A bus load of Bowen Islanders, as well as Islanders travelling in their own vehicles, travelled to Squamish to attend a rally organized by Skwomesh Action and My Sea to Sky to protest against the proposed expansion of the Fortis BC pipline and Woodfibre Liquified Natural Gas (LNG) Export Facility. The rally was attended by people living in various communities around the Sound, and while they were told the purpose of the event was to let the Squamish Council know how people within the Nation feel about the project, the issue goes well beyond regional concerns.
Speaker Khelsilem Rivers, member of the Squamish Nation, told the crowd that the people have made it clear to their leadership that they do not want LNG in Howe Sound. He went on to explain the reasons why.
“I hear politicians say that Liquid Natural Gas ain’t as bad as diluted bitumen. They tell me it’s a different product, an oil spill and an LNG spill are two different things. It’s not as bad, they tell me. My response to that is if we continue to frack in BC and destroy indigenous lands, if we continue on this course emitting the carbon that we are emitting, then that only means destruction, that only means death for the human people. It only means seas will rise, droughts will increase, water will become more precious...”
Bowen Islander Robb Schultz says that while he is unsure of the accuracy of what Rivers’ was saying, he thought this brought another angle to the discussions of LNG in Howe Sound.
“And I think it was good that we were there, the organizers seemed buoyed by the presence of all the people that came from different communities around the Sound.”
