Pipelines damage farms, forests, streams, mountains, etc.

From an Article by Tommy Lopez, WSLS News 10, June 04, 2018

MONROE CO. WV – Opponents of the Mountain Valley Pipeline tried a new tactic Monday: chaining themselves to construction equipment.

West Virginia state police arrested three people who were trying to slow down workers in Lindside, a community in Monroe County, West Virginia. They delayed construction for a few hours on US Route 219.

Police cut them out around 10 a.m., about two hours after they received a call. Police said Maxwell Shaw, 24, Evin Ugur, 21, and Sydney White, 18, are all from Massachusetts and are out on bond.

Court documents showed they’re each facing three misdemeanors, one each for trespassing, obstructing and resisting arrest. That could mean up to two and a half years in jail.

Witnesses say about 25 other pipeline opponents came out to watch. One of them was Jammie Hale, who lives in Giles County.

“Very humbling. You see somebody willing to put their life and limb in jeopardy to save my farm, my land, my community. Oh yeah, it’s very humbling,” he said.

He described a tense atmosphere. Witnesses said police threatened to use tasers, pepper spray and batons. “There’s people going every which way and then police, law enforcement pulling in and you don’t know what to expect or exactly what’s going to happen,” he said.

He’s encouraged by the efforts. “Nowadays people are scared to stand up and take a stand and to see especially some young people,” he said.

This comes just three days after the last sitter in Virginia came down from a spot blocking construction in Giles County. “I hope a lot of people get involved and say ‘I’m going to stick up for my neighbor, for their rights, for our constitutional rights,’” Hale said.

As of Monday night, there are no reports of any protesters blocking MVP construction workers. At least 10 people have placed themselves in the pipeline’s path against the company’s request.

Construction continues on the Mountain Valley Pipeline, which is projected to run from West Virginia into North Carolina, crossing through Giles, Montgomery, Roanoke, Franklin and Pittsylvania counties in Virginia.

Climate activists arrested as ‘valve turners’

Article by Alexandra Varney McDonald, UU World Magazine, Summer 2018

For Leonard Higgins and Michael Foster, climate change is scarier than prison.

Dubbed the “valve turners,” Higgins and Foster participated in the coordinated, simultaneous—and illegal—shutdown of five transborder pipelines in October 2016. They are two of the five civil disobedient activists who temporarily halted the flow of all tar-sands oil entering the United States.

Foster, 53, shut down the pipeline entering North Dakota. A former mental health counselor who regularly attends University Unitarian Church in Seattle, Washington, Foster felt a mismatch in counseling kids and families in “how to be well-adjusted in an increasingly pathological world.”

He turned to environmental education, but it wasn’t enough. “In between the mental health career and shutting down the pipeline were three years of activism: organizing kids, planting trees, suing the government—meaningful things that were not gaining traction,” explains Foster. He decided that civil disobedience was the obvious next step.

“It’s about walking the talk, living the emergency, and being a first responder to everything to come,” he says. “As time continues to tick by, most people will recognize that this is the only reasonable response.”

Foster was found guilty of multiple felony and misdemeanor charges and was sentenced to three years, two of which are suspended. He is now serving time in the Missouri River Correctional Center and will not be up for parole until the summer.

“Since the Shut-It-Down action,” Foster recalls, “UUs have offered me pulpits and given me the opportunity to share the message of climate emergency—a message I’ve heard more from UUs than any other faith group.”

Foster is grateful to UUs, who have also donated funds to assist in paying for his defense. UU fellowships continue to hold fundraisers for the valve turners, including Leonard Higgins’s congregation, the UU Fellowship of Corvallis, Oregon.

Higgins, 66, is also grateful for his UU connections. He and fellow UU climate activists took training in nonviolent direct action and civil disobedience. He points to the “red candle of courage” ceremony bestowed on him by the congregation as a powerful spiritual experience and message of love and support, held just prior to his trial for being the valve turner who shut down the tar sands entering Montana.

Convicted of misdemeanor trespass and felony criminal mischief, Higgins arrived at his sentencing hearing fully prepared to go to prison, just as Foster had done six weeks earlier. Standing before the judge in rural Montana, Higgins spoke: “My hope is that more and more of us . . . will see and feel the emergency and pull together to demand immediate changes to reduce our carbon emissions and the other responses needed to avoid the worst.”

Then came his sentence: three years imprisonment, but all three deferred. Although Higgins is on probation, he does not have to serve time.

‘Nonviolent civil disobedience . . . is the only activist’s tool that has a chance to change public perception, public and government policy, quickly enough to save us from the worst impacts of climate change,” says Higgins. “We are out of time and crossing unrecoverable tipping points.”

