CBC reports, “A group protesting against the Energy East pipeline conversion will strap on skis and snowshoes this weekend to ‘walk the line‘, as they attempt to travel at 20 km stretch of the gas pipeline northeast of Thunder Bay.”
“The two-day trek includes representatives of First Nations, Citizens United for a Sustainable Planet, the local chapter of the Council of Canadians, Lakehead University, and members of the public.”
“Organizer Paul Berger said the TransCanada pipeline conversion project is out of sight and out of mind for many Canadians, and this trek is meant to raise an awareness of the group’s concerns.”
“Berger said the pipe crosses all major rivers that flow into Lake Superior.”
The article notes, “The protestors will make the 20 km trek from the Black Sturgeon River to Nipigon.”
Council of Canadians chairperson Maude Barlow, Eriel Deranger of the Athabasca Fort Chipewyan First Nation, and a local speaker will be in Thunder Bay to speak against the pipeline on April 9. For more information about that event, please click here.
Energy East
At 1.1 million barrels per day, the Energy East pipeline would be bigger than the Keystone XL pipeline (830,000 bpd), the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion (from its current 300,000 bpd to 890,000 bpd), and the Northern Gateway pipeline (525,000 bpd). According to a Pembina Institute study, Energy East would lead to the creation of 30 million to 32 million tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions a year.
Council of Canadians chairperson Maude Barlow has commented, “The Energy East pipeline would pose serious threats to local water supplies and communities along the route. The option then to export to the much larger and more profitable markets of India, China and Europe with massive tankers from the deep water port is also a major concern of ours.”
It is expected that TransCanada will seek approval from the National Energy Board for the pipeline this summer. The portion of the Energy East pipeline to Quebec could be converted by 2017, the pipeline extension to New Brunswick could be completed and operational by 2018.
