‘Keystone XL Is Dead!’: After 10-Year Battle, a Climate Movement Victory

Jon Queally June 11, 2021 Jon Queally Admin, Americas, Archives
A protest against the Keystone XL pipeline / credit: John Englart, Creative Commons
A protest against the Keystone XL pipeline / credit: John Englart, Creative Commons

After more than a decade of grassroots organizing, agitation and tireless opposition by the international climate movement, the final nail was slammed into the Keystone XL’s coffin Wednesday afternoon when the company behind the transnational tar sands pipeline officially pulled the plug on its plans.

Following consultation with Canadian officials and regulators—including “its partner, the Government of Alberta”—TC Energy confirmed its “termination” of the project in a statement citing the revocation of a federal U.S. permit by President Joe Biden on his first day in office on January 20 as the leading reason.

Climate campaigners, however, were immediate in claiming a final victory after years of struggle against the company and its backers both in Washington, D.C., and Ottawa.

“TC Energy just confirmed what we already knew but it’s a thrilling reality all the same—the Keystone XL pipeline is no more and never will be,” said David Turnbull, strategic communications director with Oil Change International (OCI).

 

“After more than 10 years of organizing we have finally defeated an oil giant, Keystone XL is dead!” declared the Indigenous Environmental Network (IEN) in reaction. “We are dancing in our hearts because of this victory! From Dene territories in Northern Alberta to Indigenous lands along the Gulf of Mexico, we stood hand-in-hand to protect the next seven generations of life, the water and our communities from this dirty tar sands pipeline. And that struggle is vindicated.”

IEN said that the win over TC Energy and its supporters was “not the end—but merely the beginning of further victories,” and also reminded the world that there are “still frontline Indigenous water protectors like Oscar High Elk who face charges for standing against the Keystone XL pipeline.”

Calling the news “yet another huge moment in an historic effort,” Turnbull at OCI said that while the Canadian company’s press statement failed to admit it, “this project is finally being abandoned thanks to more than a decade of resistance from Indigenous communities, landowners, farmers, ranchers, and climate activists along its route and around the world.”

Jared Margolis, a senior attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity, declared the victory in the drawn-out battle—which largely took place under the Democratic administration of former President Barack Obama—”a landmark moment in the fight against the climate crisis.”

“We need to keep moving away from dirty, dangerous pipelines that lock us into an unsustainable future,” added Margolis, who said he now hopes President Joe Biden will take this lesson and apply to other polluting fossil projects. “We’re hopeful that the Biden administration will continue to shift this country in the right direction by opposing fossil fuel projects that threaten our climate, our waters and imperiled wildlife,” he said. “Good riddance to Keystone XL!”

 

Jamie Henn and Bill McKibben, both co-founders of 350.org and key architects of the decision to make the Keystone XL pipeline a target and symbol of the global climate movement, also heralded the news.

“When this fight began, people thought Big Oil couldn’t be beat,” said McKibben, who was among those arrested outside the White House in 2011 protesting the pipeline.

“Keystone XL is now the most famous fossil fuel project killed by the climate movement, but it won’t be the last,” said Henn. “The same coalition that stopped this pipeline is now battling Line 3 and dozens of other fossil fuel projects across the country. Biden did the right thing on KXL, now it’s time to go a step further and say no to all new fossil fuel projects everywhere.”

Clayton Thomas Muller, another longtime KXL opponent and currently a senior campaigns specialist at 350.org in Canada, said: “This victory is thanks to Indigenous land defenders who fought the Keystone XL pipeline for over a decade. Indigenous-led resistance is critical in the fight against the climate crisis and we need to follow the lead of Indigenous peoples, particularly Indigenous women, who are leading this fight across the continent and around the world. With Keystone XL cancelled, it’s time to turn our attention to the Indigenous-led resistance to the Line 3 and the Trans Mountain tar sands pipelines.”

McKibben also made the direct connection to KXL and the decision now looming before Biden when it comes to Line 3 in northern Minnesota. “When enough people rise up we’re stronger even than the richest fossil fuel companies,” he said. “And by the way, the same climate test that ruled out Keystone should do the same for Line 3.”

This article was first published in Common Dreams.

Jon Queally is managing editor for Common Dreams.