Before they shut down the pipelines, all valve turners called the authorities. After the oil stopped flowing, they waited to be arrested. All requested jury trials. Three have been tried and convicted, including Foster and Higgins. All have been found guilty, but so far only Foster is serving time.

“We meant to challenge the system that was meant to protect life and liberty . . . (a)nd the corporate property and trespass laws that undermine life and liberty,” says Foster.

Both Foster and Higgins are appealing their sentences. The main issue on appeal: neither judge allowed the valve turners to present a “necessity defense.” The rulings denied Foster and Higgins the opportunity to explain their deep motivations—and the underlying science—that indeed makes them more frightened of climate change than prison time.

For a necessity defense to be admissible, defendants have to meet a specific set of conditions, including that they were “faced with a choice of evils and chose the lesser evil” and had no legal alternatives to violating the law.

However, in what could be a big step forward for climate-change activists, the necessity defense will be allowed in the trial of the last two valve turners, set for this summer in Minnesota. One of them, Emily Johnston, has brought her message to even more UUs, last year recounting her climate wake-up journey at the pulpit of Northlake UU Church in Kirkland, Washington.

Unlike Higgins’s and Foster’s trials, Johnston and her co-defendant, Annette Klapstein, will be allowed to give testimony as to why their actions are necessary and justified to prevent climate harm, and why climate change is much worse than trespassing or interfering with the pipelines.

Possibly the biggest game changer: climate-change experts will be able to submit hard evidence on the science behind the valve turners’ actions.

In March, a judge acknowledged the necessity defense for the record and found thirteen protesters “not responsible” after they were arrested for demonstrating against the construction of a natural gas pipeline running through Boston’s West Roxbury neighborhood. At the eleventh hour, the prosecution reduced the charges from criminal to civil, barring a jury from hearing evidence of why the heating of our planet is a crisis, and avoiding the inevitable media coverage.

One of the defendants, UU and climate-change activist Tim DeChristopher, who co-founded the Climate Disobedience Center, explained to the judge why people such as himself and the valve turners end up breaking the law: “The power of the fossil fuel industry over our government is so extensive that there was nothing that could be done . . . which is why we were driven to engage in civil disobedience.”

Valve turner Michael Foster has no regrets and views his time behind bars as one for reflection. “Being in prison is a time for me to unwind,” says Foster. “(I can) get clear spiritually, get clear emotionally, and allow my mind to consider what needs doing now.”

We The People are speaking up ....

From an Essay by Micah Fink, Alternet, January 18, 2018

As millions prepare to return to the streets on Saturday, January 20, for a reprise of last year’s Women’s March — the largest mass protest in American history — people of conscience are actively debating critical questions about the power of protest. Are mass protests and civil disobedience still effective? What are the most effective strategies for achieving lasting social change? What is the connection between protest movements and electoral politics? Do we need more marchers or mayors?

The “Power of Protest,” a new documentary film we’re launching on Kickstarter, seeks to answer these questions in the Trump era. The film will follow a year in the life of contemporary social movements like the Women’s March, Black Lives Matter, Gays Against Guns, Lancaster Against Pipelines and Indivisible to see how they frame and pursue their objectives during a period of intense social turmoil leading into the 2018 midterm elections, and beyond.

We will also hear from strategic leaders of the civil rights movement, the Tea Party movement and the recent struggle for marriage equality to explore how social and technological changes are transforming what environmental activist Bill McKibben, one of our project advisers, calls the “rapidly evolving new science” of non-violent protest.

Case Studies in Resistance

The Kickstarter campaign we’ve produced offers a sample of our approach. It tells the story of a small but influential group of activists fighting to stop construction of the Atlantic Sunrise Pipeline in the heart of Central Pennsylvania’s Amish country.

The 184-mile pipeline is designed to carry fracked gas from the Marcellus shale fields in Northern Pennsylvania to Maryland and the Gulf Coast for industrial use and export to foreign markets. Its original route passed right through the backyard of Mark and Malinda Clatterbuck, whose house sits in a shady hollow in rural Lancaster County.

Mark, a professor of religious studies at Montclair State University, and Malinda, a Mennonite minister, are unlikely activists. But after a land agent for the pipeline knocked on their front door in March 2014 and tried to bully them into leasing their land, their living room quickly became ground zero for local resistance.

The opening gambit of Lancaster Against Pipelines was to pass a local ordinance to prohibit the pipeline. But even though the majority of their neighbors supported the ban, Mark says, the town lawyers discovered it was illegal to pass legislation that “discriminates” against fossil fuel companies, and the effort failed.

