesday, April 13th, residents of communities around the Rexton area staged an anti-fracking protest outside the open house hosted by Southwestern Energy (SWN …
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Lisa Wade on Sociological Images The phrase “environmental racism” was coined to draw attention to the ways in which exposure to environmental toxins like air pollution and lead is not even across cities and states, but tends to be higher in low income neighborhoods — especially those that are disproportionately Black and Latino — ones that are also more likely than others to be home to garbage dumps, sewage treatment plants, and power plants. As a result, poor children and children of color are more likely to suffer the consequences of environmental pollution, like asthma and lead …
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Kelly Cryderman in the Calgary Herald A southern Alberta landowner who has long claimed coal bed methane drilling polluted her well has launched a lawsuit demanding more than $10 million each from Encana, the Alberta government and the province’s energy regulator. Jessica Ernst, 54, is one of the province’s most outspoken critics of drilling methods such as fracking — where water, chemicals and sand are blasted deep underground to break up coal formations and release natural gas. In a statement of claim filed at the courthouse in Drumheller, Alta., she states the failure of …
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Photos and writing posted by Sandra Cuffe on the Vancouver Media Co-op Responding to a call to action by Stop the Pave and numerous endorsing organizations, well over a hundred people of all ages from around the lower mainland rallied in Delta on Friday and set up an ongoing camp in the middle of a South Fraser Perimeter Road (SFPR) worksite. “As a mom, I think it’s important to say that we’re taking this history and teaching it to our kids, to take that forward,” explained Surrey resident, mother, and organizer PJ Lilley, speaking of a return to grassroots …
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An update on the Vancouver Media Co-op After a chilly night under the stars, dozens of people are working to make the camp at the site of the proposed South Fraser Perimeter Road permanent. “There’s lots of people, not only people camping here but neighbours wandering through with their kids, and it is a happening fun scene in this beautiful location that’s unfortuntaly been clear cut and dug out,” said Eric Doherty, an organizer with Stop the Pave. “One of the things we’re planning to do is an easter egg hunt at 2pm tomorrow,” said Doherty. “The …
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Hillary Bain Lindsay on the Halifax Media Co-op “Shale gas is the fossil fuel industry’s latest suicide mission” After years of learning about climate change and oil and gas development in other places, Michael Jensen was upset, but not surprised, to learn that natural gas exploration may be coming to his backyard. “It’s indicative of a much larger pattern of environmental destruction, says Jensen. “It’s the assumption that short term profit justifies long term destruction.” In December, the Nova Scotia Department of Energy issued a call for exploration …
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A video from a protest in London, England The event is aimed at damaging BP’s brand, and comes as the company has mounted a major PR campaign in an effort to deflect criticism around the anniversary of the oil spill. At its annual general meeting, the company faced an angry coalition of shareholders, campaigners and residents from the Gulf of Mexico and the Canadian tar sands. Tony Cottee of Rising Tide said: “Sponsorship of galleries such as Tate is one of the most important ways BP tries to buy the public’s acceptance and make people forget about disasters such as the Gulf …
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Photos and writing posted by Sandra Cuffe on the Vancouver Media Co-op The Dinosaurs Against Fossil Fuels made a surprise appearance at Surrey Central on Friday afternoon for the opening day of the City of Surrey’s ‘Party for the Planet.” Their presence was well-received by many local residents and families; however, the security forces and police in and around the event did not extend the same welcome. While the Dinosaurs held signs to spread awareness about the earth day Join the Wave Against the Pave action on April 22nd, flyers were distributed with details about the …
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T.j. Scolnick on DeSmogBlog On Canada’s east coast, American oil and gas companies are doubling down and betting that the small maritime province of New Brunswick is the next shale gas hot spot. How has New Brunswick become a primary destination for oil and gas companies? Two reasons in particular stand out: 1) The government does not know how it will manage shale gas exploration (having only just released its “framework for a long-term action plan to manage the exploration, development and utilization of domestic natural gas” last Thursday evening) – which means companies that …
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Photos and a write-up posed by Nick Engelfried on the It’s Getting Hot in Here blog Today members of Portland Rising Tide and participants in a training for Power Shift 2011 set out to let major banks in Portland know it’s time to pull investments from dirty fossil fuel infrastructure. About fifty people visited local branches of Wells Fargo and Bank of America, letting customers know the banks have been “Closed for climate crimes.” While some participants staged a die-in on the sidewalks, others used mud to stick “dirty money” to the walls and windows. The group drew …
