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In yesterday’s post I called into question the value of environmental initiatives that allowed corporate sponsors to participate. It seems to me (and perhaps I am being overly cynical) that big businesses like HP (advertized on the Earth Hour website) are piggybacking on popularist environmental campagins that lack real force. Having thought about it however, I must allow that the efforts of a company like Google have the potential for significant impact. Google is so frequently visited by people from a vast diversity of social groups that it even has its own verb. As millions of people logged on to “Google” it today, they were reminded of the role they could play. So, while this is still far from a solution, the fact that it reaches so many and invites them to participate in the dialog is a good thing.
Interestingly one of the enviroblogs that I like to read, No Impact Man, ran a post recently that takes up the issue of corporate involvment in greenwashing tomorrow.
From this image posted on Lightpollution.org it looks like every little bit can only help.
Tonight at 8p.m. the lights go out. Scattered inhabitants of wealthy nations flick the switch and spend an hour playing ‘power out’. This is perhaps unfairly pessimistic. Truth be told, I am torn on initiatives like Earth Hour, Live Aid, and Buy Nothing Day. It’s true that they do help to raise a great deal of awareness about the immanent crises we face as a species. Where would we be if Al Gore hadn’t stepped forward with An Inconvenient Truth? What ever you think of the man himself, or the style of his approach, you can’t deny that he won some serious face time for climate change.
The problem I have with these sorts of movements is that they can all too easily become a way for us to feel good about ourselves for having taken action without actually having done anything. At the root of climate change is our culture’s addiction to consumption, serviced by fossil fuels. In order to provide cheap consumer goods to wealthy post-industrial societies developing nations are subjugated and exploited. That merchandise is then shipped and trucked vast distances in order to bring it to the suburban market. Until we change this system of conspicuous consumption, climate change will remain a clear and present danger. So while wearing a wrist band can be a great way of acknowledging a problem, like the make poverty history campaign, it is not itself a solution.
A real solution to climate change is predicated on a cultural paradigm shift. Such a drastic recasting of our normative values can hardly supposed to come from the mainstream. If you are not aware that the majority of media is controlled by corporate interests then you have been living under a very large, very heavy rock. It is no secret that a capitalist venture has one prime interest, which is profit. The present social structures are dominated by this unquenchable thirst for profit. How can we expect the robber barons who suckle at the teat of big business, to endorse a movement that demands an end to the orgiastic feeding? At the very least we should be highly suspicious of any campaign which advertises corporate sponsors.
Despite my misgivings over the effectiveness of such campaigns I will no doubt be sitting in the dark tonight at 8. I hope you will too.
Just a quick post. Saw, for the first time on the highway, a car running biodiesel. I a
ssume they were running bioD. It was a sexy black Mercedes whose license plate read CANOLA. It is still snowing in Saint John, so winter conditions are obviously manageable. It was funny how you could actually smell the difference, even there in rush hour traffic.
I was inspired to do some quick poking around and found this CBC article from 2006 about Eastern Greenway Oils. This Northern New Brunswick company is trying to make a go of a commercial biodiesel company right here in NB. I’ll have to look into it some more and see how things have come along since the article was published.
In current news, a meeting was held in Pitt Meadows to allow the community to talk to a company who is seeking to set up Micro Hydro plants on the Upper Pitt River. A thousand community members crowded into a school gymnasium to take part. The response seems to be overwhelmingly against the establishment of these M/H power stations. Concerns that they will damage fish stokes, lower water levels, and scar a national park are among the issues the company was confronted with.
The Outdoor Recreations Council of B.C. just issued a list of the most endangered rivers in B.C. and ranks the Upper Pitt as number 1. Earthwild also released a list in 2002, of the . Pay attention New Brunswick, two of these are in our province (Petticodiac, St. Lawrence).
Congratulations to the members of the Pitt Meadows for taking the initiative, showing up, and demanding that a hunger for “power” not be privileged over the environment which sustains us.
A friend of mine at the call center where I work was telling me that she has a real problem with squirrels eating all of the apples that are produced by her trees. When I asked what she was thinking about doing to them she looked at me as though I were a bit slow and said, “shoot them”.
Let me make this clear, I’m not squeamish about killing things if that is what needs to be done. What floored me is the lack of thought that this woman, who I know to be a generous and compassionate individual, was willing to put into resolving what she percieved as a pest problem.