Next, they tried to convince federal regulators to stop the project based on its potential for environmental damage, but even with support from the Sierra Club and Greenpeace, construction was approved in September 2017.

“The issue that really frustrates me,” says Malinda, “is that Williams, a company based in Oklahoma, has the right to come into our community and do what they want on my land and I don’t have the right to say no, you can’t do that on my property. That’s unconscionable to me.”

“Nonviolence to us means no violence against people and no violence against possessions, so we’re not doing damage to equipment,” says Malinda, whose direct action inspirations include Martin Luther King Jr., Daniel and Philip Berrigan and John Dear. “It means that we use our bodies to stand in the way of equipment that’s destroying the land in our community.”

“Basically, we feel like our resistance highlights a moral crisis,” says Mark. “And that moral crisis doesn’t come to the surface unless there’s confrontation.”

“I think there’s nothing more patriotic than what we’re doing,” he concludes. “Throughout the history of our country, as we all know, principled resistance, principled protest, is really the bedrock of democracy.”

On board: Danny Glover, Bill McKibben, Roberta Kaplan

By setting the efforts of activists like Mark and Malinda Clatterbuck alongside the work of the Women’s Marchers, Black Lives Matter, Gays Against Guns and Indivisible, we hope to better understand the moral and social tensions now reshaping American politics—while also mapping out the most effective tools and strategies now available for a new generation of activists.

We’ve assembled an advisory board that includes civil rights veteran Danny Glover, environmental activist Bill McKibben, lawyer Roberta Kaplan, and veteran journalists Ray Suarez and Rory Kennedy.

The time is ripe to understand the power of protest.

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Support the “Power of Protest” Kickstarter campaign. Get more information and share suggestions for movements or stories.

>>> Micah Fink’s most recent film, “Beyond Borders,” explored the lives of undocumented Mexican-American families in the U.S. and aired on public television stations around the country in 2016. He has produced documentaries for HBO, CNN, ABC News, National Geographic Explorer, National Geographic Wild, and PBS Wide Angle.

Protesting pipeline near nuns' chapel

From an Article by Scott Blanchard, York Daily Record, October 16, 2017

About 26 people who were protesting the construction of a planned natural gas pipeline in Lancaster County were arrested on Monday.

A group of people protested construction Monday at the site of a planned natural gas pipeline in Lancaster County, on land owned by the Adorers of the Blood of Christ, a religious community.

The pipeline — Tulsa, Oklahoma-based Williams Company is building a 186-mile pipeline to carry natural gas from the Marcellus Shale area of northeastern Pennsylvania to the Transcontinental Pipeline, which covers the East Coast.

The nuns — A Roman Catholic order of nuns, the Adorers of the Blood of Christ, sued to try to stop pipeline construction, telling a federal court that the project will excessively damage God’s creation, the Earth. U.S. District Court Judge Jeffrey Schmehl in Reading ruled in late September that his court lacked jurisdiction and dismissed the suit. The nuns, who had allowed supporters to build a chapel in the pipeline’s path, said publicly they would appeal the court case.

The sisters of the Adorers of the Blood of Christ church allowed opponents of the Atlantic Sunrise pipeline to construct a simple chapel in its path.

The protest — The group Lancaster Against Pipelines said in a news release that they planned a peaceful protest at the construction site for early Monday morning. About 70 people showed up and, at around midday, they surrounded an excavator and began singing songs.

Police soon arrived and gave the protesters until 12:45 p.m. to leave. Just after the deadline passed, one protester told others that they’d have to decide whether to stay or risk arrest.

Just before 1 p.m., police began arresting protesters one by one. About 26 stood in front of the equipment, refusing to leave, and were then taken away.

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Photos: Protesting construction of pipeline near nuns’ chapel — A group has gathered to protest the construction of the Atlantic Sunrise Pipeline at the site of a chapel that was built near its path in Columbia, Lancaster County. Sean Heisey, York Daily Record

Mountaineers Always Free?

A Plea to West Virginians: Throw off your oppressors before surrendering or joining the exodus, get educated and fight – peacefully – against the powerful interests which control The Mountain State

From an Article by Michael M. Barrick, Appalachian Chronicle, July 20, 2015

Alum Bridge, WV – The recent admission by Secretary Randy Huffman of the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection (WV-DEP) that the agency he heads can’t do its job because powerful business and political interests control The Mountain State is a wake-up call to all West Virginians.

It is time for us to throw off our oppressors so that Huffman and other public officials can do their jobs.

