Tag: protesting

Teen Pedals Across Canada for Climate Change

  • 17 year-old Malkolm Boothroyd rode a bicycle for 3 months across Canada. Here he is giving a speech at the end of his trip on Parliament Hill. (Photo by Karen Kelly)

All over North America, people
are becoming more concerned
about the dangers posed by
climate change. Karen Kelly
spoke to a teenager who comes
from the far north of Canada,
one of the areas of the continent
that’s already feeling the effects:

Transcript

All over North America, people
are becoming more concerned
about the dangers posed by
climate change. Karen Kelly
spoke to a teenager who comes
from the far north of Canada,
one of the areas of the continent
that’s already feeling the effects:

Malkolm Boothroyd is 17. He lives in Whitehorse in the Yukon, a province at the northern tip of Canada.

It’s a wild mountainous place, with huge caribou herds, moose, bear, and foxes. It’s also a place where climate change is already evident.

The winters are shorter. The permafrost and sea ice are melting. And for young people like Boothroyd, it’s a source of worry.

“Climate change is impacting wildlife patterns, tundra ponds are vanishing. We are one of first places that will feel the severe impacts of climate change. Growing up in the Yukon, you’re maybe more aware of that.”

Boothroyd says already the native Inuit tribes are having a harder time living off the land. And he felt frustrated by what he sees as the Canadian government’s lack of action.

The government has not kept international commitments it made to reduce the gases that cause climate change. So he decided to head to the capital city of Ottawa to lodge his complaint.

Ottawa is 3,700 miles away from the Yukon.

(sound of gears)

Boothroyd hopped on his bicycle.

“I think there are days when you question your sanity, when you’re sitting out in the rain with black flies all around your head and with a soaking wet tent and wondering, ‘why am I doing this?’ But I don’t think there was any time I wanted to go back or anything like that. I just wanted to see the project through and make sure we were here on Parliament Hill to give our message to the government.”

It took him just under three months to ride from the northwestern tip of Canada near Alaska to Ottawa, which is just north of New York State.

His mom rode with him for the first 1,200 miles.

Then he joined up with other young riders, arriving for a rally on Parliament Hill in late September.

“I’m 17-years-old, and that means I’m too young to vote. But I believe I should have a say in decisions that are made on this Hill because when Parliament makes decisions about climate and energy, its people my age – people who are too young to vote – who will live in the world determined by what decisions made.”

(applause)

About a dozen members of Parliament and maybe 50 cyclists showed up for the rally. Boothroyd talked to hundreds more as he rode across the country.

He says he wasn’t just doing it for a good cause, he was doing it to protect his home.

“You’re very protective over wherever you grew up, and the place you know very well and love, so if you see a threat to that, you want to do everything you can.”

Now, Boothroyd is a regular twelfth grader again.
But unlike most, he’ll be keeping a close eye on the climate change talks taking place in Copenhagen in December.

He’s hoping his effort convinced the Canadian government to do more.

For The Environment Report, I’m Karen Kelly.

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Sea of Controversy for Hawaii’s Superferry

  • Hawaii's Superferry was met with initial excitement, but it quickly turned to environmental concern (Photo courtesy of Hawaii Superferry)

For decades, people who wanted to get from
one Hawaiian island to another have had one main
option: flying. So when plans were unveiled for
a high-speed ferry between the islands, Hawaiians
and tourists were initially thrilled. But growing
concern about the Superferry’s potential environmental
impact has turned the issue into one of the state’s
biggest legal battles in years. Ann Dornfeld reports:

Transcript

For decades, people who wanted to get from
one Hawaiian island to another have had one main
option: flying. So when plans were unveiled for
a high-speed ferry between the islands, Hawaiians
and tourists were initially thrilled. But growing
concern about the Superferry’s potential environmental
impact has turned the issue into one of the state’s
biggest legal battles in years. Ann Dornfeld reports:

David Dinner is board president of the environmental group 1000 Friends
of Kaua’i. He lives near this small beach on the island’s north shore.
Dinner says when endangered humpback whales come to Hawaii in the
winter to give birth, you can whale-watch right from this beach. Even
when he lived far from the ocean, he once witnessed a huge migration
from his window.

