Protest against the Regional LNG Seminar in Nanaimo yesterday.
The Council of Canadians Mid Island chapter called on local residents to “counter the pro-industry narrative of [a Regional LNG Seminar in Nanaimo] and distribute leaflets inviting the public to our LNG town hall presentation on Jan 28. Bring your most clever & heartfelt anti-fracking signs.” And that’s what happened yesterday.
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.”
That letter says, “The science is clear: human-driven climate change represents a serious challenge for British Columbians, and is caused primarily by the production and consumption of fossil fuels. The proposed LNG industry, and the fracking industry that fuels it, will have widespread impacts on our climate. …Science World’s mission is to engage and educate British Columbians – and our children – in science. But its participation in the BC government’s promotional seminars ignores repeated warnings from experts about the serious environmental and climate impact of this industry.”
Chapter activist Paul Manly tells us about what happened yesterday: “We handed out some leaflets to teachers outside but we couldn’t hand them out inside. I even had security interfere with me when I tried to talk to teachers inside… just casual conversation. First security tried to tell me I couldn’t be there then they admitted that I could because it was a public event. I was just letting teachers know about our LNG town hall on Jan 28th where they could hear the other side of the debate.”
Representatives from Science World, the BC government and LNG-Buy BC (a program “created to connect LNG project proponents with BC companies”) will also be holding a seminar in Kamloops on February 3-4. Seminars were also recently held in Prince George, Fort St. John, Terrace, Prince Rupert and Squamish.
In addition to yesterday’s protest, the Mid Island chapter will also be hosting a ‘No Fracking with our Future’ town hall discussion featuring Vancouver-based documentary filmmaker Damien Gillis and My Sea to Sky member Dr. Eoin Finn. For more on that forum, please click here.
Further reading
Council of Canadians calls on BC and Science World to end LNG promotional seminars (December 2014 blog)