In the last two years, I have put thousands of miles on my little car covering the energy extraction industry. What I have discovered is that West Virginians are basically in four camps:
1. Some work for the industry and truly believe they are doing good work; these folks are in the minority.
2. Others are working against the industry through established environmental or social justice groups and alliances because they consider the industry an assault upon the people and ecology of West Virginia; they, too, are in the minority.
3. Still others have just given up and have joined the exodus of West Virginians going to what they hope are greener pastures; these folks are also a small minority, though it is causing a brain drain that will have an impact upon the state that is greater than their numbers.
4. Finally, there are the docile West Virginians. They just roll over and accept whatever their public officials, business leaders or church leaders tell them. They, sadly, constitute the majority of West Virginians.

This is an appeal to folks in all four categories, as well as those few prophetic voices in our hills and hollows, to get educated and fight – peacefully – to rescue our home from the powerful people and interests that have made West Virginia their own personal playground to enrich themselves.

According to a handout I received recently from a representative of the WV-DEP, the agency’s mission is a simple one: “Promoting a healthy environment.” This, one presumes, applies not only to the ecology, but also public health, as the two are inseparable.

Looking at a map of the central part of WV tells a story. It is a topographical map of the Vadis quadrangle. It includes parts of Lewis, Doddridge and Gilmer counties. Published in 1964 and revised in 1978, it is dotted with more gas and oil wells than one can count. There are certainly well over 100. Again, if the energy extraction industry was and is so good for the people of West Virginia, where is the wealth to show for it? It is certainly not in the pockets of West Virginians. Instead, as it has since the late 1800s, the money has flowed out of state to corporate barons, many who then stash the cash away in offshore accounts.

The  jobs (in drilling & fracking) are temporary and very unreliable as we have seen as oil prices fluctuate. Additionally, it is becoming increasingly clear that the jobs come at a great cost, as those working in the fracking fields are working in a very unhealthy environment. The residents, though, suffer the most. The loss of land, sleepless nights, water supplies destroyed, children and adults experiencing everything from nosebleeds to cancer, public roadways ruined and communities divided (Divide & Conquer is a fundamental strategy of the energy extraction industry), make it clear that the only people benefitting from the process are corporate CEOs, most of whom are from out of state.

Regarding pipeline construction, the gas companies – in particular EQT and Dominion – are audacious enough to argue that they should be granted eminent domain by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). This reveals just how allied political and business interests are in exploiting the mineral resources of The Mountain State. No matter how the companies spin it, the proposed Mountain Valley and Atlantic Coast pipelines are not for public benefit (the standard FERC must apply before granting the companies the right of eminent domain); they are for the companies’ shareholders. Most significantly, the gas that would be shipped through the pipelines will end up in foreign countries, which should be the fact that causes FERC to deny the company’s applications. That, however, would take a miracle.

For those who think pipeline construction is benign and that the companies employ a bunch of good ole’ boys from West Virginia looking out for their neighbors, you need to visit Doddridge, Harrison, Lewis, Ritchie, Tyler and Wetzel counties.

Conclusion: Civil Disobedience is the Answer
In short, our state motto – Montani Semper Liberi (Mountaineers are Always Free) is a joke. The people of this state – whether they will admit it or not – continue to be abused and oppressed by political and business interests. Those appointed to protect the people – such as WV-DEP Secretary Huffman – are unable or unwilling to honor their vocations. Additionally, those we should be able to count upon to advocate for and protect us – church leaders and law enforcement – have been compromised.

So, it is up to us. In an upcoming essay, solutions to address West Virginia’s many problems will be offered in detail. For now, an overview of possible solutions include local communities supporting one another economically and socially in new ways; reforming our political system to open ballot access, setting term limits and establish ethical training for potential political leaders; and, ensuring that local officials are prepared for the inevitable disasters that will occur from the fossil fuel mono-economy. We need greater regulation of the energy extraction industry. We need to truly empower people like Secretary Huffman so that he can’t say his hands are tied.

However, I have concluded these actions will not be enough. It is time for nonviolent civil disobedience. That will require training. It will require resolve. Those of us who recall the Civil Rights and Vietnam eras know that civil disobedience works. The achievements of those eras include voting rights legislation and ending the Vietnam War.

You can fight. You can leave. Either choice is legitimate. But indifference is nothing short of surrender. That is inconsistent with what most West Virginians say they would do. So why do the powerful still control our state?

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See also: “WVDEP Secretary Randy Huffman Acknowledges Political and Business Climate in Charleston Limits Agency’s Effectiveness” — Remarks made at public forum after Huffman and WV-DEP staff tour fracking fields of Doddridge and Ritchie counties. (From an Article by Michael M. Barrick, Appalachian Chronicle, July 17, 2015)

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Alternative access to above articles and more: www.AppalachianChronicle.com