By Victoria Leistman, Dirty Fuels Organizer
Join us in demanding Liberty Mutual, Chubb and AIG drop insurance coverage of the Trans Mountain pipeline and rule out insuring the entire tar sands sector.
Stop the Trans Mountain Pipeline!
For years, we in Washington supported First Nations legal fees against the Trans Mountain pipeline in a fundraising effort called Pull Together. We organized events and had a blast building community while we worked to stop the project. Our organizing worked...until Canada outright bought the pipeline.
Squamish, Tsleil Waututh and Coldwater First Nations worked for eight long years to assert their rights to be consulted on the Trans Mountain pipeline and tankers expansion project. It is incredibly disappointing that Canada’s top court has denied them an opportunity to be heard on a recent Court of Appeal decision upholding Trans Mountain’s approval - a decision that has potentially disastrous consequences specifically for these Nations. This denial also sets an adverse precedent in terms of rights to consultation for all First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples in Canada.
Even though these Pull Together cases are over for now, First Nations remain steadfast in their opposition and we will too. That’s why we're moving to make sure that this project doesn’t get the backing it needs to ever become a reality. Pipeline and tanker projects need insurance in order to operate -- so we’re intercepting executive's plans to push dirty fuels for profit.
Earlier this year, our friends at Rainforest Action Network got their hands on the list of insurance companies currently backing the project. The 11 companies have until August 31st to renew their contract with Trans Mountain.
In July, Zurich, one of the biggest insurers backing the Trans Mountain pipeline, backed out. Now, we’re focusing in on the three big US-based companies on the list: Liberty Mutual, Chubb and AIG. We need to make sure they are next to drop insurance coverage of the Trans Mountain pipeline and rule out insuring the entire tar sands sector.
The Trans Mountain (TMX) pipeline is a reckless project that would increase tanker traffic through shared Washington and British Columbia waters by seven hundred percent, endangering the already struggling Southern Resident orca population.
Tar sands pipelines are the epitome of risk: for Indigenous communities, waterways, the climate, and public health. But without insurance, new tar sands pipelines cannot be built, and existing infrastructure cannot continue to operate.
In the midst of a global pandemic, the fossil fuel industry is accelerating its planet-wrecking agenda. Despite social distancing measures, construction on TMX has already started. With construction comes the installment of “man camps” which have been linked to violence against Indigenous women and to the spread of COVID-19 in Native communities. The Tiny House Warriors on unceded Secwepemc Territory have been leading this part of the fight.
The shared Salish Sea, our tight-knit marine communities, the rights and survival of tribal nations, and our livelihoods are at risk. But, if these companies withdraw their financial support, it could spell the end for the Trans Mountain pipeline, and put any new tar sands projects on watch.
By preventing tar sands expansion, we can pave the way for large-scale, transformative change towards a renewable energy future. Together, we can make our vision of a green, equitable Washington state for all a reality. Public pressure like this works. Seven insurance companies have already adopted policies on tar sands.
Together, we can make Liberty Mutual, Chubb and AIG be next. Take action now!