babble is rabble.ca's discussion board but it's much more than that: it's an online community for folks who just won't shut up. It's a place to tell each other — and the world — what's up with our work and campaigns.
Support rabble | Advertise with us | Contact our staff | About rabble | Log-in or Register for a new account | Corrections | Privacy policy | Newsfeeds | Mailing lists
rabble: Features | Columnists | In Cahoots | Blogs | Books | Photos | What's Up | Polls
babble: Forum Topics | Active Topics
The rpn: About the RPN | Become a podcaster
rabbleTV: Program Guide | Features | Indie Inside | Best of the net
Copyright © 2001-2013 the authors
Syndicate
Dirty Oil Comes To Bella Bella - by Ingmar Lee
http://www.counterpunch.org/2012/04/03/dirty-oil-comes-to-bella-bella/
"...I am disgusted by the environmental groups that have lent a chimera of dignity to the corrupt NEB process by their participation in this rotten staged process. I cannot for the life of me understand any reason they might give for sitting there, - other than the significant money they get for doing so.
All along I have believed that this horrible process should have been utterly boycotted right from the start. People should not have to waste their time defending their lands and waters from this hideous Harper monstrosity, through this contrived, farcical and corrupt process.
Nevertheless, this most clumsy and stupid act of cowardice just seen at Bella Bella, must might have cost Harper his pipeline..."
I think it's a little extreme to criticize environmental groups for showing up at the process. There is plenty enough dissent to put some of it into the hearings and some of it into protests, blockades, etc.
PetroChina bids to help build $5.5-billion Northern Gateway pipeline
New risk spurs oil sands pipeline push
i just don't get why the author of this thinks it was okay for him to take part but not the other people? seems to be pretty divisive spewing.
I think some of the enviros got paid to participate and perhaps he felt they thereby legitimized a patently illegitimate process. He was there observing presumably not submitting. You could always email him with your questions - the address is appended to the article.
CALGARY — A Canadian government attempt to speed up construction of Enbridge Inc’s Northern Gateway oil pipeline to the West Coast is unlikely to prevent a flood of court challenges that could still delay the multibillion-dollar project.
quote
They say court precedents relating to rights and title to native lands in British Columbia open the government and Enbridge, a major Canadian pipeline and energy company, to untold actions even if the regulatory body reviewing the proposal approves the controversial project. Legal action has already begun and sources say this is likely just the first of a raft of actions as the oil industry and government face opposition from several aboriginal groups.
“You’ve got aboriginal people in British Columbia who will bear all the risks of this, who don’t want to see so-called economic benefits on the back of their culture,” said Louise Mandell, a Vancouver-based lawyer who has argued numerous cases on behalf of native groups, including a landmark one in 1997 known as Delgamuukw that will have implications for the project.
“They won’t allow it, so there will be challenges in whichever direction the legal arguments take it, including legislated solutions.”
quote
Enbridge expects legal issues, especially given the size of the project, but declined to comment on any preparations.
“We recognize the potential is there, but we’re focused right now on the regulatory hearings, which are likely to go on for another 12 to 18 months,” spokesman Paul Stanway said.
The company has sought native support by offering a total of 10 percent interest in the project to first nations and up to C$1 billion in community development money.
http://business.financialpost.com/2012/04/09/enbridges-gateway-pipeline-...
Hundreds of people gathered on the lawn in front of the provincial legislature on Sunday to participate in a 'Rally Against Enbridge.' After a series of passionate speakers - from young children to First Nations grassroots community leaders - rally participants marched through downtown Victoria to Centennial Square.
Many rally speakers and march participants spoke out against Enbridge's proposed Northern Gateway oil pipeline, oil tanker traffic on the coast, and the tar sands. Others also raised their voices against the Pacific Trails natural gas pipeline in northern B.C. and Kinder Morgan's expansion plans for the existing Trans Mountain pipeline that runs from the tar sands to the lower mainland.
"This is incredibly empowering," local environmental activist Zoe Blunt said of the large turnout at the rally, adding that people would be returning on April 21st for Earthwalk, and then again on April 29th for a two-week 'Camp Christy' camp on the lawn.
"Right here. Two weeks. April 29th," said Blunt, as the crowd chanted Camp Christy. "Tell everyone. And bring your tents. Bring your sleeping bags..."
http://vancouver.mediacoop.ca/photo/photos-hundreds-rally-against-pipeli...
