There are three rallies planned today in Greater Victoria against the federal government’s plan to buy the Kinder Morgan pipeline.
Protesters will be gathering in downtown Victoria, and Sidney at public locations, and in Langford at Premier John Horgan’s MLA office.
Both of the events in Victoria and Sidney will begin at 11 a.m., while the Langford rally is organized for 3:30 p.m.
READ MORE: Hundreds rally in Victoria and march against pipeline purchase
The Sidney event will be organized by Jack Thornburgh, who says it’s a “spur-of-the-moment” situation, after a last-minute request came to put it together. Supporters there will begin at Beacon Plaza and walk down Beacon Avenue to the wharf.
“We are outraged that Trudeau is giving billions of our tax dollars to a Texas corporation, when our schools and hospitals are crying out for funding,” stated Thornburgh in an email late Sunday night. “And many First Nations communities don’t have safe drinking water. Taxpayers are not going to give this an easy ride.
He went on to say that Kinder Morgan’s pipeline and tanker project “violates Indigenous rights, threatens fragile waterways with oil spills, and would facilitate huge increases in global warming pollution.
“It’s totally inconsistent with Trudeau’s promises on the environment and reconciliation with First Nations,” continued Thornburgh, who’s also a municipal councillor in the District of North Saanich.”
Called a “snap action,” protesters plan to also deliver petitions signed by area residents opposing the pipeline and urging Ottawa to not give the Texas-based Kinder Morgan any taxpayer dollars.
