FANG Collective – RI Future

October 27, 2016

TD Bank targeted by protesters for DAPL support

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The FANG Collective staged a demonstration outside TD Bank Wednesday to protest the company’s support of the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL), which is even now being blocked by First Nation protesters from many different tribes. TD Bank is one of many lending institutions financing the pipeline.

This protest follows an action last week in which two protesters locked themselves down in the bank’s lobby and had to be removed by police. Wednesday’s action, which was publicly announced on Facebook, drew a Providence Police detail, but the entire affair was very low key, and no arrests were made.

Protesters handed out flyers and held signs. One woman, Amy, after hearing from protester Sally Mendzela about the bank’s involvement with DAPL, told me that though she had come to open an account with the bank, she was not. Mendzela said that the woman was the second person to be dissuaded from doing business with TD Bank since she arrived.

Meanwhile, tensions remain high between the “water protecters” and DAPL developer Energy Transfer Partners. Tribes are invoking their treaty rights even as the developer threatens arrests and even violence. As reported by Mary Annette Pember, “the Morton County Sheriff’s Department backed by North Dakota Governor Jack Dalyrmple continued to ratchet up displays of military-style police force.”

The video below, published by Jennifer Minor on October 25, shows police using pepper spray before arresting protesters.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=066h12rmcDQ

October 20, 2016October 20, 2016

Fang activists shut down TD Bank in PVD over Dakota Access Pipeline project

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Two anti-pipeline activists temporarily shut down TD Bank in downtown Providence by locking themselves to a front door using elaborate cement and rebar tubes to prevent authorities from removing them.

Only the ATM was available to bank customers for about a half hour. Laura Borth and Steve Davis, both Fang Collective activists, were arrested and will be charged with disrupting a business, a misdemeanor.

TD Bank was targeted because it provides major financing to the Dakota Access Pipeline project that is being vociferously protested by the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and others.

“Let The FANG Collective’s action serve as an example of what an ally group should look like,” said Krystal Two Bulls, a Sioux activist protesting the Dakota Access Pipeline. “If you live on this land, breathe the air and drink water… this is your fight too. Divest. Take action. Stand with us at Red Warrior Camp and Standing Rock. We call on all ally groups to take action and hold the banks who finance the Dakota Access Pipeline accountable.”

The Dakota Access Pipeline, or DAPL, is a $3.8 billion fracked-oil pipeline being constructed in the Bakken shale fields of North Dakota to Peoria, Illinois. It would cross Lakota Treaty Territory at the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation and traverse underneath the Missouri River. The Standing Rock Sioux tribe is leading an effort to stop the pipeline from being built.

“TD Bank is an active participant in the violence and oppression facing indigenous people in North Dakota,” said Laura Borth, in a statement prepared before her arrest. “I cannot remain idle as corporations and financial institutions aggressively put forth their greed for profit over the safety and wellbeing of people and the climate.”

Said Steve Davis, “TD Bank still has an opportunity to do the right thing and cut its line of credit for the Dakota Access Pipeline. We will keep coming back until they do just that.”

September 17, 2016

Disruption and evolution at energy meeting

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The Consumer Liaison Group (CLG) Meeting happens four times a year and its a chance for ISO-NE to exchange information with electricity consumers in New England. ISO-NE is the group that regulates our electricity markets and keeps the lights on by coordinating electricity generation and transmission. They run billion dollar markets and interact with companies like Spectra Energy, Invenergy, National Grid and Deepwater Wind. Pretty much every aspect of the process of getting electricity to your television is touched upon by ISO-NE in some way.

The latest meeting of the CLG, in Providence on Thursday, featured a panel discussion with representatives from the four companies mentioned above. The panel was pulled together with the help of Douglas Gablinske, executive director of The Energy Council of Rhode Island (TEC-RI) an advocacy group for energy company concerns. Readers of RI Future may remember that Gablinske was a vocal opponent of Cale Keable’s bill to reform the Energy Facilities Siting Board (EFSB). He was also the only speaker at the RI Public Utilities Commission (RIPUC) to speak in favor of the pipeline tariff.

Gablinske surprised me by asking if I knew about any planned protests or disruptions. I said I didn’t. He asked me specifically about the FANG Collective. I had no idea of what plans they have, if any, I said. Then Gablinske said that he noticed Mary Pendergast on the list of people who had signed up to attend. Pendergast was sitting in the room, and he soon went over to introduce himself to her.

2016-09-15 ISON-NE PVD 001 — As the meeting ended, protesters unfurled a banner

During the course of the presentation there was a disruption. As Invenergy’s John Niland gave his presentation to the room, Mary Pendergast stood and display a small sign that said, “No fracked gas Power plant.” Her protest was silent but it did seem to throw Niland off a bit, as his delivery seemed somewhat distracted.

It was during the third presentation that the disruptions became more pronounced. As Richard Kruse, vice president at Spectra Energy spoke glowingly about the need for bigger and better pipelines in our fracked gas infrastructure future, Kathy Martley of BASE (Burrillville Against Spectra Expansion), Keith Clougherty of the FANG Collective and Sally Mendzela stood up.

“Spectra Energy, Energy for Death,” said Martley as I headed for my camera. “Say no to Invenergy and tell Invenergy to go home,” Martley continued.

As the protest continued, Gablinske took the podium and said, “You have a right to be here but not be disruptive” as Clougherty continued to speak.

Lennette Boiselle, an ally of Geblinske and a lobbyist for the Northern Rhode Island Chamber of Commerce got up and left the room, presumably in search of security. Readers might remember Boiselle as the person arguing against democracy at the public comment hearing concerning Cale Keable’s EFSB bill.

