Olympic organisers slammed over BP sponsorship
Environmental credentials of ‘sustainability’ partner labelled a ‘sick joke’
PRESS RELEASE: 17.2.2012
Today, an open letter [1] signed by a broad coalition of leading environmentalists, academics, politicians, campaigners, activists and representatives of devastated communities [2] has been sent to the organisers of London 2012, raising a series of concerns over BP’s sponsorship of the forthcoming Olympics.
The 34 signatories – which include representatives of Sierra Club US, Greenpeace and Friends of the Earth, as well as London Assembly member Jenny Jones and Nick Reeves OBE, Director of the Chartered Institution of Water and Environmental Management – have raised critical concerns over BP’s role as ‘Sustainability Partner’ [3]. The letter points out that given the Deepwater Horizon disaster, the company’s vast fossil fuel extraction activities around the globe, its recent entry into the highly-polluting tar sands and subsequent decision to close down its solar division, BP ‘is one of the least sustainable companies on earth’ and should not have been given such a prestigious environmental leadership role.
The letter comes in the wake of Meredith Alexander’s resignation from the Commission for a Sustainable London 2012 – the Olympics’ eco-watchdog – over Dow’s sponsorship [4]. Addressed to the IOC, LOCOG and the Commission, it asks that the three organisations ‘reconsider the terms of the partnership with BP, and put in place a more stringent ethical sponsorship policy that is in line with Olympic principles and the Code of Ethics, that will prevent BP and similar companies basking in such undeserved glory in the future.’ It will be accompanied by a request for a meeting.
Jess Worth from the UK Tar Sands Network, which organised the initiative, said:
‘The choice of BP as Sustainability Partner for the London 2012 Olympics sounds like a sick joke, considering its record of environmental devastation around the world. There’s clearly an urgent need for the Olympics organisers to broaden their definition of ‘sustainability’ and start applying it to their choice of sponsor.’
The controversy surrounding BP’s Olympic sponsorship follows growing criticism from environmental and human rights groups over the company’s sponsorship of UK-based cultural institutions like Tate and the British Museum. At the end of 2011, more than 8,000 Tate members and visitors presented a petition to Tate at its Members’ AGM calling on the gallery to end its financial relationship with BP. [5]
For more information or interviews, please contact:
Jess Worth, UK Tar Sands Network, info@no-tar-sands.org
Kevin Smith, Platform, kevin@platformlondon.org
1. The letter can be found at http://www.no-tar-sands.org/campaigns/british-petroleum-bp/bps-sponsorship-of-london-2012-oilympics/letter/
2. The full list of signatories is: Tom Antebi, Counter Olympics Network; Maude Barlow, Council of Canadians; Liam Barrington-Bush, People & Planet; Craig Bennett, Director of Policy & Campaigns, Friends of the Earth; Carbon Trade Watch; Sam Chase, Art Not Oil; Julian Cheyne, Games Monitor; Danny Chivers, author of The No-Nonsense Guide to Climate Change; Tony Clarke, Director, Polaris Institute; Mark Gee, criminology consultant and writer; Tom B. K. Goldtooth, Executive Director, Indigenous Environmental Network; Hannah Griffiths, Head of Policy and Campaigns, World Development Movement; Siobhan Grimes, Climate Rush; Jenny Jones, London Assembly Member; Melina Laboucan-Massimo, Greenpeace Canada; The Liberate Tate collective; Michael Marx, Beyond Oil Director, Sierra Club US; Winnie Overbeek, World Rainforest Movement; Occupy LSX Energy, Equity & Environment Working Group; Robert Palgrave, Biofuelwatch; Nick Reeves OBE, Executive Director, The Chartered Institution of Water and Environmental Management (CIWEM); John Sauven, Director, Greenpeace UK; Dr Debra Benita Shaw, Senior Lecturer, Cultural Studies, University of East London; Andrew Simms, author of Eminent Corporations and Fellow of New Economics Foundation ; Kevin Smith, Platform; Richard Solly, London Mining Network; Jasmine Thomas, member of Saik’uz First Nation (affiliated with the Yinka Dene Alliance); Steve Tombs, Professor of Sociology, John Moores University; Dr Julie Uldam, Postdoctoral Researcher, London School of Economics and Political Science; Stewart Wallis, Director, New Economics Foundation; Diane Wilson, shrimper from the Gulf Coast and member of Calhoun County Resource Watch; Jess Worth, co-founder, UK Tar Sands Network ; Murray Worthy, War on Want; Kenny Young, founder, Artists Project Earth
3. For more information see http://www.bplondon2012.com/
4. See ‘Why I resigned over Bhopal’, http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2012/jan/26/why-meredith-alexander-resigned-bhopal-olympic
5. See ‘Not If But When: Culture Beyond Oil’: http://blog.platformlondon.org/2011/11/27/read-online-now-not-if-but-when-culture-beyond-oil/
Call to end Canadian Lobbying of European Climate Policy
Monday 19th December – for immediate release
A coalition of organisations [1] is calling on the Canadian government to stop sending spokespeople to interfere in EU legislation. Alberta’s Minister of Intergovernmental, International and Aboriginal Relations Cal Dallas has travelled to France, Switzerland and now the United Kingdom [2] to repeat Canada’s arguments that the EU’s Fuel Quality Directive (FQD) [3] discriminates against Canada’s tar sands. [4]
“Canadian tar sands are not getting attention in the EU because we want to discriminate against them or sabotage the Canadian economy,” said UK Tar Sands Network campaigner Suzanne Dhaliwal. “Canada is receiving this attention because of the unprecedented attempts to undermine democratic climate legislation, and the gravity of the environmental destruction and human rights violations taking place to extract tar sands in Canada.”
