The cops have us figured out. Protests, soft blockades,
tripods, lockboxes. Sure, all these tactics can be effective in certain
situations. But when we consider the scale of the problem, they are lacking. These
tactics do not generally lead to decisive outcomes. They can shape conditions
and help lead to victory, but alone they are almost never sufficient.
We have trouble shutting stuff down permanently.
Decisive actions, on the other hand, can directly achieve
our goal. Our goal is to stop the global industrial economy that is killing the
planet. As such, a prime consideration is attrition—on our side. When people
are arrested with every action, our losses—time, money, energy—add up quickly.
People get burned out.
Let’s not get arrested on purpose. Instead, let’s consider
applying guerilla tactics to the battle for the planet. These tactics can be
adapted for non-violence, or carried out in a decisive ecological warfare
style. Hit and run blockades allow us to inflict maximum economic and moral
damage without taking losses.
It has been popular for many years for non-violent activists
to “hit and sit”—waiting for the police to come arrest them. This approach can
lend a certain moral weight in the courtroom, and there’s a time and a place
where it’s probably the most effective method.
However, hit and sit tactics will always be limited by
resources. If you only have a few people willing to be arrested, your actions
can only take place on a small scale. Consider, instead, what you could
accomplish with the same small group of people acting clandestinely.
To be effective, this strategy would require cooperation
with existing aboveground movements. For example, hit and run tactics will be
most effective where people can advocate for, justify, and explain the actions
within a greater narrative of resistance to coal, oil, gas, and the broader
industrial ecocide of the planet. To mitigate media demonization and police
crackdowns, the story of this resistance has to be as powerful as the actions
themselves.
Imagine, instead of a couple dozen direct actions a year,
soft blockades that are easily broken up and leave people broke and in prison,
hundreds or thousands of blockades taking place all around the country, and the
world. Small teams striking like ghosts, interdicting commerce, halting
logging, dams, fracking, coal trains, and more, then disappearing only to
strike again the next day, and the next, and the next.
Suddenly, attrition is on our side.
Even if these tactics were broadly adopted, they
wouldn’t be enough to save the planet. Ultimately, we call for decisive ecological warfare. However, in the near-term, such escalation in non-violent
resistance would push our movements in a better direction: more strategic, more
creative, more serious, more security-aware, more clandestine, more decisive.
Our Underground Action Calendar lists attacks from as far back as the 1970s, to inspire and serve as a research tool. We include a variety of actions from around the world, some carried out by individuals, some by organized militant groups. Targets range from local earth-destroying construction equipment to networks of oil wells and pipelines. Browsing the list gives a good idea of what can be accomplished with simple acts of monkeywrenching or with persistent campaigns against industrial infrastructure.
We've just refreshed the Calendar to make it even more inspirational to browse, and more useful as a research tool. We've cleaned out symbolic attacks and those based on a strategy of economic attrition, to focus instead on actions directly and concretely reducing the ability of the rich and powerful to destroy the earth. The descriptions of each attack are short and to the point so that you can quickly look through the list; each action links to a communique or news article with more information on the action if you want to research further.
You can filter by the attack target: for example, if you're curious how railroad traffic has been disrupted in the past, select "Railway." Or you can filter by the attack method: if you're curious what kinds of infrastructure have been attacked with anything from air rifles to rocket launchers, select "Shooting."
You can also filter by Country, sort by date, or search actions for keywords.
If you know of any attacks we've missed, especially current events (or historic attacks which expand the diversity of what we're presenting), please email them to undergroundpromotion@deepgreenresistance.org NOTE: We only accept communications about actions that are already publicly known in one form or another. Do not send original communiques directly to this email address. This is not a secure means of communication.
Resistance is escalating in the old-growth forests of the Sunshine Coast, from blockades to tree-sits to a burning barricade. For decades, residents have used almost every strategy in the book to protect wildlife and their drinking watersheds. But the clearcut logging continues under the control of the BC government's Timber Sale program.
Last week. protesters set a homemade roadblock on fire to stop the logging above Roberts Creek, in a bear denning area adjacent to Mount Elphinstone Provincial Park. Currently there are several camps and at least two groups of defenders on the mountain. Contact Elphinstone Logging Focus for info and to let us know if you can bring or donate gear.