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People’s Health Tribunal Finds Shell and Total Energy Guilty of Harming African Communities

Peoples Health Dispatch June 2, 2023 Peoples Health Dispatch Admin, Africa, Archives
PHM Extractivism in Africa
Credit: PHM UK

This article originally appeared in People’s Dispatch.

A panel of environmental and human rights activists acted as judges in a People’s Health Tribunal organized by African communities impacted by the operations of extractive corporations Shell and Total Energy. Supported by organizations like Medact, We the People, the People’s Health Movement, #STOPEACOP, and others, they found the corporations guilty of harming the health of people across Africa. Nnimmo Bassey, Jacqueline Patterson, Kanahaus Manuel, and Dimah Mahmoud condemned Shell and Total’s activities, stating that they were “extremely harmful to the livelihoods, health, right to shelter, quality of life, right to live in dignity, quality of environment, right to live free of discrimination and oppression, right to clean water, and right to self-determination.”

This edition of the People’s Health Tribunal was built as activists witnessed extensive greenwashing by the oil and gas industry at COP 27 in Egypt last year. In response, they became even more determined to support the struggles of communities in Africa who are affected by the corporations who attempted to gaslight the public at COP 27.

However, governments in the Global North, where most extractive corporations have their headquarters, still choose to ignore the destruction caused by these industries. In 2022, Shell made a profit of $40 billion, while Total Energy ended the year with US$36 billion in profits. These profits came at the expense of the health and lives of people living in regions where these corporations operate.

Uprooting Set the Ground for Total’s LNG Operations in Mozambique

Decades of exploitation of African land have resulted in devastating consequences, including air pollution, water contamination, deforestation, violence, land grabbing, and forced migration. People in the Niger Delta and Mozambique experience these things daily. Omar Elmawi, who provided an overview of Total’s impact on Mozambique communities, emphasized that in the current situation, “everyone loses, except Total.” Elmawi said he believed that African countries must take control of their own resources and development to make sure that justice is restored.

In Mozambique, Total Energy’s plan to construct an onshore liquefied natural gas (LNG) facility led to the displacement of hundreds of families dependent on farming. Total’s plans also decimated traditional fishing activities, leaving people destitute. Instead of providing the uprooted communities with adequate living conditions and compensation, the company’s plan resulted in people being left without shelter, living in refugee camps, and exposed to violence.

At the same time, pointed out Elmawi, the company was not shying away from tax evasion, bleeding even more resources out of the country and leaving Mozambique without necessary means to build essential infrastructure.

Similar experiences were echoed by activists from Uganda and South Africa, who bore witness to the baleful behavior of Total Energy and Shell in the face of the communities which they so violently entered. The testimonies also highlighted the environmental impacts being shouldered by the same communities, as floods and storms regularly devastate local food production.

Shell Operations in the Niger Delta

Shell has been furiously extracting resources in the Niger Delta for over 60 years, attracting more companies to exploit the region due to its rich reserves. Videos from villages in the Niger Delta clearly show oil contamination of water sources, while Shell ignores the grievances raised by the communities. With Shell’s arrival, people’s health deteriorated, in addition to the environmental devastation caused by oil and gas extraction. People began suffering from previously uncommon diseases, including blindness, respiratory problems, and kidney disease, according to one of the testimony-givers.

However, the people of the Niger Delta aren’t asking for charity or pity; they are determined to fight for justice and see Shell restore the land it has devastated. In the light of that, Shell’s announcement of divesting from operations in the Niger Delta is seen as inadequate by community members. They view it as an attempt to evade responsibility for the damage caused over the years. After all, they pointed out, Shell would not be giving up on their business—they would be simply selling their assets to someone else.

The judges stressed the need to establish infrastructure for a reparative justice process to achieve true reparation for affected communities. They also called for Shell and Total Energy to halt all plans for expanding existing fossil fuel extraction sites, implement a permanent moratorium on exploring new sites, and cease supporting violence against communities through military, paramilitary groups, or private security forces.

In order to achieve that, it is necessary to constantly bear witness about the destruction caused by extractive corporations. By doing that, the people who spoke about their experiences during the People’s Health Tribunal showed extreme courage and deserved respect, said Nnimmo Bassey. “Staying alive and speaking out is the best we can do,” he said.

