I am surprised that even for a brief moment I thought things would change under the new government. I thought that fossil fuels would be passé after the Paris Agreements, that the Prime Minister' the Department of Environment, the Cabinet and Liberal Caucus were serious about immediately cutting back on fossil fuels into the atmosphere. Obviously this meant no more LNG and that Woodfibre LNG would therefore not proceed. I also thought that we would have better representation from our MP than hitherto so that we would get ample notice of any government activity that affected our constituency. Obviously I was wrong on all counts and, all of all people, I ought to have known better. Continue reading

Written by Eoin Finn, B.Sc., Ph.D., MBA Only if you had been banished from BC would you have missed the claim by the BC Government, repeated over and over in the past three years, that Liquefied Natural Gas is “the cleanest fossil fuel on the planet”. “Cleaner than coal”, “will clean up China’s air”, “part of the climate change solution”, say LNG’s avid cheerleaders. Trouble is – none of these claims is true - and the BC Government knew it three years ago. Continue reading

                The Council of Canadians says the Trudeau government's interim regulations for pipeline review processes are a good first step, but that there are questions and fundamental issues that still need to be addressed. Continue reading

Is this the kind of corporate neighbor we want to have? Would you attend a discount jewelry party in your neighborhood? Everything at 25% original value or less? There are such parties and I would advise you to stay as far away as possible - you don't have to be a brain surgeon to understand why. Your hosts will no doubt tell you that it's all "legit" but you know that everything is sure to be hot as hell and that sometimes these parties are set ups and many good citizens of the neighborhood wind up being charged with receiving stolen property. That would be the practical reason you would stay away. Might you also stay away because you don't want to reward criminals? You might muse "I wonder what supports the famous Thieves Market in Mexico City?" Or I  wonder if that expensive broach that Aunt Tilly had pinched might just show up at one of these parties? You might also ponder to whether you become an integral, albeit small, part of a worldwide criminal activity just by going to one small party and buying one watch?  Now, what do you now think about your neighbors holding this party, being such nice, pleasant folks while subjecting their neighbors to risk of jail and presumably making a little  something for their trouble?? Continue reading

  Op-ed by Eoin Finn, January, 2016 “100,000 jobs, BCers first in line for those jobs, a debt-free BC, a $100 billion heritage fund and a trillion dollar boost to the provincial economy”.  Promises the BC Liberals made for the LNG industry in the 2013 provincial election campaign. We all remember them- what wasn’t to like? But… you may well ask … three years on and not a single LNG project is a-building … how are we doing on those promises?  And what part will Woodfibre LNG play in delivering on the promises? Continue reading

For the past 3 months, the group called Concerned Citizens Bowen has been researching Herring spawn in Howe Sound to better understand the possible effects to it from the Woodfibre LNG’s proposed cooling system. Both the Vancouver Observer and Globe and Mail have written about the potential destruction to herring spawn due to this proposal and have highlighted a long-time naturalist's survey work. What did they find and why is it being ignored?  Continue reading

SOLAR IN THE TAR SANDS  Indigenous community launches solar powered health centre One of Alberta’s biggest solar projects has been built in one of the most unlikely places—the heart of Canada’s Peace River oil sands. This summer the community of Little Buffalo launched the Piitapan Solar Project, a 20.8kW renewable energy installation that powers the health centre. The inspiring 80-panel solar project was developed in a bid to create more green jobs and reduce reliance on fossil fuels. Continue reading

“I am passionate about Howe Sound, this place I call home. My travels have reinforced the need to advocate for this region, not only when it is under threat, but to complete the work started by others in the 90's that Howe Sound needs a comprehensive holistic plan so we do not lose what is special about this place.  I have the time and skills to do this.” Ruth Simons, Executive Director for The Future of Howe Sound. Continue reading

The evidence is mounting that natural gas has no net climate benefit in any timescale that matters to humanity. In the real world, natural gas is not a “bridge” fuel to a carbon-free economy for two key reasons. Continue reading