Tag Archives: Canada

Protesters block entrance to Canadian mine in Guatemala City. Photo: Radio Mundo Real. Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported (CC BY-SA 3.0) license. Extractive industries | Radio Mundo Real | Water |

Not one step back

Guatemala: Resistance to mining in San José del Golfo continues despite repression

Radio Mundo Real

December 11, 2012

In the early morning of Thursday, December 6, the Guatemalan riot police repressed, beat up and kidnapped members of the community of San José del Golfo and San Pedro Ayampuc near Guatemala City, who have been on a vigil for ten months to block the mining equipment of the company Exmingua.

Even though there were no formal accusations against them, the police officers ordered the community members to leave the place or they would destroy the precarious shelters placed on the side of the road where every day they produce food for nearly 200 people while they take turns to protest.

Milton Carrera, one of the community members who was arrested at the place, told Real World Radio that the police operation was illegal. They had no chance to defend themselves and said they were incommunicado for six hours, which is equivalent to kidnapping in his opinion.

“This was all based on false accusations,” said Milton. “They almost strangled me.” During the eviction, the police threw tear gas at the people, and they beat up elderly people and even children, said Milton. He added that “We are living under a repressive government, nothing is respected: there was no eviction warrant from a judge nor from President Otto Pérez Molina or from the Minister of Interior.”

He also said that the Minister of Interior of Guatemala, Mauricio López Bonilla publicly threatened to expel the foreigners who are fighting against mining with the communities because of the lack of water in the area and the large demand for the resource by the extractive industry. “We need more international human rights observers to confront the military government,” said Milton.

A month ago, an international delegation of the environmental federation Friends of the Earth visited the resistance camp and expressed its solidarity and commitment to raise international awareness about their struggle and objectives.

Carrera said that on Sunday, December 9, the community decided in an assembly to continue the protest until the very end. “The struggle continues, we will stay here and the people are willing to die for this cause. If (the government) wants to talk, they should come to Puya. We shall not move from there, not one step back.”

Original article published by Radio Mundo Real in English | Español

Supreme Court of Canada, Ottawa. Photo: Mike Buckthought. 2012 Media releases | Environmental justice |

Supreme Court decision leaves taxpayers with the bill for cleaning up AbitibiBowater’s pollution

For immediate release

(Ottawa, December 7, 2012) The Supreme Court of Canada released its decision today in Newfoundland and Labrador v. AbitibiBowater Inc. et al., which addresses the legal obligations of insolvent companies with respect to contaminated sites.

Friends of the Earth, represented by legal counsel from Ecojustice and Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP, intervened in the case to argue that the law requires that insolvent corporations retain their environmental obligations through a restructuring and must not burden taxpayers with the costs of cleaning up contaminated sites.

The Supreme Court decided that remediation orders, which required AbitibiBowater (now Resolute Forest Products) to clean up after years of pollution, are equivalent to private financial claims under insolvency law. The end result is that taxpayers will bear much of the financial and environmental costs associated with cleaning up Abitibi’s industrial sites.

Beatrice Olivastri, CEO, Friends of the Earth observed, “The Supreme Court missed an important opportunity to affirm the correct application of the ‘polluter pays’ principle in insolvency proceedings. The Court’s decision effectively limits a polluter’s liability to what it can pay as part of a compromise it designed, not out of the billions (in this case) in profit going forward.”

This ground-breaking case represents the first time Canada’s insolvency law has confronted the polluter pays principle — in this case, for historic contamination by AbitibiBowater’s mining, shipping, and pulp and paper operations in Newfoundland and Labrador. The company filed for insolvency protection in 2009, leaving a toxic legacy of heavy metals and other hazardous chemicals.

When companies fail, the typical result is that communities and governments must deal with pollution clean-up costs. Friends of the Earth believes that corporations must be made to disclose the clean-up costs for their contamination — historic and continuing — in financial reports on an ongoing basis. “They should not be allowed to pass the buck on to taxpayers, leaving a toxic burden for communities when a plant shuts down,” says Olivastri.

“The Supreme Court has delivered a clear message: if the federal and provincial governments are not proactively issuing remediation orders, then taxpayers risk being left with the cleanup costs after companies file for insolvency protection. Remediation orders must be issued and acted upon before a company goes under,” says Ecojustice lawyer Will Amos.

“In the context of a natural resource economy, protecting the environment also means protecting future resource-based industry,” says Graham Phoenix of Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP. “To draw an analogy to the environmental law principle of intergenerational equity: the businesses of today must be good stewards of the environment for the businesses of tomorrow. If not, we are ensuring not only a legacy of environmental contamination but also a stagnant economic future.”

