NDP support of fracking/LNG industry a shame
The BC NDP government has mimicked the policies of their BC Liberal opponents in supporting the fracking/LNG industry with permits and tax reductions. As I write, RCMP are excluding journalists as they prepare to arrest members of the Wet’suwet’en nation in support of Coastal GasLink, a corporation trying to build a gas pipeline across their land. Premier John Horgan told reporters on Monday that the pipeline will be built despite protests.
The Wet’suwet’en are not just protecting their traditional territory, they are acting on behalf of future generations of all life. Fracking has been shown to pollute the surface and ground water, cause earthquakes, and emit large amounts of methane, a powerful greenhouse gas. The fracked gas is then to be shipped in the pipeline across First Nations land to energy-intensive LNG plants near the coast (more risk of methane leaks) where liquified gas is pumped into ships (with a risk of fire and explosion) and carried to overseas markets where it will be burned, producing yet more greenhouse gases.
How can fracking be part of the “Clean BC” plan? How can police action against First Nations be consistent with the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People? How can the NDP continue to support policies of the past at a time when the future is in danger? Horgan should perhaps remember Clayoquot Sound, the largest campaign of civil disobedience in Canadian history in opposition to the corporation-friendly anti-environmental policies of the NDP government of the day. Many people are turning their backs on yesterday’s destructive technology in the interest of our descendents. It is sad that our government won’t join us.
John Scull
Duncan