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Photos and a write-up on DC Indymedia Washington DC – Pepco has been targeted by the Greenwash Guerillas group for the second year in a row on April Fools Day. Additional letters were added to their marquee on their building headquarters, so that their signs read “PEPCOAL,” and hundreds of fake Pepco advertisements were placed in the DC metrorail system late last night. (Photos available upon request.) April Fools Day has been deemed “Fossil Fools Day” by people concerned about climate justice. Last year, Fossil Fools Day was marked by thousands of fake Pepco letters being …
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A post on Against the Current I wrote extensively about Earth Hour last year and my intention was just to ignore it this year, especially since it appears to have lost its ‘novelty’ value and the level of public interest in it – at least here in New Zealand – seems to have dropped away a little. However I saw Oliver Driver and Carly Flynn talking nonsense about it on Sunrise this morning. Mediaworks (of which TV3 is a part) is one of the main supporters of Earth Hour in New Zealand so it wasn’t surprising that Oliver and Flynn gushed enthusiastically about it …
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Nick on the It’s Getting Hot in Here blog Amidst discouraging news that the Obama administration is expanding coal mining and investing in dangerous nuclear policies, I’m glad to report on an important victory against dirty energy in the Pacific Northwest. Yesterday NW Natural Gas and other companies withdrew their permit application for the Palomar liquefied natural gas (LNG) pipeline project. One of three proposed LNG pipelines in Oregon, Palomar would have transformed the Northwest into a gateway for a high-carbon fossil fuel not currently imported anywhere on the US west coast. …
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A call to action from Rising Tide North America On April 20th dozens of environmental, climate, and social justice groups will target government and corporate operations with aggressive protests and civil disobedience in an International Day of Direct Action Against Extraction being organized by Rising Tide North America. The protests will commemorate the 1 year anniversary of BP’s Gulf Oil Disaster by demanding an end to the environmental destruction and climate destabilization created by fossil fuel and other extractive industries. “The Gulf Oil Disaster was the worst manifestation of …
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An action report from the UK Tar Sands Network The UK Tar Sands Network and friends gathered this morning outside the Climate Week launch event at Lancaster House, to protest against its sponsorship by RBS, the UK bank that has been most heavily involved in financing the fossil fuel industry. While Energy and Climate Secretary Chris Huhne was inside presenting awards for action on climate change, the protesters were outside, wearing badges saying ‘Love climate action, hate greenwash’, and handing leaflets to attendees that highlighted the involvement of RBS in financing companies involved …
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Kelly House in The Oregonian An ancient Native American song emanated Sunday from the confluence of the Columbia and Willamette rivers. Five drummers rhythmically pounded on a ceremonial drum while spectators passed around a seashell filled with smoking prayer leaves. “Ya-hey-ya-hey-ha,” lead drummer James Thinn chanted above the other singers, a traditional warrior’s chant. The group’s enemies, Thinn said, are oil-factory modules moving up the Columbia River, across the states of Idaho and Montana, and into Canada’s oil sands, where Imperial Oil, a subsidiary of …
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Rocky Kistner in the Huffington Post Update March 20, 2011: A Coast Guard officer with a command center in Morgan City, LA, said today the Coast Guard has confirmed that oil is not coming from the Deepwater Horizon well but that they have found what appear to be smaller oil slicks in the Gulf. Their investigation into reports of large oil slicks is continuing. Additional photos and information from pilots John Wathen and Bonnie Schumaker who flew over the area yesterday are expected to be released today. The Coast Guard is investigating reports of a potentially large oil slick in the Gulf of …
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An action report from Northern Rockies Rising Tide At about 2:30 am on Thursday morning, two residents of Missoula, MT, Carol Marsh, 69, and Ann Maechtlen, 50, sat down in the middle of Reserve St. in an attempt to halt the shipment of large, oversized loads of equipment heading to a ConocoPhillips tar sands oil refinery in Billings, MT. Marsh, a retired journalist and grandmother, and Maechtlen, a two-time cancer survivor, attempted three or four times to block the shipments but the police refused to arrest the two women, instead opting to forcefully remove them to the sidewalk as they were …
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Photos and statements on the Rising Tide North American web site “If we want to achieve our vision,” DeChristopher said. “Many more will have to join me.” ”[I'm] not one finger, easily broken, but part of a fist.” Salt Lake City, UT- The climate justice group Rising Tide North America released this statement today in response to the “guilty” verdict rendered by a Federal court today against climate activist Tim DeChristopher in Salt Lake City, UT: “Rising Tide North America stands in solidarity with our good friend and ally Tim DeChristopher, who was convicted today by a …