The tour was announced three days after an EU member state vote on the current draft of the FQD was postponed, giving the Canadian government another six weeks to try to convince European oil sympathisers that tar sands should not be given a separate value in the directive. [5]
Emily Coats, also from the UK Tar Sands Network, said, “A sensible way of reining in one of the world’s dirtiest industries is being scuppered by the interests of the oil industry and Canadian government. Just last week, Canada pulled out of the Kyoto Protocol, severely tarnishing the government’s climate credentials. The Canadian government really isn’t where the UK should be turning for advice.”
Dallas’s trip is also focusing on “growing Alberta’s presence” in the European energy market. [6] Last week the minister participated in the World Trade Organization (WTO) policy meetings to discuss the “Doha Round” of negotiations, and today will meet the Deputy High Commissioner of Canada to discuss efforts to ‘promote Alberta in the UK’. [7]
“People are fed up by the ridiculous greenwash being spouted by these ministers,” said Clayton Thomas-Muller, Tar Sands campaigner with the Indigenous Environmental Network. “The suggestion that tar sands could be considered ‘responsible energy production’ [8] is ludicrous. Tar sands exploitation is harming First Nations and local communities and accelerating us towards irreversible climate change. The UK government should be supporting the FQD and phasing out tar sands financing, not developing radical new trade avenues with Alberta.” [9]
Contact UK Tar Sands Network for further comments
[1] Organisations include: UK Tar Sands Network, Council of Canadians, The Indigenous Environmental Network and People and Planet.
[2] http://www.alberta.ca//acn/201112/316601EC50941-9E6B-F2AA-8492049FEBA1EECC.html
[3] The FQD will reduce the EU’s emissions from transport by 6% by 2020 by assigning an average value of greenhouse gas intensity to each fuel type. The FQD in its current form, based on independent science and officially approved by the EU Commission, assigns tar sands with a higher average greenhouse gas value than conventional crude. It assigns even higher values to fuels such as oil shale and coal-to-liquid.
[4] See www.no-tar-sands.org/what-are-the-tar-sands
[5] This trip marks a long line of visits to the UK designed to label the legislation as ‘discriminatory’ and ‘unscientific’.http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/12/16/us-tarsands-idUSTRE7BF1DG20111216 Most recently, Natural Resources Minister Joe Oliver was sent to LSE to give a public lecture pushing the future of tar sands and speaking out against the Fuel Quality Directive. See www.vancouversun.com/business/Minister+challenged+British+students+during+oilsands+tour/5581538/story.html See also http://www.foeeurope.org/publications/2011/FOEE_Report_Tar_Sands_Lobby_Final_July82011.pdf for more examples of lobbying.
[6] In recent months the UK opened a trade office in Alberta and the UK Prime Minister David Cameron travelled to Canada to meet Prime Minister Stephen Harper in September. See http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/ottawa-notebook/keep-alberta-oil-off-your-hands-environmentalists-warn-british-pm/article2175933/
[7] http://www.alberta.ca//acn/201112/316601EC50941-9E6B-F2AA-8492049FEBA1EECC.html
[8] “Dallas will also meet with the Deputy High Commissioner of Canada and the Alberta United Kingdom Office to discuss Alberta’s commitment to responsible energy production.” See http://www.alberta.ca//acn/201112/316601EC50941-9E6B-F2AA-8492049FEBA1EECC.html
[9] The UK government’s position is currently aligned with Canada’s, with Norman Baker coming under fire from local, national, and international protesters to change his position. See http://www.no-tar-sands.org/2011/11/baker-targeted-by-constituents-for-blocking-climate-action/
- November 30, 2011
- One Comment
- Latest Updates, Press Releases, Shell
Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation sues Shell for tar sands destruction
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 30th, 2011
London – On the eve of the 17th COP of the UNFCCC, the world’s climate summit, the UK Tar Sands Network will serve papers to Shell UK executives on behalf of the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation (ACFN). ACFN plans to sue Shell for failure to meet contractual agreements made between Shell and the First Nations regarding existing tar sands projects within ACFN traditional territory and Canada’s pristine Athabasca, a UNESCO heritage site. Later today, Chief Allan Adam along with the entire council of ACFN will rally outside Shell Canada corporate headquarters in downtown Calgary and hold a press conference.
After years of agreements with Shell Oil, the Athabasca Chipewyan people have decided to risk everything by challenging Shell’s practices and filing suit. “We’re drawing the line, and taking a strong stand against Shell. ACFN wants no further developments until Shell is brought to justice and our broader concerns about the cumulative impacts in the region are addressed,” stated Chief Adam.