I decided to use this as an opportunity to apply some permaculture theory. According to the principals laid out by individuals like David Holmgren and Bill Mollison, species only become pests when the environment in which they’re living is being inproperly managed.
So I set myself to the quick task of learning some alternate methods of squirrell control. When I say quick I’m not kidding. It took me not five minuets to compile the following list.
1. Feed them some peanuts and give them water. They love peanuts much more than apples.
2. Coyote urine. put it around your entire property maybe even your neighbors. The stuff isn’t cheap but if you are clever you can find ways to stretch it.
3. Jerry Baker, garden “expert” claimed the squirrels are just thirsty and that if you keep a bird bath full of water nearby, they will not eat the apples.
4. pepper spray. Spray it as close to the nests as possible.
5. tying a cat or dog out to guard your tree
6. Attach a 2-3 ft wide metal collar/baffle around the trunk about 6 ft. up from the ground. Use one that is fastened with springs to allow for expansion as the tree trunk grows.
7. If possible, remove branches less than 6 ft from the ground and those that come within 6 ft of other trees or buildings.
8. If squirrels are using a telephone or cable wire to access you tree, you can slip a plastic disk or some 10-inch PVC tubing over the wire to prevent squirrels from crossing it. CAUTION: DO NOT do this to power lines! It’s very dangerous!
9. Live traps are very effective for particularly pesky squirrels or chipmunks. However, don’t expect to control a whole population with trapping — there are always more squirrels and chipmunks waiting to move in.
10. put a electric radio under a 5 gallon pail and turned on the music to a country and western station.
So there you go 10 ways to deal with squirrel’s, no of which is remeniscent of Yosemite Sam. You may have some questions after readign that list. I know I did. How do they extract coyote urine? (Why didn’t my career counciler ever tell me about that golden job market!?) Or, how do you make a squirrel baffle? There are lots of tips online for making various types of baffles for varioius occasions. They all pretty much look like the attached photo. As for Coyote urine, don’t ask me how they do it but you can buy it here: http://www.predatorpee.com/.
The last day or so I’ve been trying to recouperate after a marathon of imposed insomnia. My schedule didn’t allow for more than a nap for three days straight. At the time it just had the effect of making me giddy and numb, but now I feel thoroughly depleted.
My two days off were a bit of a bust. It remains to be seen how many people will use easter as a reason to explore the tangled web of Windows Genuine Advantage at 3:00 in the morning. So far it has been steady, but seems to have died off. Which means I should be digging in to Book 1 of Edmund Spencer’s Fairy Queene. In the not too distant future I’m supposed to be writing a final paper, as well as an exame, on those chivalric alexandrines.
Yes its that time of year when students start to sweat. Finals. Honestly, I’m feeling like a bit of a burnout. I know that there are papers to write and lit to read, but I can’t make myself think about it. Stagefright maybe? It has been a gruelling semester, it would make sense that I would be feeling a little lackluster.
Whatever you’re into (theatre, music, film, the environment, politics) its nice to know that there are people in your community who share your interests. Just knowing that you can walk out your door and have a oldschool analog chat with someone who reps the same brand of geek that you do, is exilierating. That’s why I was so glad to hear about these folks, http://www.unbf.ca/clubs/ENVS/. If Saint John needed yet another reason for keeping the university, let it be clubs and interest groups. There is also the Greenpages , which could be a great locus for New Brunswick environmental resources.
It is no secret that Irving Oil owns the province of New Brunswick. Evidence of their monopoly are evident all over the city of Saint John. I must admit to being a little surprised that they would be willing to let BP have a share. Rest assured I will have plenty to say about this as the situation develops. For now let it suffice to say that this project is just another example of the ostrich syndrome that
North Americans suffer from so ubiquitously. This province should be leading the way in alternatives, instead we are voluntarily increasing our addiction to toxic corporations like Irving Oil.
North Americans suffer from so ubiquitously. This province should be leading the way in alternatives, instead we are voluntarily increasing our addiction to toxic corporations like Irving Oil.
