the legacy of big business mining, oil and gas

I have been thinking about the role of major oil, gas and mining companies not only in Canada but also in other countries around the world. Certainly here in northern BC, we see increasing focus on these areas of industrial endeavour particularly with the downturn in the forest industry.

I have concerns about this direction, especially the scale at which these developments are proceeding. What I believe is that there is far too much deference provided to these major industries. I believe there is not adequate accountability in the laws & regulations that could govern the development of these sectors.

Last year after I did a hike up on the gorgeous Cameron Ridge Trail hike between Likely & Wells (Cariboo Mountains), I witnessed large ATV track gouges in the landscape well up into the fragile alpine & right through creekbeds. I felt sad to think these tracks will likely be there for 100s of years, certainly long after this current generation is gone. There was a sign at the trailhead informing us this was an active mining road we were hiking up, and we did see surveyors on quads while up there (not sure if the alpine tracks were from the mining exploration but it certainly was a question I had). After seeing the appalling state of the environment in this most gorgeous surrounding, I made some enquiries about who exactly regulates mining at this early stage of exploration. I initially attended at the BC Ministry of Energy and Mines who sent me to the Integrated Land Management Bureau ilmbwww.gov.bc.ca, a government office vested with creating land use plans throughout BC in consultation with various stakeholders & in consideration of the local environmental issues at stake.

Ironically, what I learned is that when it comes to large mining companies' endeavours (and I suspect the same occurs with oil & gas), overarching land use plans are virtually ignored. The person at the land bureau looked perplexed about why the Ministry had sent me to her office for answers. It appeared to me that there is a significant disconnect between the integrated land management bureau & the BC Ministry of Energy & Mines. . . . not a lot of communication was happening.

Currently in the news, we are hearing a lot about the EnCana situation up in the Peace River area - whereas the EnCana bomber initially hit the news (and is being described as a type of "terrorist" by law enforcement officers who are allegedly acting very intrusively - and quite possibly illegally in certain situations when the Charter of Rights & Freedoms is considered) in undertaking their investigations, what has more recently come out is the extent of environmental damage perpetrated on the previously agricultural landscape by mega oil company EnCana. Regular flaring & black smoke emissions appear to be a significant issue for locals in the area of Tom's Lake & other small farming communities. The locals, although they are scared to speak out to much for fear of being framed as "terrorists" are nevertheless starting to discuss the rampant disregard for their health, safety & concerns they have endured by the oil and gas sector.

The current BC Minister of Energy, Mines & Petroleum Resources Blair Leckstrom (who also hails from the Peace River area) has announced voluntary measures on flaring. According to a recent article that ran in the Daily Herald Tribune, Grande Prairie, Alberta, he is quoted as saying, the voluntary measures are meant to ''improve industry and resident relations.''

Here is an excerpt from the Daily Herald Tribune article:

Leckstrom, who hails from Dawson Creek, was adamant that the changes were not made in response to what RCMP have labelled domestic terrorism near the hamlet of Tomslake, near the Alberta boundary.

''We've been working on this long before whoever is responsible for those bombings began their crazy actions, so this is not a reaction to any of that," he said.
"There was no intent to try and address whatever this crazy person is trying to accomplish. This has been in the works for some time.''

What I am wondering Mr. Leckstrom is this: why are these provisions VOLUNTARY on the part of industry? That is not my understanding of what government regulation is supposed to be. . . I mean voluntary means nothing. What is the point of wasting paper (and public money) on enacting these kind of supposed "regulation"?! Why the deference to these big businesses to police themselves?

On the international level, the themes relating to mining, oil and gas are similar although much more severe in consequence to the locals. I heard an interview today (Dispatches on CBC radio) with New York Times journalist Peter Maass who has just written a book, Crude World: The Violent Twilight of Oil. He has travelled to some of the most devastated corners of the world where major oil companies make shady & private deals with local corrupt governments at the ultimate expense of the locals who suffer grave environmental ruin, horrific poverty, severe health problems, violence and harsh human rights violations. Several African nations are extremely sad cases in point.

These oil companies & the dark trails of pollution & damage they leave behind are contributing to a wrecked world. That is my opinion. The author Peter Maass spoke of how we are all complicit in this trend when we use oil without thinking about where it comes from and the usually dire environmental and social consequences of its extraction for our world.

Also, worthy of mention is that international human rights organization Amnesty International has really been looking at the issue of corporate responsibility & human rights violations over the past several years. They are currently gathering Canadians' signatures on a petition to take forward to the Canadian government to enact Bill C-300 which would serve to hold Canadian mining, oil & gas companies accountable for their actions overseas. Here is the information:

Take action to prevent corporate human rights violations

Amnesty International is concerned about human rights violations committed directly or indirectly by some Canadian mining, oil and gas companies in developing countries.
To ensure that all Canadian companies respect human rights in developing countries, we need mandatory human rights standards and stronger regulations to hold transnational companies accountable.
This fall, the Canadian Government is considering adopting a bill on corporate accountability (Bill C-300).
Amnesty International supports Bill C-300. But to ensure that the bill passes into law, we need everyone who cares about human rights to express their support.
MAKE YOUR VOICE HEARD
Please send a message to the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development and express your support for Bill C-300 -

http://amnesty.ca/urgentappeal/2009/CorpAcct/index.php.

I was really happy to see how many Canadians have already signed onto this petition & the comments posted there at that link. . . wondering when the politicians are going to catch on that Canadians really do care about these issues.

On another more cheery note,

Happy Thanksgiving Day.
We do have much to be thankful for, and we don't want to lose those beautiful things that make our world so wonderful.