The agreements in question were meant to ensure Shell would provide a number of measures to lessen the impact of tar sands mines on ACFN. In addition to the lawsuit against Shell, ACFN also plans to oppose all future tar sands projects by Shell. “Tar sands have been widely recognized as the most destructive project on earth because of the serious impacts on treaty and aboriginal rights, ecological destruction and global green house gas emissions (GHG),” commented Suzanne Dhaliwal from the UK Tar Sands Network. “Shell is one of the largest players in the tar sands producing close to 20% of overall production and it needs to be held accountable for the mass destruction it is causing to communities and the environment.”
Shell Canada recently submitted proposals to expand its current tar sands operations which, if approved, would more then double its production. This would translate into further encroachment of open pit mines on ACFN traditional lands, and into the pristine wilderness of the Pierre River, a previously untouched area. Councilor Anthony Ladouceur of ACFN said, “Shell has failed to meet past commitments and governments have done nothing to mitigate the issue. Current government monitoring is inadequate, and Shell cannot be trusted to monitor itself.”
ACFN is rightfully concerned these projects will further impact the First Nations’ ability to exercise treaty rights in a meaningful way into the future. “We don’t want our community to become the next Niger Delta where Shell’s unregulated actions have left communities devastated and resulted in the need for a 30-year clean-up estimated to cost $1 billion USD,” stated Eriel Deranger, member of the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation. “The fate of our communities and our river is at stake and we are in the crosshairs of Shell’s plans to aggressively expand tar sands in our traditional territory. We ask the public to support ACFN’s efforts to stop Shell from permanently destroying our lands and community,” stated Chief Adam in his closing remarks.
Solidarity actions against Shell Oil were also held in Durban South Africa at the UNFCCC climate negotiations. Shell is internationally renowned for human rights abuses and the ACFN suit adds weight to the plight of many groups already challenging the corporation. ACFN and the Indigenous Environmental Network plan to co‐release a release a report next week outlining Shell’s broken promises and history in the tar sands[1].
An international coalition of Indigenous and environmental groups, including Keepers of the Athabasca, Greenpeace, Indigenous Environmental Network, Sierra Club Prairie, Pembina, Council of Canadians, International Indigenous Treaty Council, AFN Regional Office (NWT), Carrier Sekani Tribal Council, Dene Nation, Platform, London Mining Network, UK Tar Sands Network, People & Planet, Rising Tide and Shell to Sea endorsed today’s action echoing the call on Shell Oil Canada and Shell Oil International to halt any further tar sands extraction in the Athabasca region until proper environmental safeguards are put into place in accordance with the treaties between Canada and First Nations governments.
See http://www.no-tar-sands.org/get-the-shell-out-of-the-tar-sands/
Eriel Deranger (Canada) – 001 780-903-6598
Suzanne Dhaliwal (UK) – 07772694327
Notes for editors
[1] The report will be available for download on the UK Tar Sands Network website.
Baker targeted by constituents for blocking climate action
‘Tar Monster’ roams Lewes as protesters urge Baker to support EU Fuel Quality Directive
Friday 25th November – For immediate release
On Saturday 26th November, a giant Tar Monster, produced by Friends of the Earth, the UK Tar Sands Network and South Coast Climate Camp, roamed the streets of Lewes. The monster highlighted the role of local MP Norman Baker in opposing action to cut the use of tar sands oil, the world’s most polluting transport fuel [1].
“We are aware that the Canadian tar sands industry is an ecological monster [2]. Fuel derived from tar sands comes at a very high price to the environment, to communities that live near extraction, and to the global climate,” said Lewes constituent Mark Mansbridge. “Gladly, the EU has moved towards labelling tar sands as more polluting than conventional oil [3]. You think this would be a welcome move for Baker, a self-styled environmentalist, however we are instead seeing him align with the Canadian government to derail the EU legislation.”
The Canadian government has been engaged in a mammoth lobbying offensive [4] against the Fuel Quality Directive (FQD) for over two years, and has now openly vowed war [5] on the legislation, claiming that it threatens future export markets for global unconventional oil, and unfairly discriminates against the tar sands. In recent months, as the decision now goes to EU member states, the UK government has escalated its support of the Canadian position, going so far as to lobby other EU states to reject the inclusion of tar sands in the FQD [6]. As minister responsible for the UK position [7], Norman Baker has been the focus of intensive campaigning on this issue by NGOs and climate campaigners for recent months [8].
“A coalition of international NGOs, community groups and climate campaigners have been urging Baker to stop blocking the inclusion of a higher tar sands value,” commented UK Tar Sands Network campaigner Suzanne Dhaliwal. “Baker insists he is trying to help the environment [9], arguing that the proposed legislation singles out tar sands and should be delayed until more data is available about other fuel sources. But this is a bogus argument, inherited from the Canadian government. The Commission’s current proposal has already given values to other unconventional fuel sources, and contains a clause to include more fuel types as the science becomes available. Baker needs to realise that there is no time to delay – this legislation needs to come into effect as soon as possible.”
