The acronym BP now stands for one of the biggest oil spill-water-animal-earth murder ever, outside of Exxon Valdez, and their commitment to murder.
Thanks to an incredible doc I watched last night on APTN, I learned a lot.
I learned that in 2006 a ferry, called the Queen of The North, carrying cargo, fuel, cars and people, sank. The ferry was traveling from Prince Rupert back to Vancouver Island and hit a rock and ended up sinking.
I also learned about a small First Nations community located in Hartley Bay, BC, called the Gitga’at.
“From the beginning of time, the Gitga’at people have existed in their Territory on what is now British Columbia's northwest coast. The wellbeing of their people is intricately related to the health of their lands, waters, and resources, and the community continues to work to sustain their abundance and richness. Gitga’at culture is strengthening, and traditional practices continue to shape day to day life in the village.
Opportunities exist for visitors to share cultural, wildlife, and other types of experiences in Gitga’at territory, which is home to some of the most spectacular scenery, captivating wildlife, and rich historical and cultural sites in the world.” (http://www.gitgaat.net/)
The local Gitga’at community came out in full and were able to save all but 2 people aboard the sinking Queen of the North. When the ship sank, everything sank with it, and it has remained 1,300 feet below the water, off the coast of Hartley Bay, the home of the Gitga’at people.
The most disturbing part of the whole story is that previous to 2006, the community of Hartley Bay was pristine . Now not only does it have permanent and continuous toxic leakage from the huge ferry, which the government of BC refuses to move, the government has also told people the toxins are safe and won’t affect them.
The fact that the ship sunk and is still there without even having had it’s fuel and the fuel of the cargo it was carrying drained is both sad and ridiculously insane. The motto for the province of BC is, “The Best Place to Live”, but that seems highly debatable when old growth rain forests, scared land, and waters are seen as commodities and are being destroyed so fast.
Adding more insult to it all, a sacred temperate rain forest we call in English "The Great Bear Rainforest”, which is an old-growth forest on the west coast of BC, is being clear cut at such an alarming rate. It is the home to many threatened species, among which is the Spirit Bear, an all-white bear, which comes from the same family as the black bear.
And , lest we forget that black bears are still under siege as they are here in Ontario; they are allowed to be killed, murdered for “sport”. This barbarism is called 'trophy hunting'. I wish bears carried tek-9s.
To sum up: a once clean, beautiful area is now threatened in many ways, because of the greedy, selfishness of the governments actions or inactions. The Gitga’at people have been living with and off the land for thousands of years, and now they and they beings they share the land with are in grave danger.
Another group of BC First Nations people, called the Haida, who live in the islands called Haida Gwaii, which are just below Alaska, are fighting to maintain their way of life and the beauty of the land they live with. The Government wants to pipe oil to their islands. They are vehemently opposed.
“Alex Rinfret, September 2, 2009, Charlotte Island Observer--Plans by a Calgary company to pipe crude oil to Kitimat, allowing it to be shipped through north coast waters, are "ludicrous" and "unbelievable", and will never be allowed to happen, says Haida Nation president Guujaaw.
Speaking to two top executives from Enbridge Inc. at a public gathering in Skidegate Friday (Aug. 28), Guujaaw said the project would put the entire Haida way of life at risk for nothing more than the chance for investors and company officials to make money.
Guujaaw said islanders learned first-hand from Prince William Sound people who visited Haida Gwaii earlier this year what happens when an oil spill contaminates the ocean and coastline.
"Those people lost their traditional ways, lost their access to food," he said, following the crash of the Exxon Valdez oil tanker in 1989, the effects of which are still being felt.
Guujaaw said no one should believe company promises that an oil spill would be immediately contained and that compensation would be paid for any environmental damage.
The Alaskan people are still waiting for compensation, he said. And it would be impossible to move fast enough to contain a spill in the isolated and storm-prone north coast waters.”( http://www.tarsandswatch.org/haida-nation-says-no-way-oil-tanker-traffic)
Remember my petition, please:( by signing this you can also go to my petition asking for federal rights and protections for Canada's animals: Boycott GoDaddy Now!