As the Vancouver Sun notes, we could be returning to the days of the “War in the Woods” that wracked coastal BC in the 1990s. Environmentalists spiked trees, damaged equipment, blockaded roads, sparked international boycotts, and hundreds were carted off to mass civil disobedience trials. Loggers heaved rocks, waved nooses, wore T-shirts saying that female environmentalists should be sexually assaulted, and they burned down a peace camp and injured three young people in 1999.
Whatever tactics they employ, VICFAN can advise and train land defenders to be prepared for anything. Please sponsor their action training.
In late April, I participated in Direct Action Spokane's first public event and a strategy meeting regarding the blocking of coal/oil/gas trains in the northwest. The public event consisted of four presentations and a Q&A session. The presenters included myself, Jackie Minchew and Mike Lapointe of the Delta 5, and Ken Ward of the Climate Disobedience Center. DAS's goal for the event was to make direct action and breaking the law more palatable of an option for community members in Spokane, specifically around blocking coal/oil/gas trains running through the city. Jackie, Mike, and Ken talked about their actions and I filled in with examples from historical movements of the precedent for direct action. There were approximately 70-80 people in attendance, and the event was quite successful.
The following morning DAS called a private meeting to talk about strategy and how successful resistance against these trains might look. We discussed different ways to block the tracks, legal support, fundraising, constructing a narrative of resistance, being prepared for the aftermath in terms of knowing what to do with people who wish to join the struggle in Spokane or in the larger northwest, creating the conditions for a succession of blockades, and the possibility of coordinated action on the same rail line in a different location.
Some good connections were made in Spokane. Ken Ward expressed interest in working together and wanted to know how DGR and Climate Disobedience Center can complement each other. The Delta 5 people were unfamiliar with DGR but seemed eager to bring our name and strategy back to Everett, WA.
Together we will win: Native and non-native people join forces to stop the destruction
Pacheedaht First Nation declares support for a grassroots re-occupation of their traditional territory in the Walbran Valley, where Teal Jones logging company is clear-cutting the ancient cathedral forests around the park without consent.
It takes a community to heal the land. Pacific Coast people have a long history of standing up for the places we love. In recent decades, thousands of Vancouver Islanders have come together to protect incredible old-growth forests from clearcut logging.
It wasn't easy then, and it won't be easy now. The odds are against us. But our side is recruiting an army of peaceful resisters, and developing plans for strategic action to win back the Walbran.
May 21 to 23, Forest Action Network and Women for the Walbran are presenting workshops on non-violent civil disobedience, tree climbing safety, fundraising, legal rights, and more. Meet like-minded forest protectors and learn from the most experienced campaigners on the island. Invest in a future of cathedral forests, wildlife, and spring-fed mountain streams.
Tree-climbing is incredibly effective for occupying the forest canopy, documenting rare species and getting a birds-eye view of the logging, while staying well away from the loggers themselves. With our training, almost anyone can climb a 100-ft tree safely and easily using ropes and a harness.
Non-violent direct action training is crucial for anyone who might come into contact with police, loggers, or protesters. This in-depth workshop uses role-playing to practice techniques for deescalating conflict.
We can't do it alone. Folks who love the wild coast are pitching in for the Action Training equipment drive. Here's the wish list:
This update comes from Victoria Forest Action Network (VICFAN), a grassroots organization fiercely committed to land defense in British Columbia. See also The Courage to Speak Truth to Power, a speech by VICFAN's Zoe Blunt recently published at the DGR News Service.
Cheers to the new year! And to the gutsy land defenders who stand up to corporate villians and win (sometimes)
People are blockading, occupying, and protesting corporate destruction across BC. Message us with news or to find out about joining and supporting community organizing to protect land and water.
2016 land defense forecast Skill-shares, workshops, and action training
We're putting together a training schedule for spring, summer, and fall in Victoria, Vancouver, Port Renfrew, the Walbran Valley, and Northern BC. Please get in touch to find out how to bring a workshop to your community!
To make these workshops succeed, we're calling for workshop leaders, cooks, fundraisers, drivers, child-care providers, and spaces for the trainings and for out of town guests. Visit the House of Solidarity to learn more.