Now the pressure to stop caving in to the interests of the Canadian tar sands industry is coming closer to home. Earlier this week the local Lush store-front displayed an image of Norman Baker dripping in tar sands oil [10]. “Norman Baker was right behind setting up Transition Town Lewes and supporting climate activists.” said Mansbridge. “We have felt betrayed by Norman’s position on the Fuel Quality Directive. If he continues to call for tar sands to not be labelled as highly polluting he will be putting the interests of the Canadian tar sands industry and corporations ahead of his constituents, who want affirmative action on climate change.”
Lewes’ Green Party has expressed concern that Norman Baker is trying to prevent the implementation of the transport legislation given his previous commitment to the environment [11]. “We need our government to be taking decisive action to reduce emissions from fuels. The Fuel Quality Directive will move industry towards a green economy to provide us with jobs we can be proud of and renewable energy for future generations,” said councillor Susan Murray. “Tar sands are a highly polluting source of carbon-based fuel and if production is encouraged by unimpeded access to European markets then the fight against irreversible climate change is as good as lost [12].”
ENDS
Photos up here – High res images available upon request
Notes for editors:
[1] Minister for Transport, Norman Baker, stated the UK government will oppose an inclusion of a tar sands value. http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2011/oct/04/oil-sands-imports-eu-ban?newsfeed=true
[2] See www.no-tar-sands.org/what-are-the-tar-sands
[3] The Fuel Quality Directive aims to cut carbon emissions from transport by 6% by 2020. The directive includes values for a range of transport fuels including shale oil. http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/10/04/eu-tarsands-idUSL5E7L41ST20111004
[4] See ‘Canada’s dirty lobby diary – Undermining the EU Fuel Quality Directive’ released by Friends of the Earth Europe http://www.foeeurope.org/publications/2011/FOEE_Report_Tar_Sands_Lobby_Final_July82011.pdf
[5] The Minister has vowed to fight the EUs’ recent decision http://www.canada.com/business/Oliver+vows+fight+smacks+oilsands+with+pollution+penalty/5501777/story.html
[6] http://priceofoil.org/2011/09/27/britain-backs-canada-over-tar-sands-fight/
[7] Norman Baker is Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Department for Transport.
[8] e.g. from the Co-operative Bank http://www.co-operative.coop/toxicfuels
[9] http://www.normanbaker.org.uk/pr/2011/111124_lush.htm
[10] https://phoenix.lush.co.uk/content/view/2855 Norman Baker, MP: TARNISHED- Blowing his chance to keep dirty tar sands oil out of Europe
[11] In opposition, Norman Baker sponsored a Parliamentary Early Day Motion stating that tar sands cause “deforestation and pollution which threatens the lives and livelihoods of indigenous communities” and “that the continued expansion of tar sands extraction is incompatible with the emissions reductions needed to avoid catastrophic climate change” – see http://www.parliament.uk/edm/2009-10/1055
[12] NASA Scientist James Hansen has said that irreversible climate change is inevitable if all the oil in Canada’s tar sands is burned http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/cifamerica/2009/feb/17/barack-obama-canada-climate-change
UK activists surround miniature White House as pipeline protests go global
Sunday 6th November – For immediate release
Activists outside the US Embassy in London surrounded a model of the White House to protest against the proposed US Keystone XL pipeline. Holding banners that read “Obama NO!” and “Tar sands is blood oil”, the action corresponded with 6000 people in Washington DC surrounding the White House to urge Obama to reject the proposed 1600-mile pipeline that would take tar sands oil from Alberta to the US Gulf Coast. [1]
The Keystone XL pipeline would entrench our reliance on a particularly dirty fossil fuel which is devastating communities,” said UK Tar Sands Network campaigner Suzanne Dhaliwal. “As we speak, First Nations in Alberta are having their way of life destroyed, with forests being clear cut, animals poisoned, and rare cancers now rife in the community. We cannot afford to further expand the tar sands – they are a climate disaster, with the potential to increase the atmospheric carbon concentration by 200 ppm.” [2]
The Keystone XL pipeline has faced a raft of opposition in the US from a variety of fronts, with climate activists, farmers, First Nations and even the government of Nebraska, all coming together to persuade Obama to reject the pipeline. [3] In August and September, a series of protests outside the White House resulted in 1,253 arrests and has seen the issue flooding the media. [4]
The likely environmental impacts of the pipeline have been vastly downplayed. The US Environmental Protection Agency notes that the project could yield an extra 1.15 billion tons of GHGs, but this has been ignored by the US State Department’s own Environmental Impact Statement. Transcanada’s other pipelines have been leaking on average at one spill per month. A rupture in the Keystone XL pipeline could cause a BP-style oil spill – devastating the entire area, and contaminating the source of fresh drinking water for 2 million people. [5]
Dhaliwal continued, “We are standing in solidarity today with the Lakota Nations in the US who oppose this pipe going through pristine water sources. [6] President Obama recently signed onto the UN Declaration of Rights for Indigenous People’s. He cannot uphold that commitment by approving this pipeline.”
The US pipeline decision comes at a time when the EU is also considering the future of tar sands. The proposed Fuel Quality Directive [7], which would strongly discourage tar sands from entering the EU, has been repeatedly stalled by the UK government, largely as a result of incessant Canadian lobbying. [8]
Emily Coats, also from UK Tar Sands Network, commented, “We are particularly concerned about the Keystone XL pipeline here in the UK, because US companies are already expressing their desires to use the pipeline to bring tar sands oil to Europe. [9] Given the UK government’s reluctance to embrace legislation that would prevent that, it is even more important that the pipeline does not get built, so we can stop the flow of this dirty oil at its source.”