“The political correctness, of not allowing other people to talk is sweeping through this country,” said Geblinske, “It’s an incorrect assumption, this gentlemen has the right to speak…”

“We’ve been listening to you our whole lives, Pal,” interrupted Sally Mendzela.

Gablinske ultimately offered to set up a forum where “both sides” could be heard but it is unknown if this will actually happen. The protesters took their seats, no one was ejected from the forum, and Kruse finished his talk.

Amazingly, though, that wasn’t the end. During a brief question and answer period at the end of the presentations, Gablinske called on Clougherty to ask a question!

“I would ask for a question, not a speech or a statement,” said Gablinske, when he realized who he had called upon.

Clougherty then asked Niland, Kruse and Bill Malee, a National Grid VP, “Do your companies have any money set aside for restitution for the millions of people who are going to be displaced and killed by the infrastructure projects you all are proposing?”

There is no good answer representatives from these companies can give, yet Niland attempted one. As expected, it was not good.

I found the most interesting talk of the day came from Mary Louise “Weezie” Nuara, External Affairs Representative for ISO-NE.

“The region’s competitive wholesale electricity markets are really designed to maintain reliability through the selection of the most economically efficient set of resources,” said Nuara, but the states “have environmental and renewable energy goals that are beyond the objectives of the wholesale electricity markets.”

What’s happening is that states are setting goals to increase renewables and reduce greenhouse gas emissions (like the goals set out in ResilientRI, but all the New England states have some version of this idea.) ISO-NE is designed to deliver energy as reliably and cheaply as possible. As a market, it cannot deliver renewables or reduce emissions unless those options are cheaper and cleaner. In August, NEPOOL (which represents the interest of the New England states when dealing with ISO-NE) began looking into how to adjust wholesale electricity markets to accommodate the goals of the states. It is NEPOOL’s goal to develop a “framework document” by December 2 to provide guidance to ISO-NE regarding potential changes. (A kind of advisory opinion, if you will.)

What makes this interesting, to my mind, is that if ISO-NE starts taking the climate change concerns of the states into account, plants like the one Invenergy is planning for Burrillville will have a harder time selling their energy into the markets.

ISO-NE is a little over a decade old, but already it’s finding that its systems are in need of being updated over concerns of climate change. By contrast, the EFSB here in Rhode Island was established thirty years ago, in 1986. The RI General Assembly has shown little inclination towards revising the EFSB’s mandate in lieu of climate change.

Below please find all the video from the CLg meeting except for the closing comments.

Rebecca Tepper, chair of the CLG Coordinating Committee and chief of the Energy & Telecommunications Division of the Massachusetts Attorney General’s office introduced keynote speaker Rhode Island General Treasurer Seth Magaziner.

Douglas Gablinske, executive director, The Energy Council of Rhode Island

Jeffrey Grybowski, chief executive officer, Deepwater Wind

John Niland, director of business development, Invenergy

Richard Kruse, vice president and regulatory & FERC compliance officer for Spectra Energy

Bill Malee, vice president of regulatory affairs, for National Grid

ISO-NE Q&A

September 16, 2016

TD Bank finances the Dakota Access Pipeline, activists respond

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TD Bank in downtown Providence became the target of local environmental and indigenous American activists Thursday in response to calls for solidarity with the Standing Rock Sioux as they continue to battle the $3.78 billion Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL). TD Bank is one of many financial institutions funding the pipeline. Similar actions have been popping up across the country and around the world.

At issue is the Dakota Access Pipeline currently under construction from the Bakken shale fields of North Dakota to Peoria, Illinois. DAPL is slated to cross Lakota Treaty Territory at the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation where it would be laid underneath the Missouri River, the longest river on the continent.

Organizers contend that construction of the DAPL “would engender a renewed fracking-frenzy in the Bakken shale region, as well as endanger a source of fresh water for the Standing Rock Sioux and 8 million people living downstream. DAPL would also impact many sites that are sacred to the Standing Rock Sioux and other indigenous nations.”

Thousands have gathered to stand against the pipeline in North Dakota, and President Obama has temporarily halted construction, but the fight will continue.

Democracy Now! has provided excellent, in depth coverage of the resistance for those who want to catch up on this important and developing story.

The protest outside TD Bank, organized by the FANG Collective, was entirely peaceful, with dozens of environmental and indigenous American activists bearing signs and leafleting passersby. The crowd grew to take over all four corners at Westminster and Dorrance.

Below is the full video of those who spoke at the event, followed by photos:

August 3, 2016August 3, 2016

National Grid wants RI ratepayers to guarantee its profits

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National Grid is requesting that the Rhode Island Public Utilities Commission (RIPUC) approve a 20-year gas capacity contract” with Algonquin Gas Transmission Company LLC (Algonquin) for natural gas transportation capacity and storage services on Algonquin’s Access Northeast Project (ANE Project).”

The multinational energy conglomerate not only wants Rhode Island ratepayers to subsidize the construction of fracked gas infrastructure, they want consumers to ensure that the project is profitable for the company.

Part of National Grid’s 572 page application includes “a Capacity Cost Recovery Provision tariff, which allows the Company to recover all incremental costs associated with the ANE Agreement, as well as the Company’s proposed financial incentive.” Understand that when National Grid says “financial incentives” they are talking about company profits.

The logic that National Grid is using to claim the right to tariffs is that the RIPUC has allowed such charges when it comes to “long-term renewable electricity for retail customers from wholesale power providers.” [emphasis added] In other words, because the government has taken an interest in expanding renewable energy sources like wind and solar, and allowed tariffs to support these efforts, National Grid argues that it should be allowed similar considerations for fossil fuels such as fracked gas.

