Letter to the Editor
Dear Editor,
I am very concerned about the Coastal Gas Link Pipeline in northern British Columbia. All five clans of the Wet’suwet’en have unanimously rejected this pipeline and are peacefully defending their unceded land.
The RCMP broke down their barricades last year and on Friday, February 7 arrested land defenders at the barricade. Coastal Gas Link is a subsidiary of TC Energy, which is the same company behind the project at the Meaford tank range. A direct quote from this company’s public relations material reads, “At TC Energy, we are committed to building and maintaining positive relationships with landowners. We are proud of the relationships we’ve built with thousands of landowners across North America and we believe that these relationships are critical to our success. Our approach to engagement with people and groups who may be affected by our activities is rooted in our core values of safety, responsibility, collaboration and integrity”.
This is the same company that is trying to force the CGL pipeline through Wet’suwet’en land and using militarized RCMP to arrest the peaceful and rightful landowners who have repeatedly said no to their pipeline. Would you trust this company?
RCMP documents have been found and they use terms such as “lethal overwatch” , “use as much violence as necessary”, and “sterilize the site”. Is this happening in Canada? It isn’t the Canada that I believe in! Our governments still have colonial attitudes when dealing with our aboriginal people. This is even after the BC government unanimously adopted the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People(UNDRIP) last fall. Justin Trudeau also promised to have improved relationships with First Nations. Is this better?
The gas to be transported in the contentious pipeline is fracked natural gas. The whole process of fracking has terrible environmental consequences. It is known to have contaminated water wells and groundwater with toxic chemicals. Natural gas leaks, explosions, and earthquakes are also consequences of the process.
The Wet’suwet’en people are standing strong in opposition to this detrimental pipeline. Across the country others are standing with them. At this point in time, when we are facing a climate emergency, we need to stop building pipelines. Stand in solidarity with the Wet’suwet’en; discuss what is happening, donate to their legal fund, reduce your dependency on fossil fuels.
The time to act is now! Add your voice to that of the Wet’suwet’en and send a strong message to our elected officials.
Sincerely,
David Walton, Owen Sound
