Climate activists force five major pipelines to shut down - The Globe and Mail

12.10.16

Climate activists force five major pipelines to shut down - The Globe and Mail: Climate Direct Action said it closed down the pipelines in solidarity with anti-pipeline protests led by North and South Dakota’s Standing Rock Sioux Reservation, but also took the “personal, direct action” to push the U.S. government to enact stricter measures on climate change. The group is calling for a total ban on new fossil fuel extraction and an immediate end to oil sands and coal use.

The moves mark a further escalation in the battle against Alberta’s oil sands industry as it seeks wider access to global markets. Major energy companies have clamoured for years to boost exports of bitumen, but those efforts have been stymied by opponents who claim new pipelines would facilitate added production and accelerate emissions of climate-altering greenhouse gases. Now, even existing infrastructure is in the crosshairs of activist opposition.