2016-08-02 RIPUC 006 Pricilla De la Cruz — Pricilla De la Cruz

National Grid owns a 20 percent stake in the ANE Project, so Rhode Islanders will be ensuring that the company generates a profit as they buy fracked gas from themselves if the RIPUC approves this request.

A similar tariff stalled in the Massachusetts legislature, where the state Senate unanimously rejected the idea but the session ended before a House vote. The Massachusetts Supreme Court is deciding on the validity of the tariff, since the Massachusetts PUC approved the idea.

National Grid also asked that their request be approved “as expeditiously as possible,” meaning that they want the decision fast tracked. As a result, the public comment meeting held last night at the RIPUC offices in Warwick was the first and last opportunity for public comment, unless RIPUC commissioners Margaret Curran and Herbert DeSimone III decide to hold another public comment meeting. (The third member of the RIPUC board, Marion Gold, has recused herself.) Written comment can be sent to thomas.kogut@dpuc.ri.gov. Mention that you are commenting on Docket No. 4627.

The first speaker of the night, Doug Gablinske of The Energy Council of New England (TEC-RI), was also the only speaker in favor of the idea. Gablinske called the project “a novel approach” and said that “it’s good for ratepayers, for employees, for employers and for business.”

From there, things went downhill pretty quickly.

Calling the tariff an “unprecedented charge” Priscilla De La Cruz of the People’s Power and Light called on the RIPUC to reject National Grid’s request. “Why should consumers take on the risk of a new, unnecessary gas pipeline?” De La Cruz maintained that the entire idea conflicts with the goals of the 2014 Resilient Rhode Island Act. (You can read De La Cruz’s full testimony here.)

Lynn Clark came down from Burrillville, wearing her “No New Power Plant” tee shirt to argue against the proposal. She said that allowing National Grid to pass the costs of their LNG project onto consumers adds “insult to injury” to everyone living in her part of the state.

Other states did comprehensive studies before considering pipeline tariffs, said Nick Katkevich of the FANG Collective, who has been fighting pipeline projects in and around Rhode Island for three years. Massachusetts and Maine have both produced studies that concluded that pipeline tariffs are a bad idea, said Katkevich. “It’s shameful that National Grid wants to have guaranteed profits as part of this,” said Katkevich. “They don’t care about people. They don’t care about people’s utility rates… if they did they wouldn’t put guaranteed profits in there.”

“No one wants these pipelines,” said Katkevich, “across the region people are resisting the first of the three Spectra expansions… There have been 240 people arrested as part of direct action in New York, Connecticut, Rhode Island and Massachusetts.”

If you have an opinion on this project, you can send it to Luly.massaro@puc.ri.gov. Mention that you are commenting on Docket No. 4627.

Below find all the testimony from the hearing.

July 22, 2016July 22, 2016

PVD Black Lives Matter Day of Action calls for passage of Community Safety Act

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The Providence City Hall Council Chamber was packed over capacity. The crowd was so raucous and loud it was hard to hear the speakers on their microphones.

“I Sabina Matos, would like to pass the Community Safety Act.”

“Seconded.”

Voice after voice pledged their support for the Community Safety Act.

“I, Seth Yurdin, would like to pass the Community Safety Act.”

“I, Sam Zurier, would like to pass the Community Safety Act.”

The Community Safety Act (CSA) passed unanimously. Not a single voice spoke against it. The City Council Chamber erupted in cheers and applause.

It was a brilliant moment.

But the Providence City Council never actually voted. Minutes before the City Council was to begin their meeting, their last meeting before taking a break for vacation, hundreds of protesters in support of Black Lives Matter had crossed the street from Kennedy Plaza and entered the chamber en masse. They took the seats of city councillors and acted out what passing the CSA might look like.

The CSA never passed. It has only recently been scheduled for consideration, when the City Council comes back in September.

As the crowd filed out of the chamber, Nick Katkevich of the FANG Collective asked a just arriving City Councillor Seth Yurdin if he would really support the CSA when the time came.

“I don’t support the CSA,” said Yurdin.

Neither does Providence Mayor Jorge Elorza or Public Safety Commissioner Steven Paré.

Fifteen minutes earlier crowds gathered at Kennedy Plaza, across the street from City Hall. The Movement for Black Lives had called a nationwide, July 21 Collective Action for Freedom, in response to the recent slew of high profile police killings. In Providence, the action was organized by the Step Up Coalition to Pass the Community Safety Act and the White Noise Collective RI around the idea of supporting the CSA.

2016-07-21 Pass the CSA 034 — Vanessa Flores-Maldonado

The proposed Providence ordinance has 12 key points pertaining to police interactions with community members, including providing interpretation, documenting traffic stops in a standardized manner, and limiting police collaboration with other law enforcement agencies such as ICE. The CSA would also reestablish the Providence External Review Authority (PERA) with the power to recommend that Public Safety and Police Department budgets be reapportioned to youth recreation and job training programs.

“We don’t want to compromise on the safety of our community. When you have women dying in jail because they didn’t use a turn signal or youth being shot in cold blood for having toy guns in an open carry state, we can’t compromise,” said Community Safety Act Campaign Coordinator, Vanessa Flores-Maldonado. “We need police accountability now because no one feels safe in our community.”

The campaign recently scored a win when organizers secured a public hearing for the CSA at the beginning of September. The “mock hearing” was organized to put additional pressure on the City Council to pass the CSA.

At the mock hearing, Flores -Maldonado spoke directly to the city council members present, including Council President Luis Aponte, saying that the city council should listen to what the people had to say.