David Suzuki completely eviscerated Prime Minister Harper on the environment/tar sands on "Power and Politics" today. Suzuki is a national treasure - Harper is pond scum.
Suzuki said Canada has never participated in a referendum to base our entire economy on one industry - the tar sands.
Suzuki also said Alberta can develop the hell out of the tar sands if it wants - just keep the environmental effects - air, water, and land pollution confined to Alberta as well.
Sweeping Harper government plans will cut the number of federal departments involved in environmental assessments from 40 to just three and hand significant ecological oversight to the provinces.
The Conservative’s legislative plan for “responsible resource development” will also fast-track the environmental review process by imposing fixed timelines of up to 24 months for major oil and gas and mining projects.
The government maintains the changes are necessary to move to a “one project, one review” process that reduces duplication, creates certainty for investors and concentrates federal efforts on major projects such as mining and oil and gas proposals.
“We need a process that ensures timely, efficient and effective project reviews, promotes business confidence and capital investment, while strengthening our world-class environmental standards,” Natural Resources Minister Joe Oliver said Tuesday.
Under the plan, provincial environmental processes will be substituted or considered equivalent to federal reviews so long as they meet the standards set out in the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act.
The provincial rules will also be considered equivalent to federal Fisheries Act regulations as long as they meet or exceed Canadian standards, while the provinces, National Energy Board and the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission will be authorized to grant approvals under the federal Fisheries Act.
“With scarce resources, it is counter-productive to have the federal government completing separate reviews of the same project,” Oliver added, while announcing the changes at a Toronto business that provides products for oil and gas pipelines.
Environmental groups said the changes will erode ecological protection in Canada and effectively provide large oil and gas companies free rein on major projects.
“These changes make it clear that powerful oil interests are running the show, with the federal government bending over backwards to do their bidding,” Gillian McEachern of Environmental Defence said in a statement.
“It won’t be much comfort to people dealing with a dangerous oil spill in their backyard that the company will get a slap on the wrist when government could have prevented the problem in the first place with a real assessment of the risks.”
The government will consolidate federal environmental reviews into three organizations: the Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency, the National Energy Board and the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission. Currently, more than 40 federal government departments and agencies have responsibility for project reviews.
Moreover, joint review panels — like the one being held for the proposed Northern Gateway pipeline project — would no longer be required for projects regulated by the NEB and CNSC.
In an effort to improve consultation with aboriginal groups, the federal government is promising to designate a lead Crown consultation co-ordinator for each project and establish consultation agreements with the provinces, territories and aboriginals.
Oliver also pledged the government, for the first time, will provide federal inspectors with the authority to determine whether a company is meeting its environmental obligations under the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act, and impose “tough, new financial penalties” for those firms breaking the rules.
http://business.financialpost.com/2012/04/17/canada-to-reduce-environmen...
epaulo - Suzuki said all that stuff is "baloney".
..what did he mean by baloney, boom boom?
Suzuki is an intriguing man with whom I have had the pleasure of a few conversations during the time that I volunteered at DSF. This included the period of time in which Gordo introduced the carbon tax and the BCNDP opposed it - leaving a lot of environmentalists twisting their faces.
The DSF represents the wing of the environmental movement that likes to work with powerful people/organizations to win influence at high levels. Hockey teams, politicians, corporations, everything under the sun. And this is a very useful and necessary role. But it means the occasional potential for awkward bedfellows - agreeing with Gordo's carbon tax (despite other problems with his agenda), working on a green energy plan with McGuinty (but later being miffed to discover that nuclear becomes part of the strategy), and in general trying not to piss off the powers with which they can win influence. This approach works as long as there are open ears, and it remains "non-political" as long as it's about ideas and not political parties.
I think this is a sign that Suzuki personally has no choice left but to take the gloves off - Harper is someone he will never be able to influence cooperatively, someone who is forcing anyone who supports the environment to be political.
..i supplement my income by attending focus groups now and again. well i just got back from one. there were 10 of us and nobody knew what the topic was until we were gathered in the room. the facilitator began by asking what we thought of the direction bc was going in. was it going in the right direction no one raised their hand and then asked in the wrong direction everyone raised their hand. so he rephrased the right question so that he was asking if you found anything at all positive about the direction and 1 person raised their hand.
..the main event turned out to be about the embridge pipeline. they showed us 3 (sleeze) ads and asked which we liked best and why. while some made comment re minor differences everyone questioned the honesty of the info presented and how the ads avoided the topic of spills and accountability. no one was positive. their were people behind a big two way mirror following our responses who also sent question in for us. another group followed after us.
