Protest the Pipeline, Delay Clean Energy and Injure the Economy

BURNABY, British Columbia - April 3, 2018 - PRLog -- Looking at all of the bi-products of the petroleum industry in addition to direct and associated employment, spending, investments and taxes, we need to ensure the bigger picture is clear. If everyone stopped using petroleum products tomorrow, the world economy would be in a crisis never seen before. Not just oil producing countries, but the entire world.

There is no doubt that we need to take steps to phase out reliance on fossil fuels and reduce the impact we are having on our environment and climate change. We have generations of abuse to the environment which can not be dismissed or minimised. However, to stop all expansion of pipelines and oil production without enough viable and available alternatives would not only fail, it would set us back to a position of inability to expand environmentally responsible methods of power and alternate manufacturing which would replace the fossil fuels and bi-products.

A large amount of alternative energy comes from money directly or indirectly with revenues generated from oil and petroleum. Tax breaks for research and development are available through taxes at local, provincial and federal levels, import and export taxes, environmental levies and carbon taxes, resource royalties collected from each barrel, and the list goes on. If we reduce the immediate supply, it is going to put oil prices higher, taxes are already impacting citizens and will only cause more problems in the short and long term.

Less efficient and more dangerous methods of getting the oil to market will undoubtedly feed the agenda of activists, as they continue to use any spill or incident to grandstand and further their argument against pipeline expansions. Some politicians know that the pipelines are required and yet they use the protests to, in my opinion, make themselves appear to be on the endless fight for environmental stewardship. Look at how protesters are arrested and processed. Now Google the politician, Theresa May at the Burnaby, BC pipeline protests. She was arm in arm with the RCMP officers and surrounded by at least a half dozen other RCMP members. She is no violent criminal but it was more of a PR move than it was an arrest. She told reporters as she was being walked away with the police that she was not going to answer questions but went on with an obvious prepared speech on her way to the RCMP tent.

We need pipelines for safer transport of oil products. We need the revenue and jobs associated with the industry. We require the products which are manufactured with petroleum products. We need to move quicker towards saving the environment and reliance on alternative sources but we must do so responsibly and with a clear plan. This includes the ability to fund the actions which will get us there.

A simple look at the economic impact of the current and historic oil production interruptions, delays in getting products to market, processing problems, impacts of less safe means of oil delivery and the like on economies and employment rates in these situations. Look at US States and Canadian provinces suffering from low oil prices and delays in pipeline expansions. Many o those protesting can not see the immediate impact their actions are causing while delaying the goal of all sides to move towards sustainability and environmental recovery.

Photos courtesy of http://www.propicscanada.com