The protest left city hall and marched up Washington St towards the Providence Public Safety Complex, where people gave a series of speeches in support of the CSA, hiring more teachers of color, community defense, and abolishing the police. Here the speeches were in turn thoughtful and emotional. I would recommend them to those seeking a better understanding of these issues.

After leaving the public safety complex the march continued on to Cathedral Square, where there was some last words before the march disbanded.

July 21, 2016July 21, 2016

The Toxic Tour of South Providence

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South Providence, at the port, is one of the heaviest concentrations of toxic chemical storage in New England, and not coincidentally, those who live in the area suffer the highest rates of asthma. Sherrie Anne Andre of the FANG Collective and Julian Rodríguez-Drix of the Environmental Justice League of Rhode Island lead a tour of over 60 people, including Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein, along Allens Avenue, pointing out some of the worst polluters in our state.

The Rhode Island Recycled Metals facility was the first stop. In 2015 the US Coast Guard revealed that the site was operating without proper permits. As a result the facility was not in compliance with laws regarding oil spillage and storm water run-off. In general, recycling is a good and positive thing. But when done without concern for the health and safety of residents and the environment, the losses can outweigh the gains.

2016-07-21 Toxic Tour 015 — The tour passes through Motiva

Motiva Enterprises LLC occupies both sides of Allens Avenue. Chemical piping actually runs underneath the road. Motiva is a joint venture between Saudi Aramco and Shell Oil. Here in Providence the facility is the largest of many fuel terminals in the port and a major importer of petroleum products. It receives regular shipments via tanker ship and exports via truck. The Port of Providence is the entry point for the majority of fuels that power southern New England. In 2014 Motiva managed 34,425 pounds of toxic waste products. Over 1000 pounds of toxic waste was emitted into the air, making Motiva the largest air emitter in the City of Providence.

Ethanol trains come through the port every week. Known as “bomb trains” elsewhere in the United States, similar trains were banned in Boston because of safety and toxic concerns. The ethanol is mixed at the Motiva facility and transported out.

2016-07-21 Toxic Tour 008 — Rhode Island Recycled Metals

Univar is the largest facility in the area. It is a wholesale chemical distributor and chlorine manufacturer. As far as is known, though Univar produces chemicals used in fracking, they are not manufactured or stored in Rhode Island. There are 3.3 million pounds of toxic chemicals stored at the Univar facility. It is the most dangerous facility in all of Rhode Island, with a 14 mile hazard radius. Stored here are 1.4 million pounds of chlorine gas, 1.2 million pounds of anhydrous ammonia, 626,400 pounds of ammonium and 35,000 pounds of formaldehyde. each one requires a chemical risk assessment plan from the Environmental Protection Agency.

National Grid wants to upgrade its facilities at the Port of Providence by installing a liquefaction plant on the premises. This would allow the company to supercool LNG so that it becomes more compact, allowing the company to store much more LNG on the premises. Note that LNG is fracked methane, imported through pipelines to the facility. These pipelines, owned by Spectra Energy, run through Burrillville, through Cumberland, and across the bay from East Providence.

The existing storage tank is filled by truck. It takes about 2600 trucks to fill the 24.2 million gallon tank, said Andre.

The proposed LNG liquefaction facility will cost $180 million. These costs will most likely be passed on to consumers. The facility will be located between National Grid’s existing storage tank and the Univar facility. The energy required to power the liquefaction is equivalent to half of the energy generated by Deepwater Wind, the first offshore wind farm in the United States, presently under construction off the coast of Rhode Island.

One more concern: National Grid is located on the former site of a manufactured gas plant. The soil in the area is soaked with chemicals from when a company squeezed gas from coal, a toxic process that permanently contaminated the land. The RI Department of Environmental Management has records of dozens of other leaking, underground tanks in this area. “The soil we are walking on is known to be toxic,” said Rodríguez-Drix.

On the National Grid site, some of the chemical contaminants have been capped with the intention of keeping the contamination from further spreading, but this capping will be disturbed when construction begins, allowing the wind to carry the toxins into the air and into the bay for the two years of construction.

Below is video of the tour:

Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein attended the Toxic Tour, and talked about the Green New Deal.

Raymond Two-Hawks spoke about the aboriginal response to the continued denigration of his ancestral lands.

Laura Perez is running for House District 11 against incumbent state Representative Grace Diaz.

Sheila Calderone is a resident of South providence and a member of the Environmental Justice League who suspects that illnesses she has suffered are a result of the pollutants she has been exposed to while growing up in the area.

2016-07-21 Toxic Tour 018 — Julian Rodríguez-Drix

2016-07-21 Toxic Tour 021 — Raymond Two-Hawks

2016-07-21 Toxic Tour 022 — Sheila Calderone

July 19, 2016July 19, 2016

Raimondo in Burrillville

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When Governor Gina Raimondo came to Burrillville Monday evening to hear the concerns of residents regarding Invenergy’s proposed $700 million fracked gas and diesel oil burning power plant, the people greeted her with applause, cheers, and gifts. Over the course of the two hour meeting, the Governor assured the people that she had not just listened to them, but had truly heard them.

The people rose and told them their stories, many of which those who have attended meeting after meeting in Burrillville had heard before. But Governor Raimondo was hearing them, in person, for the first time. She told the six hundred people gathered at the Burrillville High School that though she understood the problems with the MTBE in the water, that to hear the stories first hand was very powerful.

She heard them, she said.

Time and again Governor Raimondo assured the people that the power plant was “not a done deal.” For the first time the governor publicly walked back her support for the plant, saying that it was important that she maintain neutrality during the process of approving the plant. She told the people that there was a process, that the Energy Facilities Siting Board (EFSB) was holding a series of hearings and meetings. She urged the people to get involved and let their opinions be known.

