Natural gas

Harper's War on Science

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by Joyce Nelson

Canada’s Information Commissioner, Suzanne Legault, agreed at the end of March to launch an investigation into the extensive muzzling of federally-funded scientists at the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO), Environment Canada, Natural Resources Canada and other federal agencies. Her decision comes after a February 20th complaint formally filed by Democracy Watch in partnership with the Environmental Law Clinic of the University of Victoria, which called for a full investigation and was accompanied by a 128-page report, Muzzling Civil Servants: A Threat to Democracy.

That report documents systematic silencing since 2007 of

Enbridge PR - Hill + Knowlton, & Peter Kent

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Enbridgeby Joyce Nelson

Enbridge public relations (PR)advisor Hill + Knowlton Strategies (H+K) has become the butt of jokes because of those wildly distorting animation maps for the Northern Gateway pipeline/tanker route and its bungled handling of Enbridge’s 2010 Kalamazoo disaster. But while TV viewers laugh at the tagline – “It’s more than a pipeline, it’s our path to the future” – H+K is ably earning its multimillion-dollar fees from Enbridge and other energy clients through its skill in government relations alone.

Government Relations
Michael Coates, Canadian CEO and Chair of H+K, is reportedly well-regarded by the Harper government, having

Judge Presiding Over Ernst vs Encana Fracking Case Re-Appointed

Submitted by susan on Wed, 02/27/2013 - 14:16

Jessica Ernst (pictured here) is on the road to becoming another unsung Canadian hero. The Harper government has appointed Honourable Justice Barbara L. Veldhuis, a Court of Queen Judge who has been presiding over the case Ernst vs Encan, to the Court of Appeal in Alberta, which means a decision is delayed, until another judge is appointed to this highprofile lawsuit.

Fracking Farce 2012

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by Joyce Nelson

In 2012, the horror stories about fracking just kept rolling in. There are increasing reports of livestock illnesses and deaths on farms near shale oil and natural gas operations in Alberta, Colorado, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Arkansas, Louisiana, Texas and North Dakota.  According to The Nation (Nov. 28, 2012), veterinarians have ruled out other causes of strange illnesses in which (for example) cows lose their tails, then sometimes keel over and die, after fracking is underway.

Of course, the people caring for these farm animals are worried about their own health. A 2012 study from the

Oil, Gas & Banks Head South

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A host of oil and gas companies based in Calgary and Toronto have been increasing their holdings throughout Latin America, taking advantage of the same lax legal standards Canadian mining companies enjoy.

Natural Gas Pipeline Proposed for Vancouver Island

Pipelines and Co Gen frame the future of energy on Vancouver Island, but its time for a serious national discussion about greenhouse gases. The Georgia Strait Crossing isn't a Done Deal yet.

by Arthur Caldicott

The Georgia Strait Crossing is a proposal to construct a pipeline to bring natural gas to Vancouver Island from "the mainland" - the continental part of southwestern British Columbia.

Oil and Gas Disrupts Life; Private Land and Common Resources At Risk

The Northeast of BC is a large area of mountains, rolling hills and wooded valleys, dotted with farm and ranch land. There are many large rivers and streams as well as crystal clear lakes. It is home to a multitude of species of wildlife. Unfortunately, there are also untapped reserves of oil and natural gas.

For the last few years exploration for this wealth has been in full gear, to the extent that drilling companies are like a lot of crazies in the gold strike eras of years long past. It appears they will stop at nothing to drill a well anywhere they have the smallest evidence of

Impact of Natural Gas in the Marine Environment

by Dr. Irene Novaczek
from: "Environmental Impact of the Offshore Oil and Gas Industry,"

During drilling and extraction of gas deposits from the sea floor, releases of gas into the marine environment are inevitable. Gas is dumped into the sea mixed in with produced water, may leak from pipelines, tankers and underwater storage tanks, or may be released during catastrophic well blowouts, explosions and smaller accidental spills. Spills and blowouts occur due to drilling equipment failure, corrosion of pipelines, human error, earthquakes, ice, storms, shipping accidents etc.

Coal Bed Methane; New Gas Wells Promise Vancouver Island

by Delores Broten

Most of the coal mines on Vancouver Island closed long ago. A few working remnants of that robust past linger on, such as Quinsam Coal in Strathcona Park, but Vancouver Island's coal industry had said farewell to its glory days. Now the ghost of that dangerous and grimy past, when the Royal Navy fuelled up in Nanaimo, and Ginger Goodwin lost his life in a union organizing drive, is surfacing. The implications of coal bed methane gas extraction for an island just beginning a new life in the post-resource extraction era are startling.

Natural Gas Terminal on Texada Island

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A Liquefied Natural Gas terminal on Texada Island in the middle of scenic Georgia Strait is one of those bizarre ideas that shouldn’t float, but, given the peculiar throes of the world of fossil fuels and the absence of strategic energy planning in BC these days, one never knows.

Residents of Texada Island, 84% opposed to the idea, are taking no chances and are trying to squash the proposal before it gets to the formal application stage,

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"This is it. It's done!" was the message in Alaska in 2008, 19 years after the Exxon Valdes oil spill.  Dave Janka, who runs Auklet Charters in Prince William Sound, ran his boat over to Smith Island to snap this photo.  Dave says, "It's far from done!"

W.L.M. (Bill) Wilson writes: 'Attached is my rewrite of Anne Feeney’s “Have You Been To Jail for Justice”. Anne granted permission to do non-profit performances of this Enbridge version.' Video by Ester Strijbos.