“This decision proves that federal insolvency laws require significant reform so that they don’t serve to protect companies and investors at the expense of taxpayers and environmental protection. The Companies Creditors Arrangement Act must be amended by Parliament so that taxpayers are not left holding the bag when companies go insolvent,” says Hugh Wilkins of Ecojustice. “Polluter pays is about corporate liability. The fundamental objective of the polluter pays principle is to ensure the polluter internalizes the environmental costs of business. Taxpayers should not be left with clean-up costs for toxic legacies from abandoned mines and mills.”

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The polluter pays principle is among the most important environmental law concepts in Canada. It is the basic idea behind clean-up orders, penalties and cost recovery decisions. Implementing polluter pays involves polluters taking responsibility for remedying contamination for which they are responsible and imposes on them the direct and immediate costs of pollution. As pioneers advocating for this principle to be put into practice, Friends of the Earth, represented by legal counsel at Ecojustice, intervened in one of the earliest, precedent-setting polluter pay cases in Canada — Imperial Oil Ltd v. Quebec (Minister of the Environment) — in 2003.

Background information:

Media release, November 16, 2011
Friends of the Earth, Ecojustice ask Supreme Court to respect polluter pays principle
http://foecanada.org/en/2011/11/respect-polluter-pays-principle/

Supreme Court of Canada Decision
http://scc.lexum.org/decisia-scc-csc/scc-csc/scc-csc/en/item/12749/index.do

Friends of the Earth Factum
http://foecanada.org/en/files/2012/12/factum-intervener-foe-canada-abitibibowater.pdf

Background / chronology — Polluter Pays: Newfoundland and Labrador v. AbitibiBowater Inc.
http://foecanada.org/en/2012/12/polluter-pays-newfoundland-and-labrador-abitibibowater/

For more information, contact:

Beatrice Olivastri
Friends of the Earth Canada
Email: beatrice [at] foecanada.org
Tel: (613) 241-0085 ext. 26

William Amos
Ecojustice Environmental Law Clinic
Email: wamos [at] ecojustice.ca
Tel: (613) 562-5800 ext. 3378

R. Graham Phoenix
Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP
Email: gphoenix [at] fasken.com
Tel: (416) 865-4511

Hugh S. Wilkins
Ecojustice Canada
Email: hwilkins [at] ecojustice.ca
Tel: (416) 368-7533 ext. 534

Friends of the Earth Canada is the Canadian member of Friends of the Earth International, the world’s largest grassroots environmental network campaigning on today’s most urgent environmental and social issues. foecanada.org

Ecojustice is a non-profit charitable organization dedicated to defending Canadians’ right to a healthy environment. We defend Canada’s environment through law. We have one planet and we believe it is our collective responsibility to take care of it. www.ecojustice.ca

Cour suprême du Canada, Ottawa. Photo : Mike Buckthought. 2012 Media releases | Environmental justice |

La décision de la Cour suprême laisse aux contribuables la facture de nettoyage de la pollution d’AbitibiBowater

Pour diffusion immédiate

(Ottawa, le 7 décembre 2012) La Cour suprême du Canada a rendu aujourd’hui sa décision dans la cause Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador c. AbitibiBowater Inc. et al., qui porte sur les obligations légales des entreprises insolvables à l’égard de sites contaminés.

Les Ami(e)s de la Terre, représenté par des avocats d’Écojustice et de Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP, est intervenu dans cette affaire en faisant valoir que la loi exige que les sociétés insolvables conservent leurs obligations environnementales au-delà d’une restructuration et qu’elles ne transfèrent pas aux contribuables le fardeau des coûts de nettoyage de sites contaminés.

La Cour suprême a décidé que les ordonnances de remise en état, qui exigent d’AbitibiBowater (maintenant « Produits forestiers Résolu ») de nettoyer ses sites après des années de pollution, équivalent à des créances privées en vertu du droit de l’insolvabilité. Le résultat final est que les contribuables devront écoper de la majeure partie des coûts financiers et environnementaux associés au nettoyage des sites industriels d’AbitibiBowater.

Selon Beatrice Olivastri, présidente-directrice générale des Ami(e)s de la Terre, « La Cour suprême vient de rater une occasion importante de valider la bonne application du principe du “pollueur-payeur” dans les procédures d’insolvabilité. La décision de la Cour pour effet de limiter la responsabilité d’un pollueur à ce que celui-ci accepte de payer dans le cadre d’un compromis qu’il a conçu, plutôt qu’à partir des milliards de dollars de profit (dans ce cas) qu’il va encaisser en allant de l’avant. »

Cette cause crée un précédent : c’est la première fois où le droit canadien de l’insolvabilité au Canada est confronté au principe du pollueur-payeur — dans ce cas-ci au sujet d’une contamination historique de Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador par les activités d’exploitation minière, d’expédition et de fabrication de papier de l’entreprise AbitibiBowater. La société a demandé la protection des tribunaux en vertu des lois sur l’insolvabilité en 2009, laissant dans l’environnement un héritage toxique de métaux lourds et autres produits chimiques dangereux.

