I alluded briefly in my last post to what my intentions were in going to Alberta and B.C., but want to write some about the horrific projects and inspiring resistance that are growing in tandem throughout those provinces. Though I didn’t get to visit in person or do direct interviews, the tar sands development has been widely publicized and the indigenous resistance to the tar sands and their shipment is building and gaining support at the same time.
By now, most people on this continent have at least heard the phrase “tar sands” and perhaps know more about the bituminous oil reserves that are being extracted and processed in Northern Alberta. Some, perhaps, have seen the photos, which have been compared to scenes out of Lord of the Rings or other fantasies due to their baffling scale and stark imagery. Trees of the boreal forest, dense and green and huge, are interrupted suddenly by a growing edge where the ground is carved out, scraped for the bituminous sands, and processed into oil more carbon-dense than conventional to be shipped across the U.S. and beyond to thirsty, development minded industries. There are a few breathtaking (and rage-inducing) aerial photo series of this phenomenon. My favorite so far is from Alex MacLean, whose work you can see here along with an interview about his interest in the tar sands.
The largest industrial project in the world, the oil sands of Alberta would, if fully “explored”, release more climate pollution than the U.S. and China have in their histories, surpassing all oil ever burned by humans. From a human survival standpoint, this project is suicidal. While it isn’t useful necessarily to pit dirty projects against one another and suggest that the alternative to this extraction is, say, fracking, it is still clear just from looking at the images that this is a true and likely unparalleled horror for our planet. On top of that, as with much of the history of energy extraction and processing, it is part of a long tradition of colonial violence and violation of indigenous sovereignty. Harper, Canada’s prime minister, may say that “…Canada has no history of colonialism.”, but that is blatantly nonfactual. Conquest by European settlers may have looked different in some ways north of the current border, and tactics leaned more toward forced assimilation than outright killing of populations, but is that really a lesser genocide? Is “lesser genocide” a term that should even be considered?
As discussed in interviews with indigenous activists in South Dakota a couple of weeks ago, indigenous people across the world are leading the way in direct resistance to fossil fuel extraction. Across the U.S. and Canada, indigenous organizers are preparing for serious stoppage of the transport of these products and enlisting allies from around the globe to engage defensively with these companies and the governments which they own when the moment arises. One such site of resistance sits on the Athabasca River, in the direct line of the proposed Northern Gateway pipeline route, the Unist’ot’en Camp. Since 2009 when a soft blockade was built in the proposed path of the export corridor, the Unist’ot’en Clan has held and expanded their control of the region, which was never ceded to Canada or any other colonial government. They are operating within not only a just moral framework, but a binding legal framework in defending their land. This article from Vice has a good summary of some of the work and back story of the camp and I recommend it for people interested in learning more.
The camp’s own website also has a wealth of resources and information about how to support the resistance to this project.
The video below, released in June 2014 on the occasion of the Canadian government’s approval of the Northern Gateway Pipeline, shows the response of organizers.
“Amid threats of a raid and impending pipeline approvals, the Unist’ot’en Clan of the Wet’suwet’en Nation are prepared to continue to defend their territories against the incursion of government and industry…this is not Crown land, this land is unceded and we’re still here. We’re not going anywhere. People are showing up to the camp every day, our numbers are growing. This war is far from being over and we’re going to win this one. We’re going to win it decisively.”
-Unist’ot’en Clan of the Wet’suwet’en Nation press release June 18,2014
To describe the fight as a war is accurate, though many liberal activists reject such language. Something I read fairly early on into my study of climate change and industrial capitalism has stuck with me so I will share it here for your consideration.
“If aliens from outer space came to this planet and did the harm that oil and gas corporations are doing, we would stop them using any means necessary. If aliens from outer space were making it so there were carcinogens in every mother’s breast milk, we would stop them. If they were putting in oil and gas wells all over the planet, we would stop them. If they were changing the climate, we would stop them. If they were destroying landbase after landbase, we would stop them. And if they set up governments to “legalize” their sociopathological behavior, we would stop them.
When a government becomes destructive of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness it is the right of the people to alter or abolish it.
When a government and corporations work together to destroy life on earth, it is the responsibility of the people to stop this using any means necessary.”
-Derrick Jensen
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