OTTAWA - The Green Party of Canada is solidly in support of peaceful, non-violent
opposition to the proposed Keystone pipeline. A rally was held today in
Ottawa to protest the pipeline, which would transport bitumen from the Alberta
oil sands south to refineries in Illinois and Oklahoma and from there to the US
Gulf Coast. The pipeline would cross the Ogallala Aquifer, water source
for many millions in the US, and the ecologically sensitive Sand Hills
of Nebraska. Controversy over the pipeline has led to major protests in
Washington, with over twelve hundred people arrested, including many
celebrities and some Canadians.
“This list of reasons to reject this pipeline is long and wide ranging,”
said Green Leader Elizabeth May. “Climate change, habitat destruction,
potential for contamination of lands and water, the list goes on. But
there are also economic reasons that the pipeline should not go ahead,
particularly the potential for jobs if we keep and refine the existing bitumen
in Canada. It is critical to freeze any new growth of the oil sands to
prevent hyperinflation and instead promote value added processing.”
“While we transition to secure, renewable energy and away from a fossil
fuel-based economy, we must be smart with the oil that we do have and ensure we
maintain control over Canada’s energy supply. Shipping our bitumen to the
US is not part of that strategy,” said May.
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