Thousands of protesters rallied outside the White House on Sunday to press US President Barack Obama to scrap plans for a multibillion-dollar oil pipeline stretching from Canada to Texas.
“Our mainstream society is extremely destructive and exploitative. This is one of the most egregious examples of overexploitation,” said Ken Srdjak, 25, an artist from Ohio.
Completing the pipeline would mean “harming indigenous peoples and the environment,” he said.
Washington has launched consultations on the 2,700km Keystone XL pipeline, which would run from the tar sands of the Canadian province of Alberta to the Gulf of Mexico in the southern US.
Many environmentalists fear a potential pipeline accident would spell disaster for aquifers in central US Great Plains states. That could disproportionately endanger rural towns and Native Americans, they say.
Thousands of demonstrators crammed Lafayette Square opposite the White House, as Obama was out playing golf.
Hundreds protested in vibrant orange vests reading “Stop Keystone XL,” while others waved signs with slogans, such as “We believe in a better way — if it doesn’t involve tar sands” and “Pipeline to the Apocalypse.”
Dozens more danced to pop music in front of a soundstage waving their protest banners less than a block from the White House. Lauren Glapa, 19, rode a bus overnight from Indiana University for her first protest with dozens of classmates to make their voices heard.
“So many people don’t know anything about this issue. Obviously Obama does and I don’t know what he is going to do, but if we increase awareness, maybe he will do the right thing,” she said, readying for the long ride home.
The Keystone XL pipeline proposed by TransCanada would begin in western Canada and pass through the US states of Montana, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas and Oklahoma before ending up at refineries in Texas.
A number of environmental and citizen groups are fighting the pipeline because exploiting the unconventional oil sands of Alberta requires energy that produces a large volume of greenhouse gases.
Concerns about potential for an environmental disaster seem to be heightened on the heels of last year’s devastating BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.
The US Department of State is handling public consultations, since the pipeline would run across the border with Canada. However, it said on Wednesday it might not decide whether to issue a permit for the proposed pipeline by the end of this year as planned.
BACKLASH: The National Party quit its decades-long partnership with the Liberal Party after their election loss to center-left Labor, which won a historic third term Australia’s National Party has split from its conservative coalition partner of more than 60 years, the Liberal Party, citing policy differences over renewable energy and after a resounding loss at a national election this month. “Its time to have a break,” Nationals leader David Littleproud told reporters yesterday. The split shows the pressure on Australia’s conservative parties after Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s center-left Labor party won a historic second term in the May 3 election, powered by a voter backlash against US President Donald Trump’s policies. Under the long-standing partnership in state and federal politics, the Liberal and National coalition had shared power
CONTROVERSY: During the performance of Israel’s entrant Yuval Raphael’s song ‘New Day Will Rise,’ loud whistles were heard and two people tried to get on stage Austria’s JJ yesterday won the Eurovision Song Contest, with his operatic song Wasted Love triumphing at the world’s biggest live music television event. After votes from national juries around Europe and viewers from across the continent and beyond, JJ gave Austria its first victory since bearded drag performer Conchita Wurst’s 2014 triumph. After the nail-biting drama as the votes were revealed running into yesterday morning, Austria finished with 436 points, ahead of Israel — whose participation drew protests — on 357 and Estonia on 356. “Thank you to you, Europe, for making my dreams come true,” 24-year-old countertenor JJ, whose
A documentary whose main subject, 25-year-old photojournalist Fatima Hassouna, was killed in an Israeli airstrike in Gaza weeks before it premiered at Cannes stunned viewers into silence at the festival on Thursday. As the cinema lights came back on, filmmaker Sepideh Farsi held up an image of the young Palestinian woman killed with younger siblings on April 16, and encouraged the audience to stand up and clap to pay tribute. “To kill a child, to kill a photographer is unacceptable,” Farsi said. “There are still children to save. It must be done fast,” the exiled Iranian filmmaker added. With Israel
Africa has established the continent’s first space agency to boost Earth observation and data sharing at a time when a more hostile global context is limiting the availability of climate and weather information. The African Space Agency opened its doors last month under the umbrella of the African Union and is headquartered in Cairo. The new organization, which is still being set up and hiring people in key positions, is to coordinate existing national space programs. It aims to improve the continent’s space infrastructure by launching satellites, setting up weather stations and making sure data can be shared across
RSS