BP Joins Irving Oil in Proposed Eider Rock Refinery Project
March 17, 2008
(Saint John, NB) - International oil major BP and regional refiner and marketer Irving Oil have entered into a Memorandum of Understanding to work together on the next phase of engineering, design, and feasibility for the proposed Eider Rock refinery in Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada. BP will contribute US$40 million as its share of funding for this stage of the study and the two companies will also investigate the possibility of forming a joint venture to build the refinery should they decide to proceed.
Irving Oil conducted initial feasibility work and informal public consultation in 2006, and has been engaged since January 2007 in permitting, public consultation, and engineering design for the proposed 300,000 barrel per day refinery. The refinery would be situated close to Irving Oil’s existing 300,000 barrel per day refinery and the existing Irving Canaport deepwater crude oil terminal which receives VLCC cargoes of crude oil and is located 65 miles (105 km) from the US border.
This next phase of engineering, design and feasibility work, combined with ongoing permitting and community engagement activities represents over US$100 million of investment over the next 12-15 months.
“We are excited that a company of BP’s calibre sees the potential in our region and in this project to meet the need for a reliable and secure supply of refined products for the north east,” said Kenneth Irving. “BP brings international expertise and crude supply, but what really drew us to partner with BP was the cultural fit with our company and our shared belief that the world has changed when it comes to matters that relate to environmental performance and security of supply. Our shared belief on the future of energy will increase the potential of this project.”
“This refinery project is of great interest to BP because of its ideal location close to the markets of the north eastern US where product supplies are increasingly in deficit,” said Iain Conn, chief executive of BP’s refining and marketing business. “BP is keen to develop projects which enhance the energy security of Canada and the US. Irving Oil has a well-deserved leading reputation in refining for the east coast. The two companies have a good track record of working together and we are pleased to be jointly undertaking the feasibility work on this exciting opportunity.”
“This project would support the further development of the New Brunswick energy hub and the refining industry on the east coast,” said Kevin Scott, Irving Oil’s Director of Refining Growth. “We will continue to follow the rigourous permitting process outlined by our Federal and Provincial Governments, and we will continue to consult our community to ensure that, if the project proceeds, it will be one the community can be proud of.”
A final investment decision is not expected before 2009 and, although the final costings will only be clear once all the detailed engineering and design work is completed, the refinery is expected to cost at least US$7 billion. If permitting approval is received and an investment decision is made to proceed, site preparation would begin in 2010, and full scale construction would begin in 2011 with start-up expected in 2015. Irving Oil has committed to using the best available proven technology to develop a refinery with leading environmental performance and economic efficiency.
About BP
BP is one of the world’s largest oil and gas companies with operations in more than 100 countries across six continents. The company’s main businesses are exploration and production of oil and gas; refining, manufacturing and marketing of oil products and petrochemicals; transportation and marketing of natural gas; and BP Alternative Energy, a growing business in renewable and low-carbon power and next generation energy technologies. Further information is available at: www.bp.com andwww.bpalternativenergy.com
About Irving Oil
Irving Oil is the regional refiner and marketer with a history of long-term relationships and partnerships. The company serves the US Northeast and Eastern Canadian markets, and currently operates Canada’s largest refinery in Saint John, New Brunswick. The Saint John 300,000 barrel per day refinery is situated close to diverse crude sources and is the closest refinery to the US Northeast. It accounts for 75% of Canada’s petroleum product exports to the US, 45% of all clean petroleum products north of New York, and 20% of all US gasoline and diesel imports. Irving Oil and Repsol YPF are currently completing construction of Canada’s first LNG regasification terminal. The Canaport LNG terminal will have an initial send-out capacity of 1 billion cubic feet per day (1bcf/d), and is expected to be operational by the end of this year. Irving Oil was the first oil company to win an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Clear Air Excellence Award, for its clean gasolines. For more information, visitwww.irvingoil.com
My new year’s resolution was to blog once a week, which as you can see has not happened. My partner, Jenn, and I have recently been talking about getting more serious about the whole blog thing and it looks like we might undertake a more comprehensive approach in the near future. Meanwhile, I have finals to think about. I’m looking forward to getting this whole degree thing out of the way and getting on with life. That question of what life is going to consist of for my family and I has been at the forefront of my thoughts recently. As Jenn and I get ready to purchase a house and move out of the city, we are faced with the reality of how our decisions affect our future. All told I am very excited about what lay in store.
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