-ENDS-
For interviews and high resolution photos, please contact Suzanne Dhaliwal on +44 7807 095 669
Notes for editors:
[1] One year from the next election, US activists return to DC to try to encircle the White House to ask President Obama to reject the Keystone XL tar sands pipeline. The action begins at 2 pm in Lafayette Park. http://www.tarsandsaction.org/
[2] http://thinkprogress.org/romm/2011/06/05/236978/james-hansen-keystone-pipeline-tar-sands-climate/
[3] The decision of whether to approve the pipeline technically lies with the US State Department, but Obama has the opportunity to intervene if he wishes. Recent news has indicated that Obama intends to step in and take responsibility for the decision. See http://www.tarsandsaction.org/turning-point-president-obama-comments-keystone-xl/
[4] http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2011/09/03/keystone-xl-pipepline-protest-ends_n_947951.html
[5] http://www.tarsandsaction.org/spread-the-word/key-facts-keystone-xl/
[6] The Fort Laramie Treaties, guaranteed by the US Constitution, secure the lands of the Lakota Nation for the Lakota People. The tar sands Keystone XL oil pipeline would pass through these lands while crossing the Ogallala Aquifer, one of the world’s largest, which supplies fresh water to the surrounding reservations as well as eight US states. http://www.truth-out.org/lakota-tribes-refuse-cooperate-tar-sands-proponents/1320241082
[7] The Fuel Quality Directive aims to reduce the EU’s transport emissions by 6% by 2020, by distinguishing certain fuels with an average value of carbon-intensity. The EU Commission has approved a currently proposal that would give carbon values to a number of unconventional fuels, including tar sands, oil shale, and coal-to-liquid. Member states will vote on the proposal in December.
[8] The Canadian government has been lobbying the EU and especially the UK for a number of years, to reject the legislation as ‘discriminatory’ and ‘unscientific’. Most recently, Natural Resources Minister Joe Oliver was sent to LSE to give a public lecture pushing the future of tar sands and speaking out against the Fuel Quality Directive. See www.vancouversun.com/business/Minister+challenged+British+students+during+oilsands+tour/5581538/story.html See also http://www.foeeurope.org/publications/2011/FOEE_Report_Tar_Sands_Lobby_Final_July82011.pdf for more examples of lobbying.
[9] US refining company Valero has told its shareholders it intends to use Keystone to export tar sands oil to markets including the UK. See www.no-tar-sands.org/2011/09/tar-sands-on-fast-track-to-the-uk/ for details.
Canada poses as “Friendly, Green Oil Giant” to win over UK universities
London, October 20th 2011 – Joe Oliver, Natural Resources Minister, met with staunch opposition at the London School of Economics (LSE) whilst promoting Canada as the next ‘Global Energy Superpower’ [1]. Protesters presented an alternative perspective to the one-sided lecture by asking difficult questions throughout.
LSE students and activists presented Joe Oliver with the ‘Greenwash Propagandist of the Year Award’ for his efforts to contort the science, dismiss the human consequences of tar sands extraction and to re-brand the world’s most destructive project as secure, reliable and sustainable.
“This lecture today was an inappropriate attempt to use an educational venue to promote the Canadian Tar Sands industry,” commented People and Planet ‘Tar Sands Free Universities’ [2] Campaigner Liam Barrington-Bush. “Canadians should know that their ministers are embarking on an ongoing mission to undermine peer-reviewed science and efforts of European climate legislators by greenwashing the reality of tar sands extraction.”
Before departing on his mission to London, Oliver vowed war on the EU’s plans to curb emissions from tar sands. [3]. Canada has justified its extensive EU lobbying by accusing the EU of singling out tar sands extraction unfairly by labeling tar sands as more polluting than conventional oil [4].
“Canadian Tar sands are not getting attention in the EU because we want to discriminate against them or sabotage the Canadian economy,” said UK Tar Sands Network campaigner Suzanne Dhaliwal. “Canada is receiving this attention because of the unprecedented attempts to undermine democratic climate legislation, and the gravity of the environmental destruction and human rights violations taking place in Canada.”
Protesters also held a banner outside, which read “Tar Sands is Blood Oil” in response to Oliver’s recent televised claim that tar sands development was in an area uninhabited by First Nations communities [5]. “The environmental justice movement which has galvanized around tar sands issues over the past two years has worked to support First Nations fighting for health and environmental impact assessments and the respect of their inherent treaty rights [6],” said Barrington-Bush. “This does not fit with the image of a ‘Friendly Green Oil Giant’ that Oliver has tried to present Canada as today.”
The impending European legislation to curb the growth of the tar sands industry has put the Canadian government on a PR offensive. Lobbying missions once reserved for parliament see ministers now desperately turning to universities to change the minds of the public.
“Fortunately, previous Canadian lobbying attempts to remove tar sands from the Fuel Quality Directive were challenged by the EU parliament and NGOs committed to reducing transport emissions,” commented Dhaliwal. “Now Canada is calling on corporations BP, Shell and Statoil and the UK government to stop the transport legislation from going ahead [7]. As we saw last week at Gordon Campbell’s Energy Roundtable in St James Palace, public opposition in Europe to such undemocratic behavior is growing stronger [8].”
