What will stop Enbridge?
- Details
- Published on Friday, 20 June 2014 20:40
- Written by editor
In this issue: The fight has only just begun: Enbridge | Why is BC weakening its environmental laws? | Legal aid helps citizens tackle coal shipments | Making companies pay for climate change impacts | West Coast summer law student volunteers go to court
Dear Paov,
On June 17, the federal government ignored the will of British Columbians... and First Nations’ oil pipeline and tanker bans and directed the National Energy Board to issue the key approval that green lights the Enbridge tankers and pipelines project. This dangerous decision has galvanized British Columbians like never before to keep our coast and salmon rivers free from tar sands oil. Read on to find out more about why the Enbridge project will never be built.
Enbridge: the fight has only just begun
Like many, we were deeply disappointed, but not surprised by the recent federal government decision to ignore the voices of British Columbians who have spoken out time and again against the Enbridge oil tankers and pipelines project. But we all know that the story does not end here: together, we have what it takes to defeat this project. Read on to get West Coast's take on what the government's announcement means and where we go from here.
- Holding the Wall: the West Coast Environmental Law Association, allied citizen groups and First Nations issued a statement on Monday, June 16, officially rejecting Enbridge oil pipelines and tankers and vowing to work together to defeat the project. We're proud to be drafting legislation that could form the basis for a possible citizen's initiative to ensure BC uses its legislative authority to keep our rivers and streams free from Enbridge oil.
- What is the story behind the government's announcement? West Coast Environmental Law staff lawyers dissect Tuesday's announcement in a multimedia presentation and discuss what the statement means, and which very important parts of the story were left out.
- This fight is far from over! As we said when the Joint Review Panel released their report in December 2013, government approval of the Enbridge oil pipelines and tankers project ignores the wall of opposition that will defeat it.
Why is BC weakening its environmental laws?
West Coast lawyers have noticed a troubling theme in BC. In the 2014 spring session of the BC Legislature, several contentious laws (Bill 4, the Park Amendment Act, and Bill 24, the Agricultural Land Commission Amendment Act) that weaken protection for BC's parks and agricultural land were rushed through with little or no public consultation. But the government is forgetting that weakened environmental laws will erode the social licence for Cleanest LNG and other development.
- What might the first legislative session of the BC government tell us about Cleanest LNG and the future? Find out here.
Legal aid helps citizen group tackle coal shipments through BC
Should BC be used to trans-ship American coal to China? Who gets to decide? And what does that mean for our environment? These issues and others will be considered in a legal challenge brought by Voters Taking Action on Climate Change (VTACC), with support from our Environmental Dispute Resolution Fund, to a government decision approving the ten- to twenty-fold dramatic expansion of coal shipping from Texada Island.
- Click here to find out how a group in BC is using the law to oppose the shipping of U.S. coal through the province.
Making companies pay for climate change impacts
Scientists have shown a direct link between climate change and the mountain pine beetle epidemic in BC, the cost of which has been shouldered by BC in lost timber sales and environmental and social costs. It’s time for a conversation about whether these costs should be born by British Columbians alone, or whether a handful of companies who are largely responsible for climate change can and should pay for the financial consequences of climate change.
- Should large-scale Greenhouse Gas polluters one day pay for financial damages caused by climate change? r0