April, May, June - Spring Training in Victoria, Vancouver, and the Walbran Valley
Mid-May - Spring Construction Crew at Unist'ot'en Camp
July - Summer Caravan: schoolbus convoy from Victoria to Unist'ot'en Camp
Fall Getaway - Labour Day weekend
Stay tuned for details. Participants can donate on a sliding scale.
No pipelines, No tankers: the good news
Prime Minister Trudeau ordered a ban on oil tankers on the Pacific Coast, effectively killing the Enbridge Pipeline. (National Observer)
Experts say there is no way the BC government can make good on its promises about natural gas exploitation (fracking). It is not going to take off, thanks to falling prices, a global glut, and renewable energy. (Bloomberg)
Changes to the political and economic landscape last year are having an impact on pipeline plans and logging operations, but some companies seem to be on auto-pilot, ignoring court decisions, change in government, indigenous rights, the Paris accord, and reality. (The Tyee)
The bad news
Some of the worst projects are still going ahead in 2016:
Petronas LNG is preparing to build a fracked gas terminal at Lelu Island near Prince Rupert. Members of the Lax Kwalaams Nation are occupying the site.
Kinder Morgan is currently drilling test holes in Burrard Inlet for a new tarsands pipeline and terminal in Burnaby.
Site C dam and hydro project is planned to flood the Peace River Valley in Northeastern BC to make energy for gas liquefication plants that will probably never be built.
Teal Jones is logging cathedral forests in the Walbran Valley, Vancouver Island. The company has obtained a court injunction to block protestors.
South Island Aggregates is dumping toxic soil in the Shawnigan Lake watershed, Vancouver Island. Local residents are in the road blocking trucks almost every day at 7 am. Three lawsuits are in process and a dozen people were arrested after the company obtained an injunction to block protestors.
There has never been a more important time for effective, strategic action for land and water. Please support our work today.
Walbran Witness Camp in the ancient forest
We're recruiting people to help hold back industrial logging next to Carmanah Provincial Park on Vancouver Island. Find out more here.
Thank you for being part of this movement to protect living ecosystems
VIC FAN is celebrating its ninth year on Vancouver Island, Coast Salish and Nuu-chah-nulth territory. Big cheers to everyone who took part in our victories!
WildCoast and Forest Action Network are 100% home-grown, grassroots. and volunteer-led.
We wanted to pass on to this newsletter from the Seneca Lake resisters to fracked gas storage and transport, especially since, due to security measures, they do not generally allow us to forward info about the struggle. They are amazingly organized, smart about the resistance, and committed to winning and to one another.
The Banner, Vol. 1, No. 38 - September 15, 2015
We Are Family
Families work together, play together, dine together, agree and disagree together, share good and bad days together, support one another, and love each other. The family We Are Seneca Lake does all this and more.
We are a family of thousands. Hundreds of us are trained. We have come together 40 times in ten months. Over 500 of us have put our bodies on the line. 334 of us have taken that special ride downtown, earning 400 tickets in all.
This family has it goin' on!
We are fiercely dedicated and persistent defenders of health, home and community. We protect what we love: the waters, tillable land, sustainable jobs, and clean air of the Finger Lakes and, of course, our families. We say NO to global warming and social injustice, we refuse to allow trespassing corporations to pollute the natural commons we depend on for life and living , and we say YES to renewable energy! That's our thing. That's how we roll.
We have accomplished a lot together. Our family continues to grow. Our story, once told locally and then regionally, is now gaining national attention. Our family name is recognized by more and more Americans each day. These Americans are learning why Crestwood's plan to store fracked gases under the banks of Seneca Lake is a bad idea. We continue to teach.
I am proud to be a member of the We Are Seneca Lake family. And I am proud to have such worthy brothers and sisters as you. Our family name continues to gain great respect due to your ideals, ethics and action. You are awesome!
Together we are unstoppable
— Doug Couchon
About Last Thursday...
The excitement in the air Thursday morning was palpable as the Seneca Lake cavalry rolled. It felt a bit like a reunion. The excitement to get back on the line was evident. First timers and veteran defenders listened carefully to their instructions.
After my second arrest last November, I didn't think I would need to risk arrest again. Maybe I was naive to think we would have beaten this thing by now. All of the return offenders offered up their reasons for coming back: Judge Berry's refusal to dismiss the 84 cases, their friends and family still facing charges, the fire at Crestwood earlier this week, a stronger resolve to finish this fight.