Lorsque les entreprises échouent, le résultat habituel est que les communautés et les gouvernements doivent assumer les coûts de nettoyage de leur pollution. Les Ami(e)s de la Terre estiment que les entreprises doivent être forcées à divulguer sur une base continue les coûts de dépollution pour leur contamination — historique et continue — dans leurs rapports financiers annuels. « Elles ne devraient pas être autorisées à se décharger de cette responsabilité sur les contribuables, ce qui laisse un fardeau toxique aux communautés quand une usine ferme ses portes », ajoute Madame Olivastri.

« La Cour suprême vient de livrer un message clair : si les gouvernements fédéral et provinciaux ne se montrent pas proactifs dans l’émission d’ordonnances d’assainissement, puis les contribuables risquent d’écoper des coûts de nettoyage dès qu’une entreprise réclame la protection des lois sur l’insolvabilité. Ces ordonnances d’assainissement doivent être émises et exécutées avant qu’une entreprise déclare faillite », explique l’avocat d’Écojustice Will Amos.

« Dans le contexte d’une économie des ressources naturelles, la protection de l’environnement signifie aussi protéger l’avenir des industries axées sur les ressources », ajoute Graham Phoenix de Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP. « Pour faire une analogie avec le principe de l’équité intergénérationnelle en droit de l’environnement, les entreprises d’aujourd’hui doivent être de bons intendants de l’environnement en pensant aux entreprises de demain. Sinon, nous faisons en sorte de garantir non seulement un héritage de contamination de l’environnement mais aussi un avenir de stagnation économique. »

« Cette décision prouve que les lois fédérales sur l’insolvabilité exigent une réforme importante de sorte qu’elles ne servent pas à protéger les entreprises et les investisseurs au détriment des contribuables et de la protection de l’environnement. La Loi sur les arrangements avec les créanciers des compagnies doit être modifiée par le Parlement afin que les contribuables n’aient pas à payer les pots cassés lorsque des entreprises deviennent insolvables », explique Hugh Wilkins, d’Écojustice. « Le principe du pollueur-payeur est sur la responsabilité des entreprises. L’objectif fondamental du principe pollueur-payeur est fondé sur la responsabilité corporative. L’objectif fondamental de ce principe est de s’assurer que le pollueur internalise les coûts environnementaux de l’entreprise. Les contribuables ne devraient pas se retrouver avec les coûts de dépollution liés aux legs toxiques des mines et des usines abandonnées. »

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Le principe du pollueur-payeur est l’un des concepts les plus importants du droit de l’environnement au Canada. C’est l’idée de base qui sous-tend les ordonnances de nettoyage, les sanctions et les décisions de recouvrement des coûts. La mise en œuvre de ce principe implique que les pollueurs assument la responsabilité de remédier à toute contamination dont ils sont responsables et leur impose les coûts directs et immédiats de la pollution. En tant que pionniers plaidant pour que ce principe soit mis en pratique, Les Ami(e)s de la Terre, représentés par un avocat d’Écojustice, sont intervenus dans l’une des toutes premières causes de pollueur-payeur à avoir fait précédent au Canada — Cie pétrolière Impériale ltée c. Québec (Ministre de l’Environnement), en 2003.

Informations générales :

Communiqué de presse, le 16 novembre 2011
« Friends of the Earth, Ecojustice ask Supreme Court to respect polluter pays principle »
http://foecanada.org/en/2011/11/respect-polluter-pays-principle/

La décision de la Cour suprême du Canada
http://scc.lexum.org/decisia-scc-csc/scc-csc/scc-csc/fr/item/12749/index.do

Le mémoire déposé par Les Ami(e)s de la Terre
http://foecanada.org/en/files/2012/12/factum-intervener-foe-canada-abitibibowater.pdf

Contexte / chronologie — pollueur-payeur: Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador c.
AbitibiBowater Inc.
http://foecanada.org/en/2012/12/polluter-pays-newfoundland-and-labrador-abitibibowater/

Pour plus de renseignements :

Beatrice Olivastri
Les Ami(e)s de la Terre Canada
Courriel : beatrice [at] foecanada.org
Tél : (613) 241-0085 poste 26

William Amos
Clinique de droit environnemental d’Écojustice
Courriel : wamos [at] ecojustice.ca
Tél : (613) 562-5800 poste 3378

R. Graham Phoenix
Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP
Courriel : gphoenix [at] fasken.com
Tél : (416) 865-4511

Hugh S. Wilkins
Écojustice Canada
Courriel : hwilkins [at] ecojustice.ca
Tél : (416) 368-7533 ext. 534

Les Ami(e)s de la Terre Canada est le membre canadien de Les Amis de la Terre International, le plus grand réseau écologiste mondial, qui mène campagne sur les questions environnementales et sociales contemporaines les plus urgentes. foecanada.org

Écojustice est une organisation à but non lucratif vouée à la défense du droit des Canadiens et des Canadiennes à un environnement sain. Nous défendons au moyen du droit l’environnement au Canada. Nous n’avons qu’une planète et nous croyons qu’il relève de notre responsabilité collective d’en prendre soin. www.ecojustice.ca

Environmental justice |

Polluter Pays: Newfoundland and Labrador v. AbitibiBowater Inc.