Here, I think, Governor Raimondo stumbled. The people of Burrillville could not be more involved in this process. Her visit to Burrillville is a testament to their involvement. The visit is the result of months of work by Kathy Martley of BASE (Burrillville Against Spectra Expansion) and Nick Katkevich of the FANG Collective. If anything, the people of Burrillville understand “the process” better than the governor ever will. They attend the meetings of the EFSB, the Burrillville Town Council, the sewer board, the DEM, the DOH and countless others. There are many people in in Burrillville who dedicate every moment of free time, the entirety of their non-working lives, to this power plant.

This is what Invenergy has already stolen from the people of Burrillville: Every free moment of their lives.

Governor Raimondo urged the people to ”trust the process” but if the people don’t trust the process, it’s not out of some perverse anti-authoritarian impulse, it’s out of first hand experience with the very process she’s telling them to trust in. The people understand the process intimately, and they know that the process favors Invenergy, not the people.

Governor Raimondo was not asked to come to Burrillville as an advocate for “the process” she was asked to come to Burrillville to become an advocate for the people.

Additional thoughts:

As people were let into the Burrillville High School, after waiting outside in the parking lot in the ninety degree heat for hours, security informed them that no more than one person would be allowed in the restrooms at a time. Each restroom accommodates at least seven people. I asked the man in charge of security why this was the case. He told me “Security reasons.” I asked how two people in a men’s room might threaten security in a way that one person couldn’t. He became angry and said, “I’m not going to debate you, I already answered your question.”

Raimondo in Burrillville 020 — Dave Layman

The event was moderated by retired newscaster Dave Layman, who volunteered for the mission. Layman set the rules for the meeting, but did so in a way that was infantilizing. This wasn’t a high school full of children, this was a high school full of engaged residents who were very familiar with the ways in which public meetings work. This was a high school auditorium full of people who understand how to behave at a public forum, yet Layman decided to devote no small amount of time to explaining the importance of a Norman Rockwell painting about civil civic engagement. It was elitist and condescending and a poor way to set the tone.

But, despite these caveats, once the meeting got under way, it seemed to go well. The people of Burrillville stood tall, hit hard and did not back away from calling the governor to account. She stayed through the end and beyond, coming off the stage after the meeting and greeted the people one on one.

The people of Burrillville have been treated as afterthoughts in this process, then as agitators and then as children. But by the end of the night Governor Gina Raimondo was forced to see them as people, and recognize their full humanity.

Here’s the full video:

Senator Paul Fogarty

Representative Cale Keable

Dave Layman sets the rules.

Kathy Martley

Raimondo in Burrillville 005 — The marchers from Providence arrive

Raimondo in Burrillville 010 — Only one person allowed in here at a time

Raimondo in Burrillville 012 — The gift baskets presented to Governor Raimondo

Raimondo in Burrillville 013 — The opposition

Raimondo in Burrillville 019 — David Layman

Raimondo in Burrillville 021 — Super serious about the timing

July 16, 2016

FANG Collective begins their long march to Burrillville ahead of Governor’s visit

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The FANG Collective began their three day march to Burrillville Saturday morning, leaving from the State House in Providence just before 10am. The march is a protest against the Invenergy‘s planned $700 million fracked gas and diesel oil burning power plant, currently supported by Governor Gina Raimondo and opposed by the vast majority of Burrillville residents. The march also serves as a greeting of sorts to the Governor, as Raimondo is scheduled to meet with Burrillvillians and hear their concerns at the Burrillville High School on Monday night at 6pm.

Ahead of the march members of the FANG Collective and others distributed signs, spoke to reporters and provided instructions to participants about staying healthy during the long march, as temperatures were expected to be in the 90’s throughout the weekend. The importance of sunscreen, staying hydrated and being aware of any physical problems was stressed.

The marchers hope to cover about six to eight miles a day. They expect to arrive at the Greenville Public Library by 1pm. On Sunday, they will begin their march at 3pm at the Greenville Public Library to Village Bean Cafe and hope to arrive in Gloceter RI by 7pm.

The final leg of their trip, on Monday, begins at 12:30pm at the Village Bean Cafe and then to 24 North Main Street in Pascoag, the site of the MTBE spill that poisoned the water supply in Burrillville 15 years ago. It is this well water that Invenergy hopes to use to cool their power plant, under the promise that the water will be purified. After a short ceremony at the site of the MTBE spill, the marchers will continue to the Burrillville High School, in time to greet the governor.

The march is expected to grow by the day, with people participating as their schedule and ability allows. On Monday, many more Burrillville residents will be joining the march.

July 14, 2016

Protesting environmental racism in South Providence

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Protests against environmental racism and the expansion of fracked gas infrastructure in Rhode Island continued yesterday as members of the FANG Collective and the Environmental Justice League of RI, along with area residents and other community and environmental organizations, held signs and delivered flyers to drivers at the corner of Eddy St and Thurbers Ave.

National Grid is trying to build a $180 million fracked gas production facility in South Providence, and organizers call this is a clear example of environmental racism as all 11 of the EPA’s identified toxic polluters in Providence are already in this zip code, which is predominantly made up of low-income people of color. The impact and dangers of this project are enormous and have been outlined by the EJ League in detail.

Among those attending the protest was Kate Aubin, who is running for Cranston City Council. The section of Edgewood, where she lives, would potentially be affected by a disaster occurring in any one of several chemical and toxic storage facilities in South Providence.

