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Pipelines

I’m An Eagle Scout, And I Don’t Want Pipelines In My Wilderness

Troop 149, an enthusiastic and lively troop from Arlington, made me the person I am today. Being a member of Troop 149 meant a lot of things, but most importantly it meant incredible outdoor expeditions on the Appalachian Trail. The Appalachian Trail, a treasured 2,200-mile hiking trail that traverses the Appalachian Mountains, was a mainstay of my youth. I spent countless hours and made lots of memories on the trail — learning how to cook on a smoky campfire, leaving my tent to greet the crisp morning air, watching the sun dip below the mountains after a long day of backpacking. I wouldn’t trade these memories for anything. My visits to the Appalachian Trail became more infrequent as I got older and my Scouting career came to a close. I shipped off to a college on Virginia’s coast, far away from the mountains. Even as I grew older and busier, I found myself longing to be back out on that well-worn trail.

Potomac Pipeline Fight Zeroes In On Maryland Governor

Annapolis, Md. — Those opposed to gas infrastructure in Maryland have stepped up their campaign to influence Gov. Larry Hogan, and he may be feeling the pressure. About 250 people rallied on Lawyer’s Mall in front of the Maryland Statehouse on the evening of February 15, then surrounded the Governor’s Mansion with signs, candles and light boards spelling out “Hogan, No Potomac Pipeline.” A bagpiper played and circled the mansion as protesters yelled, “No Potomac Pipeline!” Many rally speakers warned about dangers posed by TransCanada’s Eastern Panhandle Expansion–the 3.3-mile pipeline that would traverse Maryland and bore underneath the Potomac River—and the Mountaineer Gas pipeline it would connect to in West Virginia. One by one they called on Hogan to stop the project.

All Out To Stop Pipelines In Virginia: Updates And Call For Support

We tried our hardest to stop these destructive projects at the regulatory level but we have always known that action beyond those processes would be necessary. We will continue to support regulatory and judicial efforts as we believe in a multi pronged approach to this fight, though there are some of us for which this is no longer a viable option. It will take a diversity of tactics to defeat these pipelines. We believe that direct action is an imperative part of the multi pronged approach and we are committed to helping to create a culture of resistance to the fossil fuel industry in VA. We believe direct action is necessary to win.

Maryland Promised TransCanada Superficial Review Of Pipeline Permit

Environmental groups are questioning the good faith of a Maryland state agency tasked with the permitting of a proposed gas pipeline which would cross underneath the Potomac River, saying it made a decision to greenlight the project before the application was even submitted. Potomac Riverkeeper Network accuses the Maryland Department of the Environment (MDE) of misleading the public and abdicating its responsibility to scrutinize the full impacts of the Eastern Panhandle Expansion, the Potomac crossing in particular. What’s more, they believe the agency may have colluded with TransCanada, the company proposing to build the 3.3-mile pipeline, to pre-determine a positive outcome for the permit. Upper Potomac Riverkeeper Brent Walls says MDE has failed to be transparent from the start and now believes the agency may have intentionally deceived them.

Environmentalists Buoyed By Bench Ruling On Crude Oil Pipeline

BATON ROUGE (CN) — Ruling from the bench late Thursday, a federal judge said that a crude oil pipeline under construction through Atchafalaya Basin, North America’s largest swamp, already has caused irreparable harm, galvanizing environmentalists who sued the Army Corps of Engineers for permitting it. “There has been irreparable harm,” U.S. District Judge Shelly Dick said. “Just the tree-clearing alone of the old growth cypress trees is irreparable.” Atchafalaya Basinkeeper, the Louisiana Crawfish Producers Association-West and other groups sued the Corps of Engineers in January for issuing permits for the Bayou Bridge Pipeline, a 24-inch-wide, 162.5-mile-long pipeline from Lake Charles east southeast to St. James, Louisiana.

Climate ‘Hero’ Gets Three-Year Prison Sentence For Shutting Down Tar Sands Pipeline

"It doesn't matter if I'm sitting in jail. What matters is stopping the pollution," Foster,  a 53-year-old mental health counselor from Seattle, declared after his sentencing in North Dakota on Tuesday. "If other people don't take action, mine makes no difference," he continued. "And if they don't, the planet comes apart at the seams. The only way what I did matters is if people are stopping the poison." Although others who participated in the multi-state #ShutItDown action two years ago have been allowed to present a "necessity defense"—or argue they believed their act was "necessary to avoid or minimize a harm" that was "greater than the harm resulting from the violation of the law"—Judge Laurie A. Fontaine rejected such a defense for Foster and Sam Jessup, who filmed Foster's action and received a two-year deferred prison sentence with supervised probation.

NC Governor’s Office Occupied By Atlantic Coast Pipeline Protesters

Opponents of the Atlantic Coast Pipeline filled North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper’s office Friday and refused to leave until he reverses course on the pipeline. About 25 people began their sit-in at about 8:30am and are still occupying the governor’s office as of mid-afternoon. They say they won’t voluntarily vacate the room until Cooper stops the pipeline by revoking a crucial permit. The Atlantic Coast Pipeline, which would run 600 miles from West Virginia through Virginia and North Carolina, has met with strong resistance all along its proposed route. After several requests for more information from applicant Dominion Transmission, North Carolina’s Department of Environmental Quality just granted the project a water quality certification. Duke Energy, a major influencer in North Carolina politics, has a minority stake in the pipeline.

