(picture via Greenpeace site updates)
From the Canadian Press
RCMP arrest activists who scaled smokestacks at Alberta oilsands site
FORT SASKATCHEWAN, Alberta -- Shell Canada vowed to ramp up security to keep protesters out of its properties after Greenpeace activists scaled smokestacks and a construction crane to unfurl banners at an oilsands upgrader expansion project northeast of Edmonton.
After spending 24 hours roped high up on the structures near Fort Saskatchewan, Alta., the Greenpeace activists were arrested by members of a special police climbing team just after 5 a.m. Sunday at Shell's Scottford project.
"It was a peaceful resolution to what could have been a very dangerous situation," said RCMP spokesman Cpl. Darren Anderson.
In Calgary, Shell spokesman Phil Vircoe expressed concern about "Greenpeace's unsafe and confrontational tactics. This placed their own safety at risk and also the safety of others who were on site at that time and throughout this process."
Four protesters had agreed to an RCMP request to climb down from their perches Saturday evening after hours of negotiations.
But nine others refused to budge, and members of an RCMP and Edmonton Police Service climbing team donned ropes and harnesses and scaled the towering structures to arrest them, said Anderson, the RCMP spokesman.
"These police officers are specially trained in rappelling and use of ropes and have some background in mountaineering training as well," he said.
Many of the protesters agreed to climb down using their own equipment, Anderson said. But two of them refused to descend on their own and had to be brought down by the police team.
A total of 16 Greenpeace protesters were arrested during the incident.
Charges, including mischief and breaking and entering, were expected to be laid against all of them and they were expected to appear in court at a later date, Anderson said.
Mike Hudema, a Greenpeace activist who remained outside the plant, said the people who took part in the protest are passionate about trying to draw attention to an industry his group blames for dramatically increasing greenhouse gases.
"Every activist that was in there was prepared to be arrested and was willing to face the repercussions of that to hopefully push our world leaders to turn away from toxic developments like the tarsands," Hudema said.
The protest began early Saturday morning. Streaming video on a Greenpeace website from climbers dangling above massive storage tanks and a network of large metal pipes showed protesters unfurling banners that read "Climate Crime" and "Climate S.O.S."
After mounting several such protests in recent weeks at Alberta oilsands facilities, Hudema said he hoped that interrupting the industry's activities helped Greenpeace make its point about the oilsands industry.
"We've been able to stop at least a portion of the damage that the tarsands are doing to our planet. I think that's one thing that we've accomplished," he said.
Shell officials said the latest protest did not affect the neighbouring petrochemical refinery in Fort Saskatchewan and was confined to an area under construction, where few employees were working at the time.
Last month, protesters chained themselves to heavy earth-moving equipment at a Shell oilsands mine near Fort McMurray, Alta., bringing work at one pit to a halt. They were not charged in that incident.
Nearly a week ago, 10 protesters were arrested trying to block shipments of thick tar-like bitumen to a Suncor plant near Fort McMurray.
Hudema said the latest action was aimed at nudging negotiators to look for greener options at a climate-change conference in Bangkok. Officials there are paving the way to a new pact to replace the Kyoto Protocol, which expires in 2012.
Vircoe said Shell has launched a full-scale audit to determine how security at the Fort Saskatchewan site was breached and to fix any problems.
The number of security staff there has been increased and protocols tightened, including increased patrolling of the perimeter of the fenced-in site, he said.
The latest incident has also highlighted the need for the industry as a whole to be more vigilant about security, Vircoe said.
"The incident serves as a reminder, a stern reminder, that our industry must work even harder to strengthen our approach to security across the province here in Alberta and right across the country," he said.
Premier Ed Stelmach has expressed frustration at the number of protesters who've been able to gain access to such sites in recent weeks, and has said they are being coddled while breaking the law.
"We understand his frustration and we share his concerns around security at all of the various energy sites across the province," Vircoe said.
As to whether company officials are coddling the protesters in allowing their actions to go on for several hours at a time, Vircoe said the company's main goal is to ensure the safety of everyone involved.
"Our concern, right from the very beginning, is for the safety of the activists, to make sure nobody gets hurt, the safety of our employees on the site and any of the public who are in the area around the facilities," Vircoe said.
-By Lisa Arrowsmith in Edmonton.
Copyright © 2009 The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.