AbitibiBowater mill in Grand Falls-Windsor, Newfoundland and Labrador. Photo: William Munoz. Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic (CC BY 2.0) license.

AbitibiBowater mill in Grand Falls-Windsor, Newfoundland and Labrador. Photo: William Munoz. Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic (CC BY 2.0) license.

On December 7, the Supreme Court of Canada is expected to announce a decision on the case of Newfoundland and Labrador v. AbitibiBowater Inc. et al (now known as Resolute Forest Products).

This ground-breaking legal case represents the first time Canada’s insolvency law has dealt with the polluter pays principle — in this case, for historic contamination by AbitibiBowater’s mining, shipping and pulp and paper operations in Newfoundland and Labrador. The company filed for insolvency protection in 2008, leaving a toxic legacy of heavy metals and other hazardous chemicals.

AbitibiBowater’s sites in Newfoundland and Labrador. OpenStreetMap, Creative Commons CC BY-SA 2.0 license.

AbitibiBowater’s sites in Newfoundland and Labrador. OpenStreetMap, Creative Commons CC BY-SA 2.0 license.

Friends of the Earth, represented by Ecojustice, intervened to argue that insolvent corporations must fulfill their environmental obligations and not pass the full cost of environmental cleanups on to taxpayers.

The polluter pays principle is among the most important environmental law concepts in Canada. It is the basic idea behind clean-up orders, penalties and cost recovery decisions. Implementing polluter pays involves polluters taking responsibility for remedying contamination for which they are responsible and imposes on them the direct and immediate costs of pollution.

As pioneers advocating for this principle to be put into practice, Friends of the Earth represented by legal counsel at Ecojustice, intervened in one of the earliest, precedent-setting polluter pay cases in Canada — Imperial Oil Ltd v. Quebec (Minister of the Environment) — in 2003.

Chronology

Key dates in the lead up to the December 7, 2012 decision by the Supreme Court of Canada

Date Event
December 4, 2008

AbitibiBowater announces that it will close its paper mill in Grand Falls-Windsor at the end of March 2009.1

1 “AbitibiBowater may take legal action over N.L. expropriation of assets,” CBC News, December 17, 2008.

December 16, 2008

Newfoundland and Labrador legislature passes legislation to expropriate AbitibiBowater’s assets. The legislation allows AbitibiBowater to continue operating the mill in Grand Falls-Windsor until the end of March, 2009.2

Abitibi-Consolidated’s timber licenses and water use rights were cancelled, and these rights reverted to the Crown. The Act also expropriated the company’s land, assets, and easements, including transmission lines, poles and associated facilities. Assets that were expropriated included the Millertown Dam, Bishop’s Falls Power House, Buchans Dam, Goodyears Dam, Grand Falls Power Plant, and control structures. The Act included a provision addressing the company’s environmental contamination: “Nothing in this Act affects the liability of Abitibi-Consolidated related to undertakings made by it in relation to environmental remediation.” 3

2 “AbitibiBowater may take legal action over N.L. expropriation of assets,” CBC News, December 17, 2008.

3 Abitibi-Consolidated Rights and Assets Act, December 16, 2008.
December 19, 2008

AbitibiBowater sends a letter to Premier Danny Williams, warning that it will file a trade complaint if the province proceeds with the expropriation of its assets.4

4 “Abitibi says Newfoundland expropriation illegal,” Reuters, December 19, 2008.
March 28, 2009

AbitibiBowater shuts its Grand Falls-Windsor paper mill, and 800 workers lose their jobs.5

5 “AbitibiBowater workers finish final shifts at N.L. paper mill,” CBC News, March 27, 2009.

April 16, 2009

AbitibiBowater files for bankruptcy protection under Chapter 11 of U.S. bankruptcy legislation in a Delaware court. The company says it will file for bankruptcy protection in a Canadian court the following day.6

6 “AbitibiBowater files for bankruptcy protection,” CBC News, April 16, 2009.
February 25, 2010

AbitibiBowater files a complaint under Chapter 11 of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) over the expropriation of its Newfoundland assets by the provincial government. It seeks $500 million in compensation, alleging that the expropriation was unfair and discriminatory.7

7 Bertrand Marotte, “AbitibiBowater fights Danny Williams with NAFTA challenge,“ Globe and Mail, February 25, 2010.
August 24, 2010