People’s Health Dispatch is a fortnightly bulletin published by the People’s Health Movement and Peoples Dispatch. For more articles and to subscribe to People’s Health Dispatch, click here.

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Czech Protesters Rail Against Inflation, Sanctions and the Ukraine Proxy War

Connor Freeman November 1, 2022 Connor Freeman Admin, Archives, Europe
Tens of thousands of Czech people protested October 28, demanding the current government resign and sanctions against Russia end / credit: Screenshot from video
Tens of thousands of Czech people protested October 28, demanding the current government resign and sanctions against Russia end / credit: Screenshot from video

Editor’s Note: This article originally appeared on Antiwar.com.

Amid ever escalating tensions over the West’s proxy war in Ukraine and the devastating inflation ripping Europe apart, Czech protesters gathered October 28 in Prague demanding the coalition government’s resignation, the Associated Press reports.

The rally saw tens of thousands of citizens condemning their government’s support for Kiev, including the provision of heavy weapons, as well as sanctions on Russia. A smaller, similar rally was held in Brno, the country’s second-largest city.

The demonstrators’ slogan was “Czech Republic First.” As with other recent protests throughout the continent, the left and right are uniting in their opposition to the West’s economic and proxy warfare against Russia.

One speaker said “Russia’s not our enemy, the government of warmongers is the enemy,” according to the AP.

Protesters “repeatedly condemned the government for its support of Ukraine and the European Union sanctions against Russia, opposed Czech membership in the EU, NATO and other international organizations,” the report said.

Leaders in Prague dismissed the protests. Interior Minister Vit Rakusan tweeted “[w]e know who’s our friend and who’s bleeding for our freedom,” adding “we also know who’s our enemy.”

The Washington-led sanctions blitz has cut Europe off from cheap Russian gas upon which it has long relied. In the Czech Republic, energy, housing, and food prices soaring. The inflation rate is 17.8 percent.

Similar protests are occurring in Italy, Germany, and France. “Strikes and protests over the rising cost of living proliferate, ushering in a period of social and labor unrest not seen since at least the 1970s,” the New York Times reported earlier this month.

In September, Prague saw massive demonstrations of 70,000 people, again from the left and right, protesting against NATO’s proxy war in Ukraine and rising energy prices caused by the sanctions campaign. Those protesters also called for the resignation of Prime Minister Petr Fiala’s center-right coalition government. “We intensively support the justified fight of the Ukrainian people,” Fiala has declared.

Connor Freeman is the assistant editor and a writer at the Libertarian Institute, primarily covering foreign policy. He is a co-host on the “Conflicts of Interest” podcast. His writing has been featured in media outlets such as Antiwar.com, Counterpunch, and the Ron Paul Institute for Peace and Prosperity. He has also appeared on “Liberty Weekly,” “Around the Empire” and “Parallax Views.” You can follow him on Twitter at @FreemansMind96.

Farmland in the foothills of the Himalaya Mountains in Almora in the Indian state of Uttarakhand / credit: Charanjeet Dhiman on Unsplash
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Linking Climate Change Agenda to Sustainable Livelihoods for Small Farmers & Workers Is the Way Forward In the Global South

Bharat Dogra November 16, 2021 Bharat Dogra Admin, Archives, Asia
Farmland in the foothills of the Himalaya Mountains in Almora in the Indian state of Uttarakhand / credit: <a href="https://unsplash.com/@cj24x7?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText">Charanjeet Dhiman</a> on <a href="https://unsplash.com/s/photos/india-farm?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText">Unsplash</a>
Farmland in the foothills of the Himalaya Mountains in Almora in the Indian state of Uttarakhand / credit: Charanjeet Dhiman on Unsplash

Editor’s Note: The following is the writer’s analysis.

Although the poorer and vulnerable sections of the Global South are least responsible for climate change, they are the most likely to suffer from its ravages. Despite this, their concerns have been the least heard in negotiations at the 26th Conference of Parties (COP26), the largest annual climate-change summit that attracted more than 190 countries. Meanwhile, leading businesses have influential lobbyists who quickly move to use any opportunities to corner funds.

Having sniffed out new opportunities, they have occupied important positions in the planning and negotiations relating to climate change to try to prioritize their projects as beneficiaries of new green funding.