For media interviews, photos and video contact +44 7807 095 669
[1] “Canada: a reliable, responsible contributor to global energy security and economic stability” http://www2.lse.ac.uk/publicEvents/events/2011/20111020t1300vHKT.aspx
[2] People and Planet recently launched a Tar Sands Free Universities campaign after students visited the Beaver Lake Cree communities http://peopleandplanet.org/tarsands
[4] http://af.reuters.com/article/commoditiesNews/idAFN1E79H15S20111018Other unconventional fuels targeted by the legislation include coal converted to liquid and oil from shale rock.http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2011/oct/04/oil-sands-imports-eu-ban
[5] “That (oil sands) land, which only represents one-thousandth of our boreal forest, is uninhabitable… uh… by human beings. So, you know, no community is being disrupted.” http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/inside-politics-blog/2011/09/the-uninhabitability-of-the-oil-sands-forests.html
[6] http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2009/aug/23/london-tar-sands-climate-protest
“Oil Orgy” invades Energy Summit
Activists interrupt UK-Canada talks aimed at promoting the future of tar sands oil
Tuesday October, 11th 2011
Protesters interrupted the Canada-Europe Energy Round table [1] in London today, to expose the UK government’s opposition to European legislation, which would label tar sands oil as highly polluting. The campaigners stripped down to Union Jack boxers and maple leaf underwear and covered each other with oil while kissing and groping in a provocative ‘oil orgy’ [2].
“We interrupted the Energy Round table today because the UK and Canadian governments flirtations are developing into friends with benefits. This seedy relationship puts profits for the oil industry and banks ahead of much needed legislation which will curb emissions from transport fuel in Europe,” [2] said UK Tar Sands Network campaigner Emily Coats.
Since PM Cameron’s visit to Canada last month, the UK government has been echoing the position of the Canadian government that the EU is ‘unfairly discriminating’ against the Canadian tar sands [3]. Contrary to Canada’s claims that the Fuel Quality Directive (FQD) will discriminate against the tar sands, the current FQD proposal also includes values for other unconventional oil feed stocks, such as shale oil [4].
“The UK government is supporting sleazy Canadian lobbying efforts and today’s Energy summit shows just how intimate they have become to promote the tar sands industry,” said climate campaigner and performance poet Pete the Temp.
Despite extensive lobbying by the Canadian government over the last year, [5] last Tuesday the European Commission announced its recommendation that tar sands fuel should be assigned an accurate value in order to account for the higher emissions caused by tar sands extraction [6].
“A Canadian government body [7] proved that tar sands extraction is very filthy, yet the Harper government is increasing extraction of bitumen without full scientific knowledge of the impacts on the local environment and the global climate.” said Coats.
In the upcoming weeks the UK will continue to receive Canadian officials [8] as Canada attempts to secure the UK as an ally to stall the FQD directive, which has already received extensive support from the EU commission. The controversial UK government support for the Canadian tar sands industry has received disapproval and outrage from UK climate activists, which shall escalate as the relationship deepens.
[1] 2011 London Energy Roundtable: Canada Europe Energy Summit http://www.energyroundtable.org/london.php
[2] Minister for Transport, Norman Baker, stated the UK government will oppose an inclusion of a tar sands value. http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2011/oct/04/oil-sands-imports-eu-ban?newsfeed=true
[3] http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/ottawas-ethical-oil-sands-campaign-heats-up/article2181234/ The Cameron government commented “tar sands oil sands should not be singled out as a dirty source in a world that will need oil, and increasingly heavy crudes, for the foreseeable future.”
[4] The directive includes values for a range of transport fuels including shale oil.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/10/04/eu-tarsands-idUSL5E7L41ST20111004
[5] See ‘Canada’s dirty lobby diary – Undermining the EU Fuel Quality Directive’ released by Friends of the Earth Europe http://www.foeeurope.org/publications/2011/FOEE_Report_Tar_Sands_Lobby_Final_July82011.pdf
[6] See ‘EU ‘tar sands’ stance welcomed’ http://www.google.com/hostednews/ukpress/article/ALeqM5haVri_2f3ta4WIB7h_FfkCv5DgZg?docId=N0755991317741677000A
[7] Environment Canada’s audit http://www.oagbvg.gc.ca/internet/English/parl_cesd_201110_e_35765.html
Summary of report by Pembina Institute http://www.pembina.org/media-release/2276
[8] Joe Oliver, Canada’s Minister of Natural Resources will be speaking at the London School of Economics to discuss investment opportunities and the strategic importance of the tar sands. http://www2.lse.ac.uk/publicEvents/events/2011/20111020t1300vHKT.aspx
The Minister has vowed to fight the EUs’ recent decision http://www.canada.com/business/Oliver+vows+fight+smacks+oilsands+with+pollution+penalty/5501777/story.html
UK Prime Minister visits Ottawa as Canadian outrage grows against Tar Sands
Update: This was picked up by the Globe & Mail: See Keep Alberta oil off your hands, environmentalists warn British PM
PRESS RELEASE
Thursday 22nd September – For immediate release
British Prime Minister David Cameron will visit Ottawa this week to address a joint session of Canadian Parliament [1], just days before hundreds of protesters descend on the capital to oppose the tar sands. As one of Harper’s ‘ideological allies’, Cameron has repeatedly demonstrated his government’s willingness to undermine European Union climate policy on behalf of the Harper government and its friends in the Alberta tar sands.