Suzuki said the government's plans were baloney.
Cabinet to get final say on pipeline projects
excerpt:
But this proposed change means that even if the NEB decides against approving a major pipeline project, cabinet can force it to reconsider.
Meanwhile, Oil sands critics take on Ontario pipeline battle
VICTORIA — During the past few months, the main front in the fight against development of the Alberta-based oil sands has moved to British Columbia. It’s a situation the western-most province is uncomfortable with and an expansion it’s unmotivated to defend.
The aggressive push by the oil sands industry and the Alberta and federal governments to open a new market for Canadian oil through shipments from the West Coast has been met by equally forceful resistance starting at the Alberta-B.C. border.
Anger has escalated since the start of public hearings in January into the Northern Gateway pipeline, proposed by Calgary-based Enbridge Inc., interrupting years of friendly relations between the neighbouring provinces, particularly on energy development.
Indeed, condemnation of the pipeline through B.C.’s rugged north and its associated oil tanker traffic has erupted into the type of popular revolt that is becoming a B.C. mainstay — from the campaign against the harmonized sales tax to the fight to preserve the Great Bear Rainforest and the moratorium on oil tanker traffic and offshore drilling.
quote
“It’s a very challenging place to do business for a lot of companies because of the unresolved aboriginal claims, which means we don’t have treaties, so the legal context is more complex, and we have a much more powerful environmental movement in our politics than you tend to have in other parts of the country. But this project has the potential to see a rallying of not just local but global environmental forces who have their shorts in a knot over oil sands to focus on B.C. as ground zero to save the planet.”
So far, the $5.5-billion Northern Gateway has taken the brunt of the anti-pipeline, anti-oil sands campaign. It’s unclear whether opposition will broaden to a rival plan proposed by Kinder Morgan Energy Partners on April 13 for a $5-billion expansion of its Trans Mountain line.
NIMBYs in B.C.’s Lower Mainland have started mobilizing against increased tanker traffic, even though the pipeline has been safely moving oil and loading it on tankers for 62 years. Vancouver Mayor Greegor Robertson said this week he has a moral obligation to oppose the pipeline.
Recognition that there is inequitable distribution of risks and benefits has started discussion about what could be done to make oil export pipelines more acceptable to British Columbians — particularly First Nations, who are seen as the groups most affected....
http://business.financialpost.com/2012/04/25/resistance-fierce-as-oil-sa...
The BCNDP has released its long-awaited position on the Northern Gateway Pipeline. As I speculated, they waited until just after the byelections. All NDP MLAs have signed it including O'Mahony and Trasolini.
http://www.bcndp.ca/newsroom/bc-ndp-outlines-objections-enbridge-pipeline-joint-review-panel
VICTORIA – The B.C. New Democrat Official Opposition caucus has formally registered its opposition to Enbridge's Northern Gateway Project with the National Energy Board’s Joint Review Panel.
“Under the Enbridge proposal, British Columbia would assume almost all the project’s risk, yet would see only a fraction of the benefits,” said New Democrat leader Adrian Dix. “By any measure, such a high-risk, low-return approach simply isn’t in B.C.’s interests."
The letter outlines six key concerns regarding the Northern Gateway Project:
New Democrat environment critic Rob Fleming, as well as Skeena MLA Robin Austin, Stikine MLA Doug Donaldson and North Coast MLA Gary Coons, are already participating in the Joint Review Panel’s process, either as interveners or presenters.
“B.C. New Democrats are taking a stand on the Enbridge pipeline because B.C.’s interests are not being adequately represented nor protected by the provincial government in the review process,” said Dix. “It is simply not good enough to state, as the premier has, that the government is going to wait for the process to unfold before taking a position. The time to take a position is now.”
First Nations opposition to Enbridge's Northern Gateway pipeline has become so entrenched that the firm's entire corporate reputation could be at risk, says a Toronto-based mutual fund company.
"Enbridge is a very well-run company," NEI Investments vice-president Robert Walker told The Tyee in an interview. "Our concern is that they're squandering a hard-earned reputation on one project."
This is the rationale behind a shareholder resolution being presented by NEI Investments at Enbridge's annual general meeting in Toronto next week.
The resolution asks that Enbridge provide a report to shareholders by May 2013, explaining "how First Nations’ opposition will factor into the final decision to pursue Gateway," and "how the company will mitigate the operational, reputational, and legal risks of such opposition."