Officially constituted expert committees have in recent years linked dam projects in the Himalayan region to ecological destruction and flash floods, which have claimed thousands of lives. Yet, similar kinds of projects are now being advertised as examples of green energy and solutions for climate change. Climate smart agriculture is being defined in ways business lobbies vying for more control of farm and food systems are being strengthened. At the same time, this weakens small farmers’ sincere efforts for ecologically protective farming. Projects that displace poor people in the name of protecting the environment are wrongly prioritized, alienating them.

Hence, it is important at this stage to warn against the misuse of funds marked for climate change mitigation and adaptation. These funds should reach those who need this help the most and are likely to put this to the most just and ecologically protective use. This means in practical terms that most funds should reach small peasants and rural landless workers for taking up mitigation as well as adaptation work. Indigenous people and tribal communities have a particularly important role in this as they have been closer to nature.

What’s more, this concern should be extended to wider planning in which reduction of greenhouse gas emissions is linked to meeting the basic needs of all people, with an emphasis on a justice-based resolution of climate change.

Small peasants should be supported for ecologically protective farming, including soil and water conservation work, which can improve the organic content of soil in just a few years. Organic soil spread over vast areas can absorb large quantities of carbon dioxide. At the same time, by avoiding or reducing chemical fertilizers, pollution caused by nitrous oxide can be reduced. That gas is about 300 times more potent compared to carbon dioxide. Mixed farming that includes indigenous trees can be well integrated, supplying more staple foods that are produced in healthy ways and close to home, reducing a long transportation burden. While contributing to mitigation, millions of acres under organic farming will ensure small farmers are less dependent on expensive chemical inputs and improve their adaptation capacity. Hence, both adaptation and mitigation can be achieved simultaneously on a sustainable basis. This is a particularly important aspect of such efforts. In fact, the more the organic content of soil improves with the passage of time, the more the mitigation and adaptation capacity increases. Such efforts simultaneously improve food sovereignty, reducing dependence on polluting and expensive substances.

Land reforms can help the landless emerge as small farmers and be a part of such efforts. In addition, the landless should be assured employment close to home in various tasks of the ecological rehabilitation of villages and nearby areas. One possibility is protecting degraded land and giving nature time to regenerate it. Yet another is to increase protections for remaining natural forests. New afforestation with indigenous species of trees should seek to mimic local natural forests.

Apart from fair wages, the landless should get longer-term rights to non-timber forest produce. This again helps mitigation as well as adaptation at the same time.

All these efforts should seek to tap and encourage creativity of workers and farmers for local solutions and innovations. To give just one inspiring example, a farmer from the Bundelkhand region of India named Mangal Singh invented a special turbine that can lift water from streams and canals without using diesel or electricity. 

A turbine invented by farmer Mangal Singh. The device can lift water from streams and canals without using fossil fuels or electricity / credit:
A turbine invented by farmer Mangal Singh. The device can lift water from streams and canals without using fossil fuels or electricity

Although the primary aim of the inventor was to help farmers and reduce costs, calculations show that a single unit serving over 15 years can reduce the use of 125,400 liters (33,127 gallons) of diesel oil and avoid 335 tons of greenhouse gas emissions. This can increase further if, with a few adjustments, this innovation is put to additional use, such as in crop processing. This has been highly praised by many senior experts, including those in official positions. 

However, government apathy has stood in the way of its spread, even though the Maithani Committee appointed by India’s Rural Development Ministry strongly recommended its rapid deployment. Potentially, tens of thousands of units can be installed worldwide wherever suitable conditions exist. These kind of innovations by villagers can help greatly in simultaneously addressing climate change mitigation and adaptation. If there is better support for such initiatives, the creativity of farmers and workers can contribute much more because they are the most familiar with their local conditions.

In urban areas, construction of improved design shelters to provide protection from excessive heat to workers and homeless persons could be an obvious priority.

Democratic participatory systems based on transparency and honesty should be established to implement such initiatives. Such work is best achieved by grants, not by loans. Hence, climate funds also should be based on grants, not on loans. Unfortunately, the trend in the recent past has been rich countries providing a much bigger share of climate funding for the Global South in the form of loans. This must change to favor grants.

Bharat Dogra is Honorary Convener of the Campaign to Save Earth Now. He has been involved with several social movements in India. Dogra’s most recent books include Man Over Machine and Planet in Peril.