“I could see that the ocean was filled with whales. And I later found out that there were 6,000 whales around Kaua’i at that
time. So it was like wall-to-wall whales out there.”

When Dinner first heard about plans for a high-speed inter-island
catamaran, he was excited. But the more he and others learned about the
Hawaii Superferry, the more they worried about its effect on those whales.

Mother whales spend a lot of time just below the surface, pushing their
calves up for air. The concern is that the ferry’s twin hulls would strike the
whales at a speed of up to 45 miles per hour. That’s a lot faster than other
boats like cruise ships and tankers.

“The other boats that travel in this area generally go in the area of 13 to 15
miles an hour. So the Superferry is way beyond the speed of the other boats.”

Another big worry was that the car ferry could bring invasive species from
one island to another. For instance, mongooses decimated the Big
Island’s bird population. But Kaua’i doesn’t have mongooses yet.

Rich Hoeppner is founder of the Superferry Impact Group.

“We have an incredible selection of birds here. We have shearwaters,
albatross, the state bird – the Nene, is a land-dweller and endangered
species. So one pregnant mongoose gets on our island, our bird
population will be history.”

When activists learned that the state government had given Hawaii
Superferry the green light without an environmental impact statement,
they filed suit. Last August, the state Supreme Court ruled that the state
should have required an environmental impact statement.

Despite that, just two days later, Superferry made its maiden voyage to
Kaua’i.

Rich Hoeppner says two dozen surfers and kayakers blocked the
boat’s path to Nawiliwili Harbor for hours.

The next night, protesters crowded the harbor, and dozens more people
took to the water – some in traditional Hawaiian canoes. Protesters
filmed the action.

(sound of protest chants)

“After 3 hours, the ferry, which was at the mouth of the harbor, turned
around and went back to Oahu. It didn’t get to its dock. And it hasn’t been
back since!”

Hawaii Superferry says it takes the environment seriously.

Terry O’Halloran is Director of Business Development. He points to the
company’s efforts to keep invasive species from hitching
a ride on vehicles.

“We look under the hood, we look in the trunk, we look in the wheel wells,
we look inside the vehicles, and then a certain number of vehicles that go
through our security screening get a much more thorough screening and
inspection.”

O’Halloran says vehicles with muddy tires aren’t allowed on board in case
bugs or seeds are in the dirt. There are boot scrubbers for passengers,
too. On-board videos warn travelers about the dangers of invasive
species.

O’Halloran says Superferry also has a Whale Avoidance Policy that
includes avoiding the main calving areas during whale season, and
slowing down in whale zones.

“We have been able to spot and avoid the whales. We also have two dedicated
whale lookouts and their only job is to help the captain spot whales.”

Superferry is still making its Oahu-to-Maui trips. In a special session,
Hawaii legislators passed a law allowing the Superferry to keep
running while the state conducts an Environmental Impact Statement.

Protestors say that’s a terrible idea – and illegal. They’re pursuing
lawsuits in the state Supreme Court to dock the ferry until it’s clear the
boat is safe.

For The Environment Report, I’m Ann Dornfeld on Kaua’i.

Related Links

New Pvc Plant Worries Environmental Groups

  • PVC is used in many building materials, including pipes like these. However, due to health problems that can be caused by PVC and the emissions created in production, the expansion of a PVC plant along Lake Erie is worrisome to some environmentalists. (photo by Jason Krieger)

A new PVC manufacturing plant is being built in the region,
and that has some environmental groups alarmed. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Joyce Kryszak reports on efforts to halt production of polyvinyl chloride:

Transcript

A new PVC manufacturing plant is being built in the region, and that has some environmental groups alarmed. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium, Joyce Kryszak reports on efforts to halt production of polyvinyl chloride:


Environmental groups are protesting the construction of a new PVC plant near Buffalo. They say manufacturing PVC releases toxic chemicals into the environment. The group recently released a report highlighting the dangers of PVC and are calling on companies to phase out production of the popular manufacturing material. Mike Schade heads the Citizens’ Environmental Coalition in western New York. The region is home to CertainTeed, a PVC plant that will soon expand to a site along Lake Erie. Schade says it’s a step backward.