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On the ‘climate camp’ web site The near-collapse of the financial system; droughts in the Amazon, floods in Pakistan; a new government in the UK; a violent programme of unprecedented cuts; food prices rising and real incomes eroding; revolutions across the Middle East… This is all very different from 2005 when the Camp for Climate Action first met to spark radical action on the greatest threat to humanity, climate change. In 2011 the climate science is as strong as ever – and the need for action on climate change never greater – but the political landscape is radically …
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Michael Tabb in Student Life A National Coal Council meeting in downtown St. Louis was canceled following a protest from Washington University Green Action. Directly after council members had finished taking roll call on Tuesday, students from Green Action and Missourians Organized for Reform and Empowerment entered the meeting at the Hilton St. Louis at the Ballpark. The students unfurled a banner proclaiming, “Coal is never clean” and sang, “Clean coal is a dirty lie.” “Clean coal doesn’t exist, and we’re opposed to the lie that there’s any way to use coal safely without …
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An action report from Rising Tide in the UK — with a photo On Saturday 12th February, Bristol and Bath Rising Tide and friends went on a bicycle tour of Bristol’s Shell petrol stations. The ride was in protest at Shell’s activities in Co. Mayo where they are laying a high pressure gas pipeline; and in solidarity with the courageous local resistance to the project. The 30 cyclists – and an escaped stegosaurus – occupied the forecourts at the petrol stations on Muller Road, St Philips Causeway and York Road, circling the pumps and handing out flyers to customers. …
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Robert Swift in the Sarnia Observer Recent articles in The Observer remind us again we have a very long ways to go to reduce the air pollution in Sarnia -Lambton to improve air quality. When people like Dean Edwardson, spokesperson for a local industry lobby group says “we continue to make improvements to the operations locally”, the implication is that our local air quality is getting better. If that is the case, then why did the recently-released Ontario 2009 Air Quality Report show Sarnia has the dirtiest air in Ontario while the rest of the province …
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From the UK Tar Sands Network “Tar Sands protest at the Canadian High Commission marks Minister’s visit” This morning a group of campaigners protested outside the Canadian High Commission in London, to mark the visit of Ron Liepert, Alberta’s Energy Minister. The minister is here to lobby on behalf of the Province of Alberta’s Tar Sands industry, and encourage Europe to get more involved in what has been dubbed the world’s most destructive project. The protesters held banners saying “Stop the Tar Sands Trade Talks” and “Canadian Tar Sands: Global Climate Crime” …
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Stop Coal BC and British Columbians for Climate Justice on the Vancouver Media Co-op A cross section of British Columbians gathered at the legislature at noon today to launch a new campaign to “End BC coal mining and export by 2015”. Taking action, dozens of church leaders, retired professors, scientists, parents and grandparents symbolically spilled coal at the foot of the legislature steps to send a message to the BC government that coal must stay in the ground. This action follows a letter sent to the Ministers of the Environment, Energy, and Mines yesterday. Reverend Ken Gray of …
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A statement from Rising Tide North America Dear Friends, While many environmental groups have spent the past year bumbling over climate legislation and devising better list-building and branding strategies, Rising Tide has been building the climate justice movement and challenging the root causes of climate change. Nowhere is this more evident than in the northern Rockies. Over the past year, climate activists in Montana and Idaho, led by Northern Rockies Rising Tide have organized to stop mining equipment shipments bound for Canada’s oil sands. … [Read more] …
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George Monbiot in The Guardian “Spying on environmental activists serves no one’s interests except for big corporations. Let’s end this insult to democracy” This is what the head of a police unit set up to monitor domestic extremism said in 2009: “I’ve never said – and we don’t see – that any environmentalist is going to or has committed any violent acts.” That chimes with my experience. Two years ago I searched all the literature I could lay hands on, and couldn’t find a single proven instance of a planned attempt in the UK to harm …
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A Redeye podcast interview “Ben Powless is with the Indigenous Environmental Network. He was in Cancun for the climate summit in December and participated in the official talks as a member of the Indigenous People’s Caucus. He reports on the accord that was agreed upon by almost all nations at the summit.” …
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