Things went as usual with the exception of a crazed pickup driver nearly running down a couple defenders. We were not there long before the police arrived and escorted us off in the paddy wagon. I've seen it so many times over the past 8 months. We chatted on our way down to booking like old friends. It was just another day at the gates of Crestwood, but it was so much more. We reached 400 arrests.
On my drive home, I thought about the magnitude of this. On 400 occasions, someone put their body on the line to fight this project. And that is just the tip of the iceberg, the part that we see. Those people went home and told their friends about what they'd done, woke up early on their days off to table at events, canvassed, passed out information, collected signatures on petitions, supported their fellow defenders outside the court house, attended rallies, made donations, wrote letters to their elected officials and made daily phone calls. They are living this battle against Crestwood.
My experience today only reaffirmed what I've learned over the last year. This is a family. We have joined together to do something incredible. Four hundred arrests is a remarkable accomplishment. We should pause and celebrate the amount of work that has gone into this: time away from family, early mornings, missed work, freezing toes, sweaty brows. But let us pause for only a minute, because there is so much work to be done. We must continue to foster our connections with each other and the water of Seneca Lake, because the battle against Crestwood is far from over.
—Laura Salamendra
To learn more or join members of DGR NY in getting involved, visit We Are Seneca Lake
In the past year, we're seeing a surge of land defense actions in BC and elsewhere in Canada. Zoe Blunt of Victoria Forest Action Network compiled this list to help keep track of current, ongoing, and flying blockades, along with ways to get involved and support the actions.
We are ALL BEING CALLED to support these land defenders. To answer the call, email Zoe at wildcoast@riseup.net - she can help set up ride shares and give advice for fundraising.
Injunction and arrests at Shawnigan Lake, Vancouver Island: Community residents, including members of the Cowichan First Nation, are seeking an injunction to shut down toxic soil dumping in their drinking watershed. The dump overflowed during heavy rain November 13, 2015. Meanwhile the company is seeking an injunction to shut down the protestors, two of whom were arrested Noveber 13.
Walbran Valley blockade: Members of the Pacheedaht First Nation and non-native environmentalists have built a camp to stop the clearcutting of ancient cathedral forests just outside a park boundary. The Walbran has been the site of massive protests, civil disobedience, and sabotage for twenty years.
Ongoing: Coastal First Nations vs. Grizzly hunters. For two years, the Coastal Forest Guardians have been patrolling the central coast of BC and "educating" grizzly hunters and guides about the ban on hunting on their territory. The province continues to issue trophy hunting permits and now the Guardians say they are escalating their enforcement of the ban.
Happening now: Ahousaht First Nation on Vancouver Island is using boats to stop a new salmon farm in their territorial waters. Media reports here.
Ongoing: Gitdumden Clan of the Wet'suwet'en (neighbours to Unist'ot'en) in Northern BC. They are occupying their territory to block pipelines, logging, and mining.
New: Likhts'amisyu Clan of the Wet'suwet'en (neighbours to Unist'ot'en), Northern BC. They are occupying their territory to block pipelines. This is Chief Toghestiy's camp. FB page.
Ongoing: Lax Kw'alaams First Nation vs. LNG pipeline terminal, near Prince Rupert BC. The drilling platform was barged into position near Lelu Island in a bay that holds millions of young salmon. The community is mobilizing to occupy the island and surround the barge. News story here.
Occasional: Shawnigan Lake, Vancouver Island: The community has been trying to blockade a contaminated soil dump in the drinking watershed for Victoria and the south island. It is largely symbolic but it has potential. News report.
One-day blockade near Powell River to protect wildlife. In May nine women surrounded a feller-buncher to stop it from working in a sensitive habitat area. They are demanding logging stop during nesting season, and an end to clear-cutting on the Sunshine Coast. More protests are expected.
Nicola Valley Chiefs and locals are blockading a biosolids dump near Merritt, BC and preventing sewage sludge from being trucked into their community. No shipments have made it through the blockade in over a month, and the companies responsible are preparing for a court hearing to have the protestors removed. Fundraising link here.