2016-07-13 NoLNGinPVD 011 — Handing out flyers to motorists in English or Spanish

2016-07-13 NoLNGinPVD 004 — Laura Perez, House district 11 candidate

2016-07-13 NoLNGinPVD 001 — Mary Pendergast

July 11, 2016July 12, 2016

Protesters march from PVD to Burrillville ahead of Governor’s visit

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From July 16th to 18th local activists and residents will be marching from the Statehouse to the Burrillville High School to protest the 1000 MW fossil fuel power plant proposed for the town. The three day, 23 mile march, will coincide with Governor Gina Raimondo’s July 18th open meeting in Burrillville where she will discuss Invenergy’s proposed power plant with residents. Hundreds of people are expected to attend the meeting which begins at 6pm.

Temperatures are expected to reach into the 90’s through the weekend, but the marchers are undeterred. “We want the Governor to know that people from across the State support the residents of Burrillville and their fight against Invenergy’s toxic power plant. This is the Governor’s climate and environmental legacy moment, and the whole State is watching.” Sherrie Anne Andre, of The FANG Collective, the group organizing the march.

The march will head west on Route 44 and then head north on Route 100. The march will make a stop at the site of a chemical spill in Pascoag before continuing on to the Burrillville High School in time for the event with the Governor.

In 2001, a spill at a gas station in Pascoag led to MTBE, a now banned gasoline additive, contaminating one of Burrillville’s main water supplies. The contaminated water wells were capped by a Superior Court order after MTBE levels in local drinking water soared above the federal legal limit. Invenergy, the Chicago based company who has proposed the power plant, plans to uncap the MTBE wells and use up to 900,000 gallons of the water a day at the plant, drawing the ire of local residents.

“There are many health and environmental concerns with the proposed power plant. But the fact that Invenergy wants to use the MTBE water at the plant, and the lack of any thorough study on the potential impacts of this, is shocking and deeply concerning”. Kathy Martley of Burrillville Against Spectra Expansion (BASE), who lives a quarter mile from the site of the proposed plant.

Opposition has been steadily growing to the proposed power plant with hundreds of residents attending recent public hearings on the project. Last month, legislation that would have given Burrillville residents the ability to vote on any tax agreement reached between Invenergy and the town council stalled in the Senate Judiciary Committee. The Governor agreed to meet with Burrillville residents after months of protests and actions led by FANG and BASE.

“We are excited that the Governor has agreed to come to Burrillville and meet with those that would be most impacted by Invenergy’s power plant. But beyond just listening to the concerns of residents, we need the Governor to use the visit to revoke her support of the toxic Invenergy project once and for all,” said Nick Katkevich, of Providence, RI from the FANG Collective.

You can join the Facebook event here.

Here’s the schedule for the March:

July 16th: 9am-1pm – RI State House to Greenville Public Library

July 17th: 3-7pm – Greenville Public Library to Village Bean Cafe in Gloucester RI

July 18th: Noon – 430pm – Village Bean Cafe to Burrillville High School
– Noon-230pm Village Bean Cafe to 24 North Main Street in Pascoag (site of the MTBE spill)
– 230-3pm Ceremony at the site of the MTBE spill
– 3-430pm March from 24 North Main Street to the Burrillville High School

June 14, 2016June 13, 2016

Governor Raimondo to visit Burrillville, meet with residents to discuss proposed power plant

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After months of protests, phone calls and civil disobedience from anti-power plant activists and Burrillville residents, Governor Raimondo has scheduled a visit to Burrillville for an open community meeting. The open meeting, which will be held at the Burrillville High School on July 18th from 6-9pm, will focus on Invenergy’s proposed fracked-gas and diesel fuel power plant.

“Since the power plant proposal was first announced last August, we have been asking the Governor to come meet with Burrillville residents. We are happy that the Governor has agreed to this and hear from the people who would be most impacted by the power plant project”. Kathy Martley who lives a quarter mile from the proposed power plant site.

BASE (Burrillville Against Spectra Expansion), The FANG Collective and others have been targeting the Governor for several months over her support of the plant. The groups have shown up at dozens of the Governor’s public events with “Save Burrillville: No New Power Plant” signs and have led multiple call-in days to the Governor’s office. On April 19th the groups held a sit-in at the Governor’s office where one person was arrested after refusing to leave. One of the demands of the sit-in was that the Governor travel to Burrillville and meet with residents.

But activists say that tone of the visit to Burrillville will largely be dependent on whether the Governor vetoes or signs into law a Bill moving through the State House that would give residents more control of the power plant approval process. The Bill is being championed by Representative Cale Keable and Senator Paul Fogarty, both of Burrillville.

“We want the Governor’s visit to Burrillville to be informative but also be a celebration of the Keable/Fogarty bill becoming law. This is the Governor’s climate legacy moment. To veto this bill, and take away the voice of Burrillville residents, would forever tarnish her environmental record”. Nick Katkevich of the FANG Collective.

The Bill, which would let Burrillville residents vote on any tax agreement made between the power plant company and the town council, passed the House of Representatives 64-7 and is scheduled for second hearing in the Senate Judiciary Committee on Wednesday.

[From a press release]

June 11, 2016

Raimondo coming to Burrillville July 18

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Over a month after agreeing to meet with Burrillville residents while in Warwick and one day after members of the FANG Collective and BASE intercepted her a second time at a community event on the East Side of Providence, Governor Gina Raimondo has agreed to a date and time. It has now been officially announced that Governor Gina Raimondo will be at the Burrillville High School, 425 East Ave, Harrisville, for a community meeting Monday, July 18 from 6 PM – 9 PM to discuss the proposed power plant.

