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Piping-up about the Pipelines in BC and Alberta

Today, a coalition of groups launched a pipeline spill tip line, a 1-800 number people can call to report when oil and gas spills happen. The line is 100% confidential and all callers’ identities will be protected.

“We know that the government isn’t looking out for our safety so we are turning to people throughout the Province to let the public know what’s really going on,” said Don Bester with the Alberta Surface Rights Group. Two of the the three spills that happened in Alberta last month were reported by third parties. “Hundreds of spills happen every year and still this government does nothing. We had three major spills last month alone. How many more have to happen before the government finally acts?”

Calls to the line are 100% anonymous. The pipeline spill line number is 1-800-23-SPILL or 1-800-237-7455. People can also submit reports online at http://www.cleanalbertawater.com.

Pipeline opponents have repeated that it is not a matter of “if” pipelines spill, but “when and where.” For this reason, pipeline opposition is evident even outside of Alberta. This past Saturday, two First Nations in BC’s Lower Mainland signed on to the Save the Fraser Declaration, which opposes the Enbridge Northern Gateway piplines, or similar Tar Sands projects from crossing traditional territories, watersheds, or ocean migration routes of Fraser River Salmon. The Tseil-Waututh and Squamish First Nations joined 130 other Nations, as signatories of the Declation, who oppose Northern Gateway and other proposed pipelines crossing their territories.

Both Nations are located on the Burrard Inlet which would see increased tanker traffic, and potentially be dredged to allow for supertankers, if the proposed Trans Mountain Pipeline expansion is approved. The singing took place on Whey-ag-Wichen/Cates Park, across from a tanker which was docked at the time, and two large storage tanks.

The Kinder Morgan Trans Mountain Pipeline runs from Edmonton to Burnaby, BC where it would then be transported to Asian and US markets for refining. The current proposal would more than double capacity of the pipeline from 300,000 barrels per day (bpd) to 850,000bpd. This pipeline would be able to transport more than both the Enbridge Northern Gateway Pipeline (550,000bpd) and the Keystone XL (700,000 bpd).

Take Action to Oppose the Pipelines

1. Share the pipeline tipline number 1-800-23-SPILL or 1-800-237-7455

2. Share and check out the Clean Alberta Water website for the petition and other resources

2. If you are in the Lower Mainland, attend one of the upcoming Town Halls about the Kinder Morgan Trans Mountain Pipeline:

July 11th in North Vancouver: 7pm-9pm at St. Agnes Anglican Church, 530 East 12th Street July 11th Pipelines Event poster

July 12th in Downtown Vancouver: Oil Spill in Stanley Park at 7pm, 181 Roundhouse Mews (Facebook event page here, and Wilderness Committee page here)

July 24th in Kitsilano: Tanker Town Hall Meeting at 7pm at St. James Hall (3214 West 10th Avenue, Vancouver) More information available here