I think most environmentalists are still in a state of shock over the Liberals’ victory – or more correctly, the NDP loss.
The NDP campaign was the worst I have ever seen, and that’s saying something! I thought 2009 was bad but it wasn’t a patch on this one.
There’s no point in trawling over the ashes – suffice it to say that Ipublicly advised Adrian Dix, about half way through that politics in BC was a blood sport and that he was in danger of losing.
It didn’t take the Vancouver Sun long to get back into the swing of things with a four-page corporate blow job getting every point of view save those opposed to pipelines and tanker traffic. All the faces of unrestrained capitalism were there, including the great floor crosser himself, David Emerson. The environmentalist’s position was confined to a couple of quotes – I can assure you that neither Damien nor I was questioned.
The evidence from Environment Canada and the US government confirm that spills on land and at sea are certain thus the question is not “if” but when.
A great portion of quotes from industry tallied about their improved cleanup techniques, making one wonder if the prospects for spills were so slim, why bother about clean-up preparations?
There are consistently two obvious questions always avoided – first, if you can clean up spills, what happened to Enbridge and its Kalamazoo spill, now nearly 3 years past?
Perhaps more obvious and important is the question: if your spill occurs anywhere along the Enbridge Gateway project, how are you going to get men and machinery to it?
We’re talking here about the Rockies, the Rocky Mountain trench, the Coast Range and the Great Bear Rainforest. If Enbridge couldn’t control or clean up the Kalamazoo spill – easily accessible – how do they deal with a spill where no one can get at it?
And if Christy Clark does defy her lack of credibility on the issue and follow through on recent bold statements against Enbridge, what of the proposed Kinder Morgan pipeline tripling she’s now turning to? Or David Black’s proposed refinery in Kitimat, which she has also supported? These projects present many of the same problems, as I have often noted in these pages.
A battle has been lost, although considering Adrian Dix’s waffling on environmental matters generally, perhaps the NDP would have been no better than the Liberals.
It’s up to First Nations and the rest of us to go to work to stop the destruction of what we love so dearly and we must be ready for civil disobedience. If we’re not prepared to do that, it’s like going into a poker game saying, “remember, I’m always bluffing.”
Tuesday, 04 June 2013 20:50 posted by Johns Aghast
Why not pump the crap up to Slave Lake, refine it there in Black’s relocated refinery that he barges up the Mackenzie, thus avoiding the $10 Billion in overland transport costs, then pipe the refined product up the recently approved Mckenzie pipeline, through the Beufort Sea (home to 70 trillion cf of natural gas and 12 billion bbls of oil). Thence through the Arctic Ocean. Closer to Japan than Kitimat, no Dilbit concerns, no Enron Pipeline, no dangerous inside passage route.
If interested let me know and I will refine my information and spelling.
John’s Aghast
Monday, 03 June 2013 17:06 posted by ron wilton
These lying libs have been giving us the corporate blow job for the last ten years and I don’t see anything changing this time around.
Unless and until the largely uninformed or disinterested electorate becomes aware of the cause of their wet dreams, we will continue to wonder if the screwing we’re getting is worth the screwing we’re taking.
Who could blame the FN’s if they just stepped back and let us all crash into the wall en masse, because they have been trying for eons to tell us, but no one seems to be interested or listening.
Monday, 03 June 2013 14:24 posted by Kevin Logan
Daryl it is true that a 60 year old pipe built for something other than transporting Dilbit presents the single largest environmental threat TODAY.
And yes those supporting the “Twinning” use the language you have heard. However as I understand there is no replacement of the old pipe being proposed.
Monday, 03 June 2013 14:22 posted by Kevin Logan
It’s up to First Nations and the rest of us to go to work to stop the destruction of what we love so dearly and we must be ready for civil disobedience. If we’re not prepared to do that, it’s like going into a poker game saying, “remember, I’m always bluffing.”
I suggest people bone up on the “new” laws Harper rammed through after the Boston Bombing. Pre-emptive arrests, detainment for three days with no charge and “conditional” release are a good place to start.
Monday, 03 June 2013 13:39 posted by Daryl
Hi Rafe,
I bring up the following points about the Kinder Morgan proposal because I don’t know if they’re true, but I have had them spouted at me: The current pipeline is old and in need of replacement. It is already carrying bitumen. A new pipeline will be safer, even with a tripled capacity. As the burrard inlet is already mostly lifeless from pollution, is it not the best place to risk a disastrous spill at sea?
Again, is there truth in these points, or have I been told lies?