After months of trying to get the governor to come to the town through more conventional channels, Kathy Martley, co-founder of BASE (Burrillville Against Spectra Expansion), presented the Governor with a flower and a home made card at an event in Warwick. The Governor agreed then to come to Burrillville. On Thursday night Martley followed up with the governor outside the First Unitarian Church of Providence. The governor agreed to set a date and time the following day.

On Thursday evening the governor was noncommittal on the Keable/Fogarty bill and said that she will make a final decision on it once it reaches her desk, but the next day, while taping an episode of Channel 12 Newsmakers with Tim White and Ted Nesi, Raimondo said that she will be “very likely to” veto the bill. The Governor told Nesi and White that she was opposed to the bill’s “retro-activity feature” which changes the process at the Energy Facilities Siting Board (EFSB) even as Invenergy, the company that wants to build a $700 million fracked gas and diesel burning power plant in Burrillville, is engaged in the process.

“This isn’t about, necessarily, whether you are for or against natural gas, we have a process,” said Raimondo, “You cannot change the rules of the game halfway through the game if you want to be a business friendly state.”

I’ve talked before about Raimondo and her emphasis of business over democracy. The process that Raimondo is defending is one that favors the interests of billion dollar corporations over the people of Rhode Island. The people of Burrillville are demanding that this process be corrected in the interests of the people.

If given a choice, would you rather live in a business friendly state, or a democracy friendly state?

June 10, 2016June 10, 2016

Demonstrators tell National Grid: #NOLNGinPVD

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A demonstration to bring attention to the $100 million fracked, liquefied natural gas compressor station National Grid is trying to build in South Providence was held outside the company’s location at the corner of Allens Ave and Terminal Rd Wednesday afternoon. The demonstration was a joint effort of the FANG Collective, Environmental Justice League of RI (EJLRI), area residents and other community and environmental organizations.

The organizers see the expansion of chemical industries in this area of South Providence as “a clear example of environmental racism as all 11 of the EPA‘s identified toxic polluters in Providence are already in this zip code, which is predominantly low-income people of color.”

The impact and dangers of this project have been outlined by the EJLRI in detail here in a series of articles. The demonstrators have a Twitter hashtag: #NOLNGinPVD

There was a heavy police presence in the area, including a “prisoner transport van and numerous police cars. This was in addition to whatever private security National Grid employs. The heavy policing of local environmentalists and activists has been an ongoing issue in South Providence.

The dirt and soil all along this are near the port and along the bay may be contaminated with some pretty bad chemicals. When digging into that dirt, the soil needs to be tested and precautions, such as covering piles of dirt with large tarps to prevent the contaminated soil from blowing away and contaminating the air, water or nearby, previously uncontaminated areas. So it was with some surprise that I note the large piles of dirt behind the fence at National Grid, created during building project and uncovered by tarps.

Edit: David Graves, spokesperson for National Grid explains: “The soil you’re referring to is the extra dirt that is taken from the ground during gas main replacement. Because of the space taken up by the new mains and the pavement, there is always a certain amount that won’t fit back into the excavation. It’s brought to the Allens Ave. property, sifted and kept on site for future use.”

I did learn a fun game. Standing with the demonstrators and taking pictures on Allens Ave, I noticed that some of them were taking pictures of passing chemical trucks, like this one:

By noting the number on the DOT Hazard Class sign, and looking up the chemical on your cell phone, you can learn exactly how you would suffer and die were that truck ever to be in an accident too close to you. For instance, the truck above has a DOT Hazard Class 1791:

Here’s what you will find out about Sodium Hypochlorite:

ACUTE TOXICITY – Danger Corrosive

INGESTION-

Ingestion of a few ounces can cause corrosion of mucous membranes, swelling of the throat, perforation of the esophagus and stomach, vomiting, colitis, and circulatory collapse. May lead to convulsions, coma or death

EYE / SKIN-

Liquid contact can produce irritations of the skin with blistering. Direct contact with eyes may cause redness, pain and in the case of concentrated Hypochlorite ( 20% by volume), permanent damage.

INHALATION-

Inhalation of mist or fumes can cause bronchial irritation, cough, difficult breathing, inflammation of the mouth, nausea, and in severe exposures, pulmonary edema. Material has odor of chlorine.

Fun, right?

Try it yourself. Here’s a truck carrying DOT Hazard Class 1824:

Here’s the least dangerous truck with a DOT Hazard Class sign that rumbled past in a ten minute period, 3257.

I took these three pictures within ten minutes of each other. At least 20 such trucks pass by every hour.

This is what environmentalists mean when they talk about sacrifice zones. Trucks like these never trundle through neighborhoods on the East Side or East Greenwich. Yet this part of Providence is a neighborhood, with nearby hospitals, schools, businesses and homes.

People live here.

June 10, 2016

Raimondo non-committal on Keable/Fogarty bill veto

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On Thursday evening members of BASE (Burrillville Against Spectra Expansion) and The FANG Collective spoke with Governor Gina Raimondo outside of a community event in Providence.

During the exchange the Governor was given information on the impacts of MTBE contaminated water and she pledged that on Friday she will officially announce the date of her community meeting in Burrillville.

The Governor first agreed to come to Burrillville to meet with residents during an event on May 9th and her staff has since suggested that the community meeting will be during the first week of July. We look forward to confirming this date with the Governor tomorrow.

Unfortunately Governor Raimondo was noncommittal on the Keable/Fogarty bill and said that she will make a final decision on it once it reaches her desk.

Let’s make sure that the Bill gets to her desk.