Ongoing: Voices of the Voiceless camp is an Indigenous re-occupation of Junction Creek area, St'at'imc Nation, 50 km north of Lillooet and about 250 km north of Vancouver. This camp was set up March 2015 under the direction of Xwisten elders to stop logging. The site is near a heritage site and the Junction Creek summer village, a traditional meeting place where people hunt, gather and process food. Video: Re occupying Junction Creek, Christine Jack's Welcome - YouTube
Victory: The Heiltsuk First Nation is fighting for the recovery of herring stocks on the Central Coast of BC. After the feds opened their territory to commercial fishing in March 2015, they occupied offices and set off solidarity rallies. UPDATE:Their blockade is now over and the government has caved in and closed the fishery.
The Sapotaweyak Cree Nation in Manitobais protecting sacred sites by blockading workers cutting trees for a hydroelectric transmission line.
Ongoing: Burnaby/Langley - KM pipeline: 120 locals and allies were arrested in two weeks at a tarsands pipeline test drill site near Vancouver. In 2015, drillers and surveyors are trying to do their work in various locations but people report their whereabouts and they are confronted and prevented from working. The Kwantlen First Nation is leading the charge for the next round of resistance, which shows signs of escalating further (workers threatened, truck vandalized, equipment stolen).
The Nuu-chah-nulth Nations have closed the spring herring fishery in the strait off the west coast of Vancouver Island. They are promising to intercept commercial vessels with their own boats.
Blockade down: The Northern Trappers Alliance, a traditional Dene group, was blocking forest roads near Ducharme, Saskatchewan to push back against the loss of wildlife and land to drilling, pipelines, and gates. The protest camp and picket line were moved to the side of the road after an injunction was issued and RCMP seized a trailer.
Victory: Tseshaht Nation, Port Alberni, Vancouver Island: Blockade down and victory - the province has agreed to stop timber sales in old-growth forests of the Nahmint Valley. The Tseshaht are monitoring to make sure this agreement is respected.
Blockade down: Klabona Keepers, Talhtan Nation (near Iskut) Blockade removed after injunction issued. They were blocking Imperial Metals mine in Sacred Headwaters and other projects in various locations. They are still seeking volunteers, rideshares, donations, and legal help. These traditionalists boycotted the injunction hearing and withdrew for now.
Victory: Penelakut (Grace Islet, near Salt Spring Island) Development site on burial ground. Blockade down: The province is moving to intervene and purchase the development site.
Sabine Channel (between Lasqueti Island and Texada Island) Oct 4: One-day blockade of coal tanker traffic.
Ongoing:Unis'tot'en Camp, (near Smithers) Permanent camp - blocking tarsands and gas pipelines for five years. Get info about the Caravan.
Ongoing: Madii Lii Camp (Gitxsan) New permanent camp - blocking tarsands and gas pipelines.
Ongoing: Sutikalh (near Lillooet) Permanent camp on St'at'imc territory, blocking resort development for over ten years.
Just a short post on my visit to Hambach Forest in Germany, a resistance camp set up to defend the forest and prevent the RWE mine (Europe's largest CO2 emitter) from further destroying the planet. (For background on the struggle, see The Battle for the Hambach Forest.)
I arrived for the skill share camp which was a whole week of people hosting workshops on everything to do with activism from tree climbing, blockades, dealing with police, discussions on politics, philosophy etc. The defenders are very welcoming and will speak in English even if like me your German is almost non-existent! The determination to protect the forest is really quite something else when you see the blockades, tree houses and the protectors doing what they do. I camped in the woods not far from the main camp, which is considered a little risky, but I wouldn't have it any other way as the woods are truly amazing to wake up in.
My time in Hambach was inspiring but what I remembered more than any of the workshops or connections that I made was the forest itself. Nowhere more than Hambach have I found such contrast between natural and unnatural, sane and insane, ecology and industry, life and absolute devastation. The forest and the RWE mine couldn't be more different. To use the Tolkien mythology, I literally at times felt like I was in Fangorn Forest and that Mordor was somewhere lurking near at the edge ready to eat up what is now left of the beautiful and delicate forest. In England we have pockets of ancient forest but I still wasn't prepared for how enchanting this particular forest was and the bravery and determination of the people who want to defend it.