NAFTA settlement announced. The federal government will pay a $130-million settlement, and AbitibiBowater will withdraw its claim under the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).8 9

8 Daniel MacEachern, “Feds to pay AbitibiBowater $130M over expropriation,” The Telegram, August 25, 2010.

9 “Feds to pay AbitibiBowater $130 million over Newfoundland expropriation,” Toronto Star/Canadian Press, August 24, 2010.
November 25, 2010

The Supreme Court of Canada agrees to hear Newfoundland and Labrador’s appeal of a ruling that favoured AbitibiBowater. The province wants AbitibiBowater to pay for the environmental cleanup costs at five sites.10

10 “AbitibiBowater appeal heads to Supreme Court,” CBC News, November 25, 2010.
November 16, 2011

Friends of the Earth, represented by Ecojustice, appears before the Supreme Court of Canada to argue that insolvent corporations cannot shift the cost of cleaning up environmental contamination to the taxpayer.11 12 13

11 “Friends of the Earth, Ecojustice ask Supreme Court to respect polluter pays principle,” Friends of the Earth Canada/Ecojustice, November 16, 2011.

12 Webcast of the hearing on November 16, 2011, Supreme Court of Canada.

13 Supreme Court of Canada case information: Factums.
December 7, 2012

The Supreme Court of Canada will deliver its judgment in the appeal in the case of Her Majesty the Queen in Right of the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador v. AbitibiBowater Inc. et al.14

14 “Judgment to be Rendered in Appeal,” Supreme Court of Canada, December 3, 2012.
Solar panels in Eastern Ontario. Photo: Mike Buckthought. Photo taken with a solar-powered camera. 2012 Media releases | Climate and energy |

Ontario opinion poll shows solid support for green energy, strong opposition to WTO ruling

Opinion poll released as solar industry meets at convention in Toronto

Ottawa, December 3, 2012 — A new opinion poll commissioned by Friends of the Earth Canada shows overwhelming support for green energy in Ontario, and strong opposition to the World Trade Organization (WTO)’s meddling in buy local programs that create thousands of green jobs for Ontarians.

The survey conducted by Oraclepoll Research found that 83% of Ontarians believe it is important to have more renewable, green energy in Ontario to deal with climate change and help reduce record levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. Only 11% of respondents believe that it is not important to take action.

The survey also found that there is strong opposition to the WTO’s recent challenge of Ontario’s buy local green energy policies. Almost three-quarters (73%) of respondents feel that the WTO should not be able to override Ontario’s plans to encourage investment in green energy, while only 27% believe that it should.

“This opinion poll shows that there is overwhelming support for green energy in Ontario. This strong support should translate into action — governments should encourage the transition to solar and wind power to help reduce record levels of greenhouse gases,” says Beatrice Olivastri, CEO, Friends of the Earth Canada.

“Almost three-quarters of Ontarians believe that the WTO should not be able to override Ontario’s plans to create green jobs for people in Ontario. We urge the provincial and federal governments to challenge the WTO’s ruling. Canadians should be allowed to support our own green energy manufacturers, and not be forced to rely on solar panels imported from other countries,” says Olivastri.

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For more information

Beatrice Olivastri, CEO, Friends of the Earth Canada, (613) 241-0085 x26, (613) 724-8690 (cell), beatrice [at] foecanada.org, foecanada.org

The Oraclepoll Research survey was commissioned by Friends of the Earth Canada and conducted on November 21–23, 2012. A total of 1,000 people were surveyed, with a margin of error of +/- 3.1%, 19/20 times. For more details visit Friends of the Earth’s website at foecanada.org.

Read the results of the Ontario green energy opinion poll.

Sign the online letter — voice your support for green energy in Ontario.

Friends of the Earth Canada is the Canadian member of Friends of the Earth International, the world’s largest grassroots environmental network campaigning on today’s most urgent environmental and social issues.

2012 Media releases | Climate and energy |

Results of the Ontario green energy opinion poll

November 2012
Ontario omnibus survey report

By: Oraclepoll Research
For: Friends of the Earth / Les Ami(e)s de la Terre
November 24, 2012

Methodology and logistics

Study sample

  • This report represents the findings from an omnibus survey of 1,000 voting age residents (18 years of age or older) in Ontario.
  • The results provided in this report were from questions commissioned by Friends of Earth.
  • Interviews were conducted between the days of November 21st to November 23rd 2012.
  • The results presented in this report may not always add up to 100% due to rounding.

Confidence

  • The margin of error for this 1,000-person survey is +/- 3.1%, 19/20 times.

Survey method

  • The survey was conducted using computer-assisted techniques of telephone interviewing (CATI) and random number selection. A total of 20% of all interviews were monitored and the management of Oraclepoll Research Limited supervised 100%.