On the occasion of Cameron’s state visit, the UK Tar Sands Network is demanding the British Government stop defending Canada’s criminal record on climate change. “The UK is one of the few countries trying to stop the EU’s Fuel Quality Directive from specifically listing tar sands as more carbon-intensive than other fuels. A raft of information uncovered by Friends of the Earth Europe [2] and others have shown this position is being influenced by obscene lobbying from the Alberta and federal governments,” says Gemma Long of the network.
Just this week, Canada put more pressure on the EU by threatening to challenge the Fuel Quality Directive at the WTO [3] if it includes a specific value for tar sands crude. This follows reports earlier this year that Canada had threatened to pull out of free trade negotiations with the EU altogether [4], for the same reason. The Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement that Canada and the EU are negotiating will contain investment protections designed to increase the role of British companies such as BP in tar sands extraction.
“All too recently we have seen the two governments using Canada-EU trade talks to discourage action on climate change, while prolonging investments in toxic fuels,” adds Long. “Now despite Britain having, on paper, a much better climate action program than Canada, we’re seeing this fall down before our eyes under a government keen to prioritise industry interest over climate policy.”
On September 26th 2011 Canadian citizens are planning a peaceful protest in Ottawa to say no to a toxic tar sands industry and defuse the largest carbon bomb in North America. [5]
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For more information and interviews, contact 07807095669.
Notes to editors
[1] Cameron will meet privately with Prime Minister Stephen Harper before making a speech to the House of Commons. See http://www.ctv.ca/CTVNews/CanadaAM/20110922/british-prime-minister-david-cameron-ottawa-canada-visit-110922/
[2] Friends of the Earth Europe report available at http://www.no-tar-sands.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/FOEE_Report_Tar_Sands_Lobby_Final_July82011.pdf
[3] Reports of Canada threatening to challenge Brussels at the WTO available at http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424053111903374004576580822352255698.html
[4] More information about Canada’s threats to scrap CETA available at http://af.reuters.com/article/energyOilNews/idAFWEB045820110221
[5] For more information on the tar sands protests in Ottawa, see www.ottawaaction.ca.
Reverend Billy leads mass exorcism in Tate Modern Turbine Hall over ‘taint’ of BP sponsorship
PRESS RELEASE For immediate release
18 July 2011
Reverend Billy leads mass exorcism in Tate Modern Turbine Hall over ‘taint’ of BP sponsorship
American performance group and British artists, activists and art lovers congregate in call for gallery to end its relationship with oil company
Monday (18 July) Reverend Billy and the Church of Earthalujah choir joined with art activists, artists, Tate members and concerned members of the public at 17.30 in the Tate Turbine Hall to lay hands on Tate Modern and cast out the demon of BP’s oil sponsorship of the art institution.
An exorcism of the evil spirit of BP was performed in a special service in the Turbine Hall of the national gallery of international modern art. The Reverend Billy had an oil-like substance dramatically poured over his white suit by his gospel choir before being escorted out of the building. The gospel choir sung choruses of “Tate takes money from BP, and BP’s money is the devil.”
The event was brought to Tate by five different UK-based groups – Liberate Tate, UK Tar Sands Network, London Rising Tide, Art Not Oil and Climate Rush – all of which have staged multiple performance interventions and protests at Tate, part of a growing movement to rid public arts institutions from oil companies with negative social and environmental impacts all around the world.
Reverend Billy, the world famous preacher, said: “For 20 long years, BP has embedded its foulness deep within Tate, using the fair face of the arts to mask the stench of its true nature. Today the possession of this dark beast lurking within the bosom of one of our most cherished arts institutions is coming to an end.”
“While good-hearted, god-fearing gallery-goers glory in the miracle of art, the beast below is encircling the planet with its oily tentacles, destroying righteous communities, poisoning God’s beauteous creations, and bringing us all ever closer to the climate apocalypse. Art will soon be free of big oil interests. Eviction has begun. Brothers and sisters, it’s time to liberate the Tate!”
Chris Sands, a participant in the performance said: “When Tate takes money from the fossil fuel industry it is endorsing climate change rather than backing activity which moves us away from an environmental crisis that is already destroying lives and livelihoods. We have to ensure our public arts institutions are financed responsibly, transparently and ethically for the good of the art world and the planet.”
Tate and other public cultural institutions have seen long-standing public concern about their relations with oil companies. The numbers of artists involved have grown over recent years with many hundreds of artists publicly demanding Tate end links with BP, and guerilla art performances adding to creative protests in Tate galleries. The exorcism comes less than a week after a ‘guerilla ballet’ performance took place at the BP-sponsored Big Screen in Trafalgar Square, highlighting the oil company’s involvement in destructive tar sands extraction in Canada.