In short, if you can then please visit and stay a while...or stay until RWE encounter too much resistance and give up their ecocide!
There is an ongoing fight, just north of Düsseldorf, Germany, to save the Hambach Forest, Germany's last old growth forest. The forest is a 1,000 hectare old growth oak forest right next to the largest open cast coal mine in Europe. The mine is 12 kilometers long, 4 kilometers wide, and 300 meters deep. The mine produces 100,000,000 tons of coal per year, used to supply 5 power plants.
The coal is used primarily for the weapons manufacturing industry in the nearby Rhineland industrial district. The mine is set to operate until 2045. The forest was acquired in 1978 by RWE, which now operates the mine. The forest was originally 5,500 hectares and since 1972 had been owned by the municipality of Niederzier. Since 1978 the forest has largely been cleared to make way for brown coal mining.
The company has also been using a law that the Nazis used to take land from people to evict people from entire villages. Over a ten year period this relocation process has removed entire village populations and demolished the structures to mine the coal underneath. During the relocation process some elders have died due to the stress and heartbreak of losing their homes. Many people are coming down with cancers, heart disease, and emphysema from airborne toxic particles.
The remaining forest, despite its dramatic diminution, is still a functioning habitat. It consists primarily of oak and hornbeam, who shelter endangered Bechstein's bats.
An ongoing blockade has been in place since April 2012 to save this remnant forest. The blockade was evicted from the forest in November 2012, but after only one day they regrouped and occupied a meadow next to the forest. In April 2013 they reoccupied the forest. More recent actions included a treesit in a 250 year old oak at the edge of the forest, a group of Earth First! members blocking the loading of coal trucks, and a protest in nearby Bergheim against a newly built coal burning plant.
The struggle continues to save the Hambach Forest. For slides, videos, and more information on past actions and on the current blockade, visit Hambach Forest (English) or Hambacher Forst (German). If you can physically help with the blockade, please join them in person. You can also donate money through their website. Whatever you can do would be really appreciated. Time is running out for this place; the final showdown for this forest will probably happen by August 2015. Thank you for your interest and support to save this beautiful place.
We recently highlighted Will Falk's account as one of the Deep Green Resistance volunteers who braved the January snow and ice to help out at the Unist'ot'en Camp. Max Wilbert wrote another moving personal piece giving an overview of the Unist'ot'en Camp strategy and describing the experience of contributing to their struggle.
Snow lashed the road. The darkness was total, our headlights casting weak yellow beams into the darkness. Most people had hunkered down in homes and motels, and the roads were near empty. Still, every few minutes a passing truck threw a blinding cloud of dry snow into the air, leaving us blind for seconds at a time as we hurtled onwards at the fastest speeds we could manage.
We pressed on, for our destination was important. It was a caravan to the Unist'ot’en Camp, and we were committed.
[...]
Resistance is the antipode to the dominant culture, and the Unist’ot’en Camp illustrates two interlocking and fundamental truths. First, the system which is killing the planet and exploiting billions can and must be stopped. Second, resistance is our best chance of reclaiming the best traits our species can display: compassion, love, fierce loyalty, deep connection to the land, community and shared purpose.
Liz McArthur of Victoria BC is creating a radio documentary on the Unis'tot'en Camp pipeline blockade. She interviewed two fellow volunteers who participated in the summer caravan to the Camp, and a third activist involved with defense of the Sacred Headwaters. The interviews aired on the August 4, 2014 episode of Gorilla Radio.
McArthur interviews:
Will Falk of Deep Green Resistance and Victoria Forest Action Network, on his environmental activism with the Camp and other efforts. He discusses the importance of supporting indigenous struggles, and what members of settler culture need to understand and how they should approach such solidarity work.
Vanessa Gray, a member of the Amjiwnaang nation in the Chemical Valley of Southern Ontario, describing the horrific conditions of living in close proximity to 63 oil and gas facilities, including pipelines, refineries, and loading docks. Gray describes the incredibly high rates of health problems brought on by this policy of environmental racism towards the indigenous. Gray brought youth to the Camp to show them that places still exist with clean water and air, and to inspire them to fight against the dominant culture of monetary profit at the sacrifice of people and land.
John Mowat Stephen briefly talks about activism with the Tahltan First Nation around the Sacred Headwaters in northern BC.