Logistics

  • Initial calls were made between the hours of 5 p.m. and 9 p.m. Subsequent callbacks of no-answers and busy numbers were made on a (staggered) daily rotating basis up to 5 times (from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.) until contact was made. In addition, telephone interview appointments were attempted with those respondents unable to complete the survey at the time of contact.

Executive summary

Friends of Earth respondents were first asked the following question

“How important do you feel it is to have more renewable, green energy in Ontario to deal with climate change and help reduce the record levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere? Please use a scale from one not at all important to five very important.”

Opinion poll results. The survey conducted by Oraclepoll Research found that 83% of Ontarians believe it is important to have more green energy in Ontario to deal with climate change. Only 11% of respondents believe that it is not important to take action.

The survey conducted by Oraclepoll Research found that 83% of Ontarians believe it is important to have more green energy in Ontario to deal with climate change. Only 11% of respondents believe that it is not important to take action.

A high 83% of Ontarians are of the opinion that it is important or very important to have green renewable energy compared to a very low 11% that do not, while 7% had a neutral view (neither important nor unimportant).

A second question was then asked about the WTO and Ontario’s green energy plan.

“Should international bodies like the World Trade Organization be able to over-ride Ontario’s plan to encourage investment in renewable, green energy and local jobs for people in Ontario?”

Almost three-quarters of those surveyed or 73% feel that the World Trade Organization should not be able to override Ontario’s plans to encourage investment in green renewable energy while only 27% are of the opinion that it should.

Results by question

How important do you feel it is to have more renewable, green energy in Ontario to deal with climate change and help reduce the record levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere? Please use a scale from one not at all important to five very important.

Response Valid percent
Not at all important 5%
Not important 6%
Neither important nor not important 7%
Important 14%
Very important 69%
Total 100%

Should international bodies like the World Trade Organization be able to over-ride Ontario’s plan to encourage investment in renewable, green energy and local jobs for people in Ontario?

Response Valid percent
Yes 27%
No 73%
Total 100%
San José del Golfo, Guatemala. Photo: Radio Mundo Real. Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported (CC BY-SA 3.0) license. Extractive industries | Radio Mundo Real | Water |

Golden lie

Interview with Milton Carrera from the resistance in San José del Golfo, near Guatemala City

Radio Mundo Real

November 20, 2012

Just 28 kilometres from Guatemala City, between the towns of San José del Golfo and San Pedro de Ayanpuc the peasant communities are resisting the actions of Canadian company Radius Gold Inc., which has operated a silver and gold mine in the area since 2000. Until now, the company has developed the exploration process. It decided to start the drilling this year, after the government approved the exploitation license, which allows activities in an area of 20 km2 for 25 years.

Milton Carrera, a community leader, said the communities realized that the company was planning to come to their territories and started to demand clear answers. “They lied to us, the gold man and the ministry of energy and mines lied to us about the project. They said we were crazy, that nothing was going to happen but we just found out about one year and a half ago that they would come here, but also we found out that there are 14 projects around.”

The community has blocked and prevented the entry of the company for the last 9 months since March of this year. They organized to defend water, land and life against the mining project. “If we don’t produce agriculture since the water is going to be contaminated, what are we going to do? We are going to die,” said the leader.

After 9 months of resistance, he said that they never know how long the struggle is going to last. They continue resisting and demanding the company to leave. To confront and intimidate them, the company is misinforming people and causing divide among them. It pays people to pretend to be mining workers and confront their own families to allow the entrance of the company. At the same time, the government has supported the company not only by providing the license, but also through military presence to protect the corporation and secure its profits.

On Tuesday, November 12, “they started to send workers from the mine, we’ve been fighting here for almost four days now, sleeping almost here. The people haven’t worked for four days, but that’s all what we can do now to survive, they are bringing their own homes here to the resistance.”

The solidarity mission was in San José del Golfo to bring the message of support and solidarity with this struggle in defense of life, the same struggle that communities and organizations are fighting around the world. “We have dignity and we have shown our kids what it is to fight with dignity, that’s what we can show, if we want to gain something, we can do it.”

By Lyda Forero, Transnational Institute (TNI)

Original article published by Radio Mundo Real in English

Solidarity mission in Central America. Photo: Radio Mundo Real. Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported (CC BY-SA 3.0) license. 2012 Media releases | Extractive industries | Water |

International mission in Guatemala and El Salvador

Transnational corporations pillage natural resources and violate human rights

Friends of the Earth International

November 19, 2012

SAN SALVADOR, EL SALVADOR, November 19, 2012 — An international mission organized by the environmental federation Friends of the Earth International in Guatemala and El Salvador has verified systematic human rights violations and criminalization of environmental activists and communities resisting mining and hydroelectric projects.

The mission was organized from November 13 to 19 by Friends of the Earth El Salvador (CESTA) and Friends of the Earth Guatemala (CEIBA) with the participation of allied organizations including the Transnational Institute and member groups of La Vía Campesina.