“I think it’s outrageous that, given the fact the Great Lakes have seen so many environmental problems, that CertainTeed is coming in and citing a PVC plant right on the lake,” said Schade, “It certainly isn’t my vision for a clean and safe and healthy waterfront.”


Schade says residents near other Certain Teed plants show increased levels of cancer and other serious disease. But company spokesperson Dottie Wackerman disputed the claims. And she says the company’s new plant will have virtually no emissions.


For the Great Lakes Radio Consortium, I’m Joyce Kryszak.

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Raging Grannies Take to the Streets

  • They're not your typical protestors. Photo courtesy of Raging Grannies of British Columbia.

When we think of protestors these days, many of us conjure up images of twenty-year-olds with bandanas, long hair, and multiple piercings. But there’s another group attracting attention at protests. As the Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Karen Kelly reports, they call themselves the Raging Grannies:

Transcript

When we think of protestors these days, many of us conjure up images of twenty-year-olds with
bandanas, long hair, and multiple piercings. But there’s another group attracting attention at
protests. As the Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Karen Kelly reports, they call themselves the
‘Raging Grannies.’


(chattering)


People chat and drink coffee as they mingle between display tables at the Dandelion Festival in
Kingston, Ontario. But the friendly chatter is soon interrupted by the sound of drums in the
distance.


(sound up)


Before long, a conga line of elderly-looking women comes into sight. Their outfits cause jaws to
drop. Shawls are layered on aprons, on top of housecoats and striped leggings – all topped off by
hats piled high with flowers, birds, and fruit. The ‘Raging Grannies’ know how to make an
entrance.


(dandelion lawns now…)


With their own take on familiar songs, the grannies captivate the audience. People stop
everything to stare at eighty crazily dressed women playing the washboard and singing at the
top of their lungs.


And that’s when the grannies deliver their message – about things like pollution, poverty, or health
care.


63-year-old Margaret Slavin-Diamond says the grannies are true subversives.


“We deliberately look older than we are, and we deliberately play on the idea that people expect
less of older women. And then say things with these tunes that people think of as old-fashioned
and safe, and then we say things that have a real edge to them.”


The first group of Raging Grannies was founded in British Columbia in the mid-80s.
There are now about 60 groups, including chapters in Minnesota, New York and California.
The grannies like to make surprise appearances – at events like political functions and chemical
industry meetings. There’s no real hierarchy among the grannies. But there is one rule – you
must be a woman and over 55.


(Rose singing)


60-year-old Rose Deshaw sits on a couch, bouncing as she sings. Even in this crowd of bizarre
outfits, Rose stands out. She wears a neon striped dress and bright yellow feathers in her hair.
She resembles an exotic bird. And like many of the women here, Rose comes primarily
as a grandmother.


(finish song, then fade)


“A lot of times in a protest, I just carry a picture of my grandbaby. That’s all I need to carry
cause they know what that’s about.”


Rose is one of the creative forces behind the raging grannies. She writes many of the songs and
she’s author of a ‘Raging Granny’ comic strip in a local newspaper. She’s also been known to lead
the group with help of a rubber chicken.


“It makes people sort of relax. You’re not going to get too uptight with an old lady who’s leading
the singing with a rubber chicken. You don’t know what she’s going to do so you might stay
awake and watch it.”


It’s all part of the group’s mission to soften people’s skepticism with humor. John Bennett of the
Sierra Club says the grannies’ style is effective.


“They often can take a political point and make it very clear in a very quick little song. That’s
much easier to do than the long speech to deliver the message.”


But its not all grandmotherhood and apple pie. At one demonstration, a group of raging grannies
shielded a protestor, preventing his arrest. Others were tear-gassed.


Margaret Slavin-Diamond says she’s seen grannies challenge an officer in riot gear.


“They see that man as their son, a man that they are about and they try to talk to him in those
terms, of what do you think you’re doing? I think that’s something older women in particular are
able to do from our hearts.


(zip pe dee do dah…)


As charming as these women seem to be, law enforcement officials do take them seriously.
The Raging Grannies recently discovered that the Canadian Security and Intelligence Agency
listed them as a subversive group. It’s a label they wear proudly.


For the Great Lakes Radio Consortium, I’m Karen Kelly.