As Trump Unfurls Infrastructure Plan, Iowa Bill Seeks To Criminalize Pipeline Protests

The Iowa Senate has advanced a bill which critics say could lead to the criminalization of pipeline protests, which are being cast as “terrorist activities.” Dakota Access pipeline owner Energy Transfer Partners and other companies have lobbied for the bill, Senate Study Bill 3062, which opens up the possibility of prison time and a hefty fine for those who commit “sabotage” of critical infrastructure, such as oil and gas pipelines. This bill, carrying a criminal punishment of up to 25 years in prison and $100,000 in fines, resembles the Critical Infrastructure Protection Act, a “model” bill recently passed by the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC). That ALECbill, intended as a template for state and federal legislation, was based on Oklahoma's HB 1123...

Some Pipeline Foes Speak, Others Boycott At Hearing In Hancock

HANCOCK — As people spoke against a proposed natural-gas pipeline during a hearing in Hancock on Monday, other foes gathered outside to boycott the proceedings. More than 60 people attended the Maryland Department of the Environment public hearing at Hancock Middle-Senior High School. As they have done before, opponents raised concerns about environmental pollution, climate change and contamination of water wells. “We all live downstream from something,” said Laura Bayer of Martinsburg, W.Va., the first of 22 speakers, all of whom opposed the pipeline. Benjamin H. Grumbles, Maryland’s secretary of the environment, spoke before public comments began. He promised a “robust” review of the pipeline application and stressed that no decisions have been made on the project. Monday’s session, which lasted about two hours, was held to resume the hearing that was continued last month.

Fracking Opponents Post Their Demands On The Walls Of FERC

On the 18th of January, Beyond Extreme Energy and others fighting against fracked gas pipelines, fracking, and eminent domain posted their demands on the walls of FERC shortly before the agency's monthly meeting. As fast as activists were putting up fliers demanding that FERC comply with other Federal agencies and laws, security guards ripped them down. FERC is paid for by the very companies it regulates, and FERC commissioners usually have prior experience as executives of pipeline and utility companies. FERC has been called a rubber stamp as they have only disapproved one fracked gas pipeline and one LNG terminal in recent times. They have been called out as a revolving door, and even as the "FERCus" as their process (and their meetings) have become such a circus.

Atlantic Coast Pipeline Hits More Delays In North Carolina

North Carolina regulators Wednesday announced the latest round of setbacks for the 600-mile Atlantic Coast Pipeline — delaying a decision on the project’s clean water certificate until as late as February and postponing several other environmental permits. Virginia-based Dominion Resources had hoped to break ground last year on the $5.5 billion pipeline, slated to transport natural gas from West Virginia into Virginia and the Tar Heel state. Duke Energy, which seeks fuel for its gas-fired power plants, is the venture’s second major investor. The feds approved the project in October, and just a few regulatory hurdles remain in the Virginias. But in North Carolina, Gov. Roy Cooper’s administration has moved more slowly — soliciting nearly 24,000 citizen comments on the pipeline and repeatedly asking for more information about its impact on air and water quality.

Nuns vs. Pipelines & The Water Protector’s Hub

This week on Act Out! Kiilu Nyasha takes us into the New Year with some words of wisdom from a woman who's seen decades of what works and what doesn't. Next up, how do you approach the work of building and fighting? Are you embroiled in Facebook tiffs or reaching out to neighbors – and how can human psychology guide our fight? Then, we take a look at a couple of good news stories followed by pipeline updates and an incredible resource for water protectors worldwide.

Can Tiny Houses Halt Expansion Of Trans Mountain Pipeline?

“We thought we’d only spend a few days at Standing Rock. Instead we were there for months,” recalls Kanahus Manuel of the Secwepemc Nation in British Columbia. “That’s the story of thousands of Indigenous peoples who touched down there at Oceti Sakowin camp. I know the same thing is going to happen here.” The “here” Manuel is speaking of is the Tiny House Warriors Resistance camp in what is now known as Victoria, Canada. The 10 homes, which Kanahus says were inspired by the camps at Standing Rock, will be strategically placed to block Kinder Morgan Canada’s proposed expansion of the Trans Mountain pipeline. (The Canadian company is a unit of the eponymous Houston-based corporation.)

Maine Town Wins Round In Tar Sands Oil Battle With Industry

SOUTH PORTLAND, Maine—A federal judge has handed a win to South Portland, Maine over a pipeline company that wants to send tar sands oil through the city, a proposal seen as opening a path for Canada's crude to reach the East Coast for export. But the fight is not over. A federal district court judge dismissed on Dec. 29 all but one of the company's claims against the city. The ruling still leaves open a key question: whether the city is violating the U.S. Constitution by blocking the project. At the heart of the lawsuit is the question of local control and what—if anything—a community can do to block an unwanted energy project. The outcome could influence similar lawsuits elsewhere. When the Portland Pipe Line Corporation (PPLC) sued this small coastal city in 2015, it had some powerful allies, including the American Petroleum Institute, whose members include most major oil and gas companies.

Environmental Justice Suffered Setbacks In 2017

Humvees with heavily armed county, state and federal agents rolled into what remained of the Oceti Sakowin protest camp in North Dakota in early 2017. With a U.S. Department of Homeland Security helicopter circling low overhead and heavy machinery preparing to topple anything in their path, the camp's last few holdouts torched their tipis and fled across the frozen Cannonball River to the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation. The once-thriving camp had united thousands in their shared opposition to construction of a crude oil pipeline and raised hopes for a new era in tribal sovereignty. Its forced clearing on Feb. 23 came just two weeks after the Trump administration granted a final easement for the Dakota Access Pipeline to cross beneath the nearby Missouri River.

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Keep independent media alive. 

Due to the attacks on our fiscal sponsor, we were unable to raise funds online for nearly two years.  As the bills pile up, your help is needed now to cover the monthly costs of operating Popular Resistance.

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