LNG Tanker compared to large freighter currentlyusing Passamaquoddy Bay
Save Passamaquoddy Bay Canada (SPB-C) bills itself as the organization that "... was formed to inform Canadians of the LNG proposals for Passamaquoddy Bay – St. Croix Estuary, to provide a voice for Canadians who oppose these proposals, and to ensure that voice is exercised in appropriate fora." SPB-C was a rocky spin off of the original community organization Save Passamaquoddy Bay-USA which, together with its Passamaquoddy counterpart Nulankeyutomonen Nkihtahkomikumon ("We Take Care of Our Land") continues to do the heavy lifting and is actively engaged in the front-line battle against LNG along the Maine shore of Passamaquoddy Bay.
Unfortunately, at least 2 individual environmentalists who are perceived by many as representing a radical fringe position, were seen to be representing SPB-C at the Calais LNG scoping session last week. According to newspaper articles, they were accorded a less than friendly welcome by those in attendance; a further crumbling of the once co-operative international community that once circled the Bay.
While LNG proponents have been less than charitable in the past, SPB-C needs to broaden its community base if it ever wishes to cast off its image as a bunch of radicals that represent their own best interests not that of the community they purport to represent.
That said, SPB-C has certainly put together an impressive array of documents and submitted them to FERC. While I haven't had the time to review all of them, those that I checked appear to be well constructed and thoughtful expressions of concern relative to the Calais LNG proposal. Check the links below for the full list of submissions.
There's always room for your comments here. So let's hear them.
Cheers
Art
LNG FERC scoping letter - Calais 2008.DOC
Cultural Impacts of LNG in Bay.DOC
Ecological issues.PDF
Fisheries Issues.DOC
LNG impacts on lifestyle - Susan Lambert.PDF
Municipal.PDF
Navigation.PDF
Passamaquoddy Nation.DOC
Safety and Security paper - Jan Meiners.DOC
Tourism Impacts.DOC
STATEMENT of LESLEY PINDER.DOC
Composite photo created by Art MacKay. Original freighter photo from Bangor Daily News, LNG tanker from online source.
Well, I just received a request to change this post from a couple of old friends who felt that the two Canadians did an excellent job presenting our position and that they are fearful my comments might do the SPB cause some harm.
ReplyDeleteI was not present as I was recovering from a car accident, so I cannot comment on what actually happened. I did however read the articles in the press and frankly was not surprised by the reaction of some of our American friends. Some of them do tend to "be right" and they can be agressive I'ver discovered during my lifetime on the border. But my comments were, if you read carefully, more about the proponents, their actions, and their view that some of us are self-serving radicals than about the presenters.
I was pleased to hear that SPBC was "pulling together" since this was not always the case. Nevertheless, I stick by my statement that they would be wise to broaden their membership and participation. With the Bayside Quarry coming online and the likelihood that at least one if not both of the original LNG promoters will re-emerge, they still have a few fences to mend to provided a truly united front.
More particularly, this is about international community impacts not about this organization or that organization. I commend St. Andrews, Mayor Craig, his council, and the many citizens for their vigorous stand against LNG and the Quarry expansion at Bayside. Unfortunately the folks from other communities are dreadfully quite. Since this will ultimately be up to the communities, let's hear more from everyone.
Actually, I'm setting up a poll where everyone can express their position.