The cases of resistance visited by the mission in Guatemala included: the resistance against Marlin mine, owned by Canadian corporation Goldcorp in San Miguel Ixtahuacán municipality; the situation of the political prisoners of Santa Cruz Barillas who were arbitrarily arrested in May 2012 for resisting the building of a hydroelectric dam owned by Spanish corporation Hidralia SA, and finally the resistance of the residents of San José del Golfo to the installation of Exmingua mine, owned by Canadian Radius Gold Corporation.

The delegates of the mission in El Salvador were informed in detail about the struggle of the Environmental Committee of Cabañas department to avoid the installation of a gold and silver extractive project in El Dorado by Canadian corporation Pacific Rim.

The representatives of the environmental federation included the chair of Friends of the Earth International, Jagoda Munić from Croatia, as well as delegates from the Philippines, Spain, Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay, Honduras, Colombia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala and Sweden.

“After talking with the affected communities, there is a feeling of sadness and outrage because of the situation they are going through,” said FoEI chair, Jagoda Munić.

She expressed international solidarity with the struggle of the communities affected in Guatemala and with the defense of human rights, and affirmed Friends of the Earth International’s responsibility to continue supporting the resisting communities.

“The communities that are resisting have been accused of terrorism. We have been able to verify that, far from it, they are defending their territories and their livelihood,” said Jagoda Munić.

Lastly, Jagoda Munić condemned the arbitrary detentions of the leaders of the resistance and said the international community will be waiting for the outcome of the hearing to be held next November 26 by the Guatemalan judiciary, where a decision regarding those who are still detained over the case of Santa Cruz Barillas will be issued.

Meanwhile, the chair of Friends of the Earth Spain, Victor Barro, said “The investment in Latin America by corporations that claim to be Spanish, like Hidralia SA, Telefonica, Union Fenosa and Aguas de Barcelona has caused socio-environmental conflicts and human rights violations. These actions ensure the perpetuation of the European way of life, which is currently in crisis and affects more and more people in both regions. A proof of this was the general strike recently held in Europe.”

Barro also expressed the message given by the political prisoners he visited at the prison of Region 18 in Guatemala City: “The company should leave our families alone and they should get out of our territories.”

Meanwhile, Danilo Urrea of Friends of the Earth Colombia (CENSAT) talked about the different cases of resistance visited during the mission. “We are witnessing a structural crisis of the extractivist and patriarchal model caused by the breaking of relations between society and nature. This is shown in the territorialization of capital and the financialization of nature, which leads to displacement and human rights violations.”

Danilo added “Colombia is an example of the criminalization of the protests and the struggle through laws and through the militarization of the territories all over Latin America. The disappearance of leaders and the displacement has become one of the strategies used by the corporations to dismantle the struggle and to take over territories.”

Lyda Forero of the Transnational Institute said the Permanent Peoples’ Tribunal that gathered between 2006 and 2010 heard many cases of corporations that violate human rights in Central America. “Two years later, we verify that the human rights violations exposed before the Tribunal continue and are getting worse.”

The delegates of the international mission said the economic and ecological crimes committed by transnational corporations in the case of Marlin and Barillas mines in Guatemala and of Pacific Rim in El Salvador are symptomatic of global systemic problems.

They also exposed the crimes committed by transnational corporations with the complicity of governments (which adopt laws in favour of corporations even above community rights) by way of international trade or investment treaties.

The delegates of the international mission called on the European Members of Parliament to reject the Partnership Agreement between the European Union and Central America in order to prevent Europe from becoming an accomplice of the crimes committed by transnational corporations in Central America.

The European Parliament is about to ratify the Partnership Agreement between the EU and Central America on December 11 to 13.

The delegates of the mission were clear that transnational corporations are confronting communities and dividing families through the transfer of funds and misleading advertising as part of their corporate social responsibility strategy.

The mission expressed the need to end the impunity of transnational corporations in Central America.

It also expressed the need for transnational corporations to leave the affected territories and compensate the impacted communities.

It also called for the release of the political prisoners who were criminalized for civil resistance, and in the case of El Salvador, they called for the clarification of the murders and persecutions committed against environmental activists, with all the legal and ethical guarantees.

The international mission will write a preliminary report of its actions to be circulated soon.

For more information

Media contacts

In English:

  • Jagoda Munić, Chair of Friends of the Earth International: jagoda [at] zelena-akcija.hr

In Spanish:

  • Ricardo Navarro, Chair of Friends of the Earth El Salvador (Centro Salvadoreño de Tecnología Apropiada): cesta [at] cesta-foe.org.sv
  • Victor Barro, Chair of Friends of the Earth Spain: presidencia [at] tierra.org
Protesters block entrance to Canadian mine in Guatemala City. Photo: Radio Mundo Real. Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported (CC BY-SA 3.0) license. Extractive industries | Radio Mundo Real | Water |

Months of resistance

Protesters block entrance to Canadian mine in Guatemala City

Radio Mundo Real

November 19, 2012

San José del Golfo and San Pedro de Ayampuc are two towns near Guatemala City that have been affected by gold and silver mining. Mining activities began in the area in 2000 but the community only found out in 2010.

