The Council of Canadians Mid Island chapter held a successful public forum in Nanaimo on Wednesday (January 28) in opposition to liquefied natural gas (LNG) export terminals and pipelines. The meeting featured Vancouver-based documentary filmmaker Damien Gilles and Dr. Eion Finn, a resident of Howe Sound where the Woodfibre LNG terminal is proposed.
The promotion for the ‘No Fracking with our Future’ event had stated, “The public has heard lots promises about the economic benefits of a proposed LNG industry, powered by fracking in northeast BC. But are these claims credible? And what sort of environmental trade-off would the industry bring? From the frackfields of northeastern BC to the many proposed gas pipelines and LNG terminals vying for approval along the coast, join us as we drill down on the myths and realities of this industry.”
Just two weeks ago the chapter called on residents to “counter the pro-industry narrative” of a Regional LNG Seminar in Nanaimo. The chapter explains, “The Regional LNG Energy Seminar is a pro-industry event, the environmental damage caused by fracking and the public safety and pollution concerns about LNG plants and tankers will be downplayed. In an open letter the Council of Canadians and allied environmental groups have called on BC and Science World to end these LNG promotional seminars, which are, in part, aimed at school children.”
Wednesday’s public forum was the fifth public forum organized by Council of Canadians chapters in British Columbia. Town hall meetings have also been organized in Ladner (on October 22), Powell River 9 on November 2), Courtenay (on November 4) and Victoria (on November 26).
The Campbell River chapter will be hosting a public forum on this issue on February 11.
The Council of Canadians believes that a ban on the development of LNG terminals and pipelines is necessary in order to respect Indigenous rights, limit greenhouse gas emissions, defend the province’s freshwater sources, protect wild salmon, and protect communities and the coastline. There are currently 18 LNG export terminals proposed for British Columbia, just five of them would emit 28 million tonnes of greenhouse gases a year, consume an estimated 582 billion litres of water from BC’s lakes and rivers, and require about 39,000 new wells, the majority of which would be fracked.
For more on our opposition to the LNG agenda, please see our campaign web-page here.
