30 Fairmont Park Lane S
Lethbridge, AB T1K 7H7
Phone: (403) 328-1704
Sunday, January 05, 2014
The Editor
The Lethbridge Herald
P.O. Box 670
Lethbridge, AB, T1J 3Z7
Re: Pipeline bid an adversarial process
Dear Editor,
Kenneth Green’s guest editorial in support of the Enbridge Northern Gateway
pipeline proposal makes me feel a little guilty. I’m one of millions of
Canadians supportive of the proposal as a part of Canada’s initiatives to ensure
future energy supply for Canadians and others. I did not, however, write a
letter to the National Energy Board (NEB) to express my support. That is
unfortunate as my silence allows organizations like ForestEthics to try to usurp
my democratic input and claim that they are representing me. They do not.
Remarkably, ForestEthics (an American “environmental” organization with Canadian
subsidiaries) has been able to rally the minority and encourage them to write
letters condemning the pipeline initiative. Their 2012 US Internal Revenue
“Exempt from Income Tax” statement on Form 990 claims the following as an
“accomplishment”;
“Our campaign to halt the Enbridge Gateway pipeline has cemented itself in the
Canadian media and citizenry. Grassroots organizing teams have mobilized an
unprecedented amount of Canadian civic participation in the government’s
environmental review and approval process. In the last six months of 2012, we
amassed more than 25,000 new supporters for this campaign and helped organize
the largest act of Canadian civil disobedience in the history of the pipeline
fight. In August, we submitted to the National Energy Board 4,119 (out of 4,722
in total submitted) unique Letters of Comment on the Enbridge tankers/pipeline
project, written by our supporters.”
Fortunately, the environmental review panel was able to see through this kind of
massive mischief and approve, with conditions, the plans for the pipeline. I
thank them for that. Perhaps we should more often show appreciation of our
elected officials and government representatives who toil on our behalf.
Yours truly,
Duane Pendergast