Listen to the interview to learn more about the front line struggles in BC against the fossil fuel industry, and how you can help:
From Zoe Blunt at the Vancouver Island Community Forest Action Network
Right now across North America, groups of land defenders are doing their damnedest to block tarsands oil from coming to the coasts. Big oil and the Conservative government are insisting on pipelines from Alberta to the Pacific to feed the Asian export market. But thousands of locals are pledging to put their freedom on the line to stop them.
In Burnaby BC, the front has shifted from street rallies to blocking pipeline workers from drilling through Burnaby Mountain. Hundreds of native and non-native environmentalists have joined forces to occupy a conservation area in a last-ditch effort to stop Kinder Morgan and protect the Salish Sea and the traditional territory of the Tsleil-Waututh Nation, which has launched a court challenge against the tarsands pipeline.
But now Kinder Morgan has filed its own lawsuit naming the land defenders. And on Friday Nov 14, the judge granted the pipeline company's request for an injunction and ordered resisters to leave or face arrest.
Many are not leaving. Those who feel called to defend the coast, please join these brave people. Come to bear witness and follow your conscience. I know I can't stand aside and allow these machines to override the will of the people and open up a wilderness park and the whole south coast to toxic oil spills.
How to join:
Come for a day or two or a week. Bring a friend if you can.
Be prepared to camp. Bring a tent and a sleeping bag, rain gear, food and a water bottle.
Call Zoe to get connected to a team, and to check your gear: 250-813-3569
Directions: 300 Centennial Way, at the east end of Hastings St in Burnaby. Take the #135 bus from Waterfront Skytrain station.
There are several groups on the mountain, from tight affinity groups to community coalitions, and they are making different plans. There may be people going in different directions, so please follow your heart, or call Zoe to connect to a network.
This is where the game gets interesting. We're playing for high stakes, and we could see a quick reversal if our side's challenges to Kinder Morgan are heard and upheld in court.
A spill of any kind – like the Exxon Valdez oil tanker spill in Alaska in 1987 - would devastate the wild coast of British Columbia, including the Great Bear Rainforest, Haida Gwaii, salmon runs, wildlife habitat, and the livelihoods and culture of thousands of native people who depend on the sea. A pipeline blowout or a tanker collision would demolish coastal tourism. We can't even estimate the cost.
Those who love this coast are pledged to defend it.
I'm happy to announce that the Solidarity House is now open for land defense training. On Sundays, starting on Nov 23, we're offering the opportunity to support the frontlines and observe first-hand as BC moves to a new phase of land defense.
Join us to talk about strategy, solidarity, and specific skills like backcountry work, mapping, and fundraising. Lend your good energy to an inspiring grassroots movement led by incredibly resilient activists.
Call 250-813-3569 or email zoe@wildcoast.ca for the address and details.
Last week, Kinder Morgan pipeline company began clearing brush to drill boreholes for a new pipeline from the tar sands to their marine tanker terminal east of Vancouver. Local residents and allies took over the borehole sites and set up camps in a small wilderness park next to Simon Fraser University. This week, KM served the organizers with a civil lawsuit and injunction application. The hearing is set for Wed Nov 5. The resisters are not backing down. They are calling for reinforcements at the camp and in the courthouse.
Over 70% of the people in Burnaby are opposed to Kinder Morgan. Many are prepared to take direct action to stop tar sands exports. The mayor and the city council are unanimously opposed to the expansion after the existing, aging pipeline burst in a residential neighbourhood over a decade ago.
A camp was set up on Burnaby Mountain and people have been patrolling to keep the company from cutting any more trees or surveying for their proposed route through Burnaby Mountain Conservation Area and under Burnaby Mountain. There are frequent rallies and actions.
Sign up to join the camp and help protect Burnaby Mountain. They will contact you in a day or two. Be prepared to be self-sufficient. Being able to move fast through wet brush is a big help.
This is just one part of a much larger struggle. Over 150 First Nations have signed the Save the Fraser Declaration opposing tar sands pipelines. They are allied with community groups, environmental and labour organizations and thousands of people across BC.