BP continues to use its arts sponsorship to project a public image at odds with its operations and lobbying. As part of a multi-million pound effort to create a social license to operate, the company has launched its first television advertising campaign since the Gulf of Mexico oil spill which centres on its arts, culture and sports sponsorship in an attempt to alter public perception about the company.
*** ENDS ***
For further comment, call 07847 830164
Photos of the exorcism for commercial available through Rex Features.
Notes to editors:
The Guerilla Ballet performance took place on Wednesday evening in Trafalgar Square shortly before the BP-sponsored screening of the Royal Opera House’s Cinderella. See: http://www.guardian.co.uk/stage/theatreblog/2011/jul/15/dance-oil-industry-arts-funding-ballet-bp
Reverend Billy and the Church of Earthalujah (www.revbilly.com) is part theatre piece, part church service, part performance art and wholly inspirational. The Church of Earthalujah condemns the corporate exploiters and polluters of the world to the Lake of Hellfire.
Liberate Tate (www.liberatetate.org) is an art collective exploring the role of creative intervention in social change dedicated to taking creative disobedience against Tate until it drops its oil company funding. Contact: liberatetate@gmail.comThis e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScr www.twitter.com/liberatetate.
UK Tar Sands Network (www.no-tar-sands.org) campaigns in partnership with Indigenous communities affected by the Tar Sands oil developments in Canada. It targets UK and European companies, banks and governments involved in the world’s most destructive project. Contact info@no-tar-sands.org.
London Rising Tide (www.londorisingtide.org.uk) takes creative action on the root causes of climate chaos, and promotes socially just, ecological alternatives to the fossil fuel madness that we’re living through. Contact: london@risingtide.org.uk
Art Not Oil (www.artnotoil.org.uk) encourages artists – and would-be artists – to create work that explores the damage that companies like BP and Shell are doing to the planet, and the role art can play in counteracting that damage. Contact info@artnotoil.org.uk.
Climate Rush (www.climaterush.co.uk) is a Suffragettes-inspired group taking responsibility now to prepare for the future through direct action against climate criminals and their allies. Contact: media@climaterush.co.uk.
‘Guerilla Ballet’ disrupts BP-sponsored opera event in Trafalgar Square
Swan Lake ballet dancer smeared with oil
Wednesday 13th July, 2011 – For immediate release
For further information and photos contact Jess Worth from the UK Tar Sands Network on 07807095669 and for interviews with the prima ballerina, contact Emily Coats 07831383866.
Three ballet dancers interrupted BP’s third and final Summer Screen in Trafalgar Square[1], 30 minutes before the scheduled broadcast of the opera Cinderella began. The disturbance took the form of a short piece of dance based on Swan Lake [2], with the classic tale used as analogy for BP’s controversial investment in the Canadian tar sands [3],[4]. The performance featured the White Swan being smeared by an oily substance and suffocated with a cloth. The crowd of opera-lovers were very receptive, greeting the grand finale with applause and cheers.
Charlie Byers, who played the prince, explained: “The tar sands are one of the biggest threats to the future of our climate [5]; they are also destroying local communities and wildlife, trampling indigenous rights, and running Canada out of water and natural gas. It is a key time to pressure BP to withdraw, as the corporation has already substantially invested in the tar sands but will not start profiting for years to come.”
Emily Coats, a campaigner with the UK Tar Sands Network, who played the White Swan Odette, said: “Most people have never heard of tar sands, and BP would be happy to keep it that way. We used classical dance – an unusual campaigning medium – to introduce the issue to a new audience. The performance was meant to be enjoyed, but also to shock, with a visible struggle between a vulnerable creature and a powerful oil giant.”
Will McCallum, of campaign group Art of Activism, who played the ‘BP’ villain Rothbart, said: “By sponsoring the Summer Screens, BP is bringing art to thousands of people, but it is also creating a false image which hides its dirty investments. Public pressure has in the past caused institutions to stop accepting sponsorship from destructive companies. Without being able to put its name by our beloved cultural institutions, BP would suffer a real blow to its public legitimacy.”
ENDS
Images from last night’s event now on Rex Features website and available for media use.
Notes for editors:
[1] BP sponsors the Royal Opera House’s “Summer Screens” where ballets and operas are broadcast live in public spaces around the UK, including Trafalgar Square, for audiences to watch for free. The scheduled performance on 13th July was the opera Cendrillon (Cinderella).
[2] For a full synopsis of the piece, see bpwhiteswan.org
[3] BP announced in December 2010 its investment in the Sunrise Project, shared with Canadian company Husky Energy. Extraction is due to begin in 2014. http://www.no-tar-sands.org/campaigns/british-petroleum-bp/
[4] Canadian tar sands are the world’s largest and dirtiest industrial project: exacerbating global warming through deforestation and greenhouse gas emissions, causing rare forms of cancer amongst First Nations communities, destroying vast tracts of forest habitat and threatening wildlife to extinction. For more information see no-tar-sands.org and oilsandstruth.org
[5] NASA Scientist James Hansen has said that irreversible climate change is inevitable if all the oil in Canada’s tar sands is burned. See http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/cifamerica/2009/feb/17/barack-obama-canada-climate-change
High res images available – email info@no-tar-sands.org