Radius Gold Corporation is operating in the area as a counterpart for Explotaciones Mineras de Guatemala (Exmingua). Servicios Mineros de Centroamérica is a subsidiary that exerts pressure among the population and does the so called social corporate responsibility work.

Antonio Reyes, leader in defense of the territory, says “they are just taking advantage of people’s misery and of people’s knowledge to persuade them and gain their support.”

The license for the exploitation of the mine is for 25 years in a 20 km2 area, where they plan to have 14 mining projects. This area includes the municipality of San José del Golfo and the largest village, Choleña. It also includes communities of the neighbouring municipality San Pedro de Ayampuc. Mining exploitation threatens 5,000 families that depend on agriculture for their livelihood and who would be automatically left out of work, without resources to produce food and no possibility of satisfying their basic needs.

“The mining corporation offers economic development to the families and communities and has the nerve to hand out flyers saying that they bring economic development and that they will create 70 jobs over five or seven years. Then they leave and leave people unemployed while 5,000 families who live on agriculture are left out of work for life,” Reyes told Real World Radio.

There is plenty of water in the area where the exploitation Project is located. This situation alerts the organized communities against mining, because they find the project incompatible with water availability and the fertile soil. Also, the infrastructure projects, such as paving the road, will not be beneficial for the communities, they would just serve the exploitation and benefit of the transnational corporation, while water runs out.

“On March 2, 2012 several people of the community began the resistance. A woman saw one of the bulldozers coming and she was so outraged to see how they were entering our territories without prior consultation, how they were moving lands and logging the forest, that she told the vehicle she could not go through. So people started to join her,” said Reyes. The community leader said people’s outrage has contributed to join several social groups around a common objective: defending life, regardless of their political affiliation, religion, ethnic group or social sector, they all want to live and they are defending water preservation.

As months go by and the organized community continues to block the entrance to the mine, the situation is becoming more tense, since the company is paying groups of people from the region to confront the demonstrators, a strategy to divide the community.

However, Reyes said that they will continue fighting and demonstrating peacefully. We are convinced that this is the only way for the government and the mining corporations to stop doing whatever they want and we are convinced that we are legally entitled to do this. We don’t mind dying, we hope it will not happen but if we die it does not matter because that would strengthen the resistance.”

Original article by Radio Mundo Real in English | Español

Marlin Mine, Guatemala. Photo: Victor Barro, Friends of the Earth Spain. Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported (CC BY-SA 3.0) license. Extractive industries | Radio Mundo Real | Water |

Goldcorp: Environmental crimes

Canadian mining corporation and its criminal record in Guatemala

Radio Mundo Real

November 16, 2012

As part of the International Solidarity Mission organized by Friends of the Earth and the Transnational Institute in Guatemala and El Salvador, there follows an analysis of the Canadian corporation Goldcorp and its record of exploitation and divide of communities where it operates.

Goldcorp is the owner of the Marlin mine, which has been in San Miguel de Ixtahuacán municipality since 2005. In 2011 the mine produced over 380,000 ounces of gold with a profit of over $600 million.

The Guatemalan government authorized the exploitation of an area of 20 km2 for 25 years, of which it has so far exploited nearly 2 km2 with serious effects on the population of the region.

As a result of the installation of the company, the communities of San Miguel Ixtahuacán have suffered serious health damage, the pollution of water caused by sediments and the use of cyanide, the destruction of the territories and their homes as a result of the use of explosives to extract gold, the payment of low salaries to local workers and the need to migrate because of the danger they are exposed to.

The communities of the region have opposed the action of the mine for years. At first through community consultations, which were neither recognized by the government nor by the mine, and later by exposing the economic and ecological crimes before the local authorities, as well as national and international opinion tribunals by demanding the respect of ILO’s Convention 169.

However, the strong resistance and defense for life and nature, both for this and for future generations, has been criminalized and persecuted, with the complicity of the government of Guatemala, which signs laws in favour of transnational corporations and against the peoples’ rights.

The mining company “Montana Exploradora” (Goldcorp) has developed a series of programs of Corporate Social Responsibility that imply a minimum investment. They ignore the community process and have managed to divide the communities that used to reject them by even causing violence among the members of the community. The Guatemalan government has been complicit in these crimes by protecting the company and ignoring the communities’ demands.

The Canadian government is also responsible for human rights violations by allowing its corporations to act above the law and to seek to operate through Bilateral Investment Treaties or Free Trade Agreements.

Original article by Radio Mundo Real in English | Español

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