Questions? Call the hotline: 250-813-3569 or email zoe@wildcoast.ca
We posted back in June that pipeline blockades, limiting overall pipeline capacity, have a real effect in driving up costs and causing potential tar sands projects to be suspended or canceled. We got more evidence this past week that blockading pipelines works: Statoil Just Shelved Its Multi-Billion-Dollar Tar Sands Project. While the article focuses on the Keystone XL pipeline, which has seen a lot of symbolic protest, even more important may be the direct action blockades such as the Unis'tot'en Camp, physically disallowing construction of the Northern Gateway pipeline.
The article correctly states that, though this is a big victory for environmentalists, it's just a drop in the bucket compared to the entirety of fossil fuel emissions we need to halt. Aboveground activists should certainly keep applying strategic pressure to shut down projects where possible, but we still need to encourage and support the formation of an underground which can be much more effective with asymmetric tactics, as described in the Deep Green Resistance Decisive Ecological Warfare strategy.
DGR member Will Falk has been writing a regular series on his experiences at the Unis'tot'en Camp blockade of proposed pipeline construction. We've highlighted some of them here already, but thought it would be useful to link to the whole series of thoughtful essays on what it takes to build a true culture of resistance, and for members of settler culture to ally with indigenous peoples on the front lines:
Listen to the first episode in the new Deep Green Resistance Radio show, featuring Jennifer Murnan and Kourtney Mitchell, published on April 1, 2014.
This episode includes news of Mohawk protesters blockading rail lines in eastern Ontario, an interview with William Falk of DGR San Diego on police sexual violence against women, Rachel on the roots of patriarchy and resistance to male violence, a summary of recent DGR activity around the world, discussion of the Jericho Movement, and some news about the release of former Black Panther Party leader Marshall "Eddie" Conway from prison after 44 years.
For more information on issues covered in this episode, see:
The article "Total shelves $11-billion Alberta oil sands mine" contains a clear acknowledgement that blockades like that of the Unis'tot'en Camp preventing construction of the Northern Gateway pipeline, and actions against the Keystone XL matter, by limiting pipeline capacity and driving down the value of tar sands product:
Rising costs for labour and materials have long worked against the economics of new projects, and limited pipeline access to ship oil has weighed on prices for Alberta oil. Total is signed up to ship oil on three major undeveloped pipeline projects facing uncertainty: Keystone XL, Northern Gateway and the Trans Mountain expansion.
Keep up the good work, everyone involved in those struggles, and for those not already involved, check them out and see how you can support them.
The indigenous Wet’suwet’en are holding the fifth annual Unis'tot'en Action Camp to blockade the construction of the Canadian Northern Gateway pipelines, a cluster of pipelines meant to carry tar sands crude and natural gas from fracking operations. This blockade is a strategic way to fight against these extremely dangerous and destructive projects. The Unis'tot'en territory has never been ceded to Canada, so the Wet’suwet’en have both a legal standing and a deep commitment to defending their landbase. This is a battle that can be won by defenders of the land and climate change activists.
To learn more about the background of the blockade and about the Camp, visit the Unis'tot'en Camp website and watch the 2012 Deep Green Resistance West Coast Tour video below:
Resource extraction is killing families, tearing apart communities, and threatening our very existence on this planet.
It is corporations that are perpetrating this ecocide, with the help of local law enforcement acting as their private armies. They must be held accountable for the devastation they are committing.
Deep Green Resistance stands in solidarity with those who took accountability into their own hands on July 28th at the Hobet Mine in West Virginia. It makes our hearts sing to see people nonviolently reinforcing a line in the sand, defending the rights of communities to clean air and water as well as the rights of the majestic Appalachians to stand unmolested.
We hope that others follow the example of R.A.M.P.S. and the brave folks who shut down the Hobet Mine. Those seeking to destroy life for profit are feeling the pressure. As they ratchet up the repression, we must call in unison: “We shall not be moved!”
We stand with the twenty who were arrested; we stand with the countless others who were harassed and abused on the 28th; we stand with those on the front lines of devastating extraction all over the world; and we stand with the mountains whose very existences are threatened.
To the Hobet 20: Thank you. Your sacrifices will not be forgotten.
To the West Virginia State Troopers: Your violations have not gone unnoticed, and you will be brought to justice.
To the Barons of Industry: Your days are numbered.
Our 
Posts