The company is currently developing projects worth $48 billion; Gateway represents about 10 percent of this total.....
http://thetyee.ca/Blogs/TheHook/Aboriginal-Affairs/2012/05/01/enbridge-g...
A coastal fuel leak has a B.C. First Nation concerned
video
There is growing concern in a First Nation community along the B.C. coast…
A sunken ship with 700 tonnes of fuel is leaking – and divers trying to patch the hole risk an explosive situation.
An 11-year old girl is making a strong statement as one of the demonstrators riding the “Freedom Train” from B.C. to Toronto.
The group is trying to drum up support for their opposition to the Northern Gateway Pipeline.
Ta’kaiya Blaney caught the attention of APTN’s Keith Laboucan while she was in Edmonton.
CALGARY — As if Enbridge Inc. could not hear the cries of protests over the Northern Gateway pipeline at its annual meeting in Calgary last year, what will hit the company in Toronto on Wednesday is expected to be even louder.
Public hearings into the $5.5-billion project to bring crude oil from Bruderheim, Alta. 1,172-kilometre west to the Pacific coast town of Kitimat, B.C. — and from there to energy-hungry markets in Asia — have since begun, serving as a focal point for criticism. Canada’s largest crude transporter has also opted to hold this year’s AGM in the country’s financial capital, where many groups opposing the pipeline command a strong presence and where the risk of a public relations backlash affecting the company’s share price is heightened.
As members of the Calgary-based Enbridge executive team make the trip to Toronto this week, a train carrying some of Northern Gateway’s most vocal critics is close behind. Hundreds of protestors are expected to rally outside the AGM, with a “Freedom Train” set to arrive Wednesday carrying dozens of members of the Yinka Dene Alliance, a group of British Columbia First Nations opposed to the project. Motivated by concerns over Northern Gateway’s potential to damage the native territory through which it runs, or from the tanker fleet that will flood into Kitimat harbour once the pipeline is completed, First Nations have formed the core of resistance to the pipeline thus far.
This year, however, the Alliance argues the issue now extends far beyond the realm of indigenous people alone.
“It is going to be much larger [this year] not only for indigenous people but I think for the regular citizens of Canada and British Columbia,” Terry Teegee, vice-chief of the Carrier Sekani Tribal Council and member of the Alliance, said in an interview from Prince George, B.C.
In late March, more than 2,000 people took part in a Vancouver rally opposing Northern Gateway....
http://business.financialpost.com/2012/05/07/enbridge-braces-for-more-pi...
Gitxsan Chiefs Threatened With Imprisonment
http://bsnorrell.blogspot.ca/2012/05/gitxsan-chiefs-threatened-with.html
"After a member of the Gitxsan Treaty Society (GTS) attempted to sellout to Enbridge pipeline, and the rest of the Nation learned about it through the media, they held an inspiring winterlong vigil outside the boarded up office. He was ousted, the attempted deal was scrapped, and the GTS authority nullified. Meanwhile, that person was suddenly appointed to a Port Authority board. More..."
RCMP Spied on BC Nations Protesting Pipeline Plan Documents Show
http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/politics/article/1175824--rcmp-spied-...
"The RCMP has been spying on a group of BC First Nations whose vocal opposition to Enbridge's Northern Gateway pipeline has taken them to company's annual shareholders meeting in Toronto. As previously reported in the Star, a national RCMP surveillance program monitoring First Nations that ran between 2007 and 2010 shared similar intelligence reports about First Nations with the private sector, including energy companies.."
Here are a couple of things I posted on this issue - Enpipe Line Project and Enbridge's track record Sorry I didn't notice this thread before I posted these.
RCMP running a national surveillance program against First Nations. Holy shit, don't those bastards at the RCMP have nothing better to do with their time??? I think that force (farce?) should be disbanded completely.
Wait till they pass the peeping tom bill...theve already hit the ss, gustapo end of the spectrum defending oil/gas criminal terror enterprises against the victims, the public has lost faith in them, they have been divided and on the road to being conquered and they are powerless to stop it........Maybe when they learn how there pensions will be chopped and there jobs contracted out to rent a cop agencys they will come to their senses...it starts with cgi computers and then it gets worse policeman.....the window is shutting on them, just like CSIS is being undermined and shut down.....it all starts with the appointed plant and gets worse....
Don't worry playing conservative kiss ass is going to backfire on them.
A path to a Canada no one will recognize (dogwoodinitiative.org)