Please email Senate President Teresa Paiva Weed (sen-paivaweed@rilegislature.gov) and Senate Judiciary Chairman Michael J. McCaffrey (sen-mccaffrey@rilegislature.gov) and urge them to move S3037 to a full vote on the Senate floor.

And let’s keep the phone calls and emails coming to Governor Raimondo urging her support the Keable/Fogarty bill: (401) 222-2080, governor@governor.ri.gov.

[The above was written from a press release. The video was released by the FANG Collective]

June 8, 2016June 8, 2016

Today: No LNG in PVD: Demonstration at Fields Point

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Please join The FANG Collective, Environmental Justice League of RI along with area residents and other community and environmental organizations to bring attention to the 100 million dollar, fracked, liquefied natural gas compressor station National Grid is trying to build in South Providence. This is a clear example of environmental racism as all 11 of the EPA’s identified toxic polluters in Providence are already in this zip code, which is predominantly low-income people of color. The impact and dangers of this project are enormous and have been outlined by the EJ League in detail here.

Whether you already stand in opposition to this project and would like to bring attention to its dangers or would like to find out more about the project and its implications on our city and state, PLEASE join us Wednesday between 4pm-6pm at the entrance to the facility on the corner of Allens Ave and Terminal Rd.

[From a press release]

May 19, 2016

Quakers, radicals, others protest Textron cluster bombs

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Radicals, Quakers, a few hippies and at least one nun joined together today to protest Textron because the Rhode Island-based conglomerate makes cluster bombs that Saudi Arabia is using in civilian-populated areas of Yemen.

Some 13 people held signs and informed passersby as they stood across the street from Textron’s world headquarters in downtown Providence. Organizers said this was the first of actions against Textron that will happen weekly.

“We are going to be here every week until they stop making cluster bombs,” said Pia Ward, an organizer with the Fang Collective. Ward said she has personal reasons for protesting collateral damage in Middle Eastern wars.

The Fang Collective is co-organizing the weekly protests against Textron with the Americans Friends Service Committee Southeastern New England, a Quaker group. Fang formed to fight the Burrillville power plant proposal and has since branched out to other issues, such as opposing Textron. AFSC-SENE has long been organizing against Textron for it’s role in the military industrial complex.

This is the third action at Textron since RI Future began reporting on the local company’s role in producing cluster bombs for Saudi Arabia. Three activists, including Ward, were arrested for chaining their necks to Textron’s front doors at the second action.

Ward wouldn’t tell me what future Textron actions will consist of, but she said, “I think more and more people will want to participate.”

Textron has become a target of not only local peace activists but also of the global human rights community. Human Rights Watch focused squarely on Textron in its latest report on cluster bomb casualties in Yemen. And the International Campaign to Ban Land Mine and Cluster Munitions plans a global day of action on June 16 to call attention to the damage cluster bombs cause.

Cluster bombs are banned by 119 nations, but not by the United States or Saudi Arabia. Textron is the only North American manufacturer of cluster bombs and one of the last private sector manufacturers of them on the planet. Textron has long supplied Saudi Arabia and other countries with cluster bombs, through the US government.

Saudi Arabia has been using Textron-made cluster bombs near civilian-populated areas of Yemen, according to Human Rights Watch.

Read RI Future’s full coverage of Textron’s cluster bombs here:

Human Rights Watch condemns use of Textron-made cluster bomb (Feb. 24)
Textron still makes cluster bombs despite downward global, US trends (Feb. 29)
Textron sold cluster bombs to seven foreign governments (March 4)
What US company made the bomb that killed 97 civilians in Yemen (April 8)
Quaker group to protests Textron for selling cluster bombs to Saudi Arabia (April 11)
Textron plays leading role in Middle East violence (April 11)
CODEPINK, peace groups join campaign against cluster bombs (April 15)
Peace activists call attention to Textron cluster bombs (April 19)
Anti-cluster bomb activists arrested for chaining themselves to Textron headquarters
- (April 21)
Human Rights Watch finds evidence of Textron cluster bomb in Yemen (May 6)
Anti-Textron actions to happen weekly in Providence, RI (May 16)

May 5, 2016May 5, 2016

Special Town Council meeting does little to calm Burrillvillian concerns

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“I don’t [want to] throw cold water on your parade here,” said Burrillville Town Manager Michael Wood, “but you can’t simply just determine a tax at will and tax somebody… It’s not fair to leave you with the impression that this can be done when it can’t be done.”

Problem is, Wood is wrong.

Wood was speaking to around 150 Burrillville residents at a “Town Council Special Meeting” held to answer questions and concerns regarding Invenergy’s proposed $750 million fracked gas and diesel oil burning electrical plant.

Nick Katkevich, from the Fang Collective, had just read from aloud the relevant passage from the RI General Laws concerning Burrillville and energy plant taxation, as quoted in RI Future:

44-3-30 Burrillville – Property taxation of electricity generating facilities located in the town. – Notwithstanding any other provisions of the general laws to the contrary, the town council of the town of Burrillville is authorized to determine, by ordinance or resolution, an amount of taxes to be paid each year on account of real or personal property used in connection with any facility for the generation of electricity located in the town, notwithstanding the valuation of the property or the rate of tax.

Council president John Pacheco told Katkevich that the item wasn’t properly on the agenda.

Burrillville resident Kenneth Putnam Jr. then rose and asked a follow up question, which provoked Wood’s response.

This exchange was provoked by a piece I wrote, in which I consulted with lawyers on background. To check my logic, I wrote Jerry Elmer, a Senior Attorney at the Conservation Law Foundation for his opinion. Elmer is an expert in climate change and renewable energy law and has literally written many of the laws currently on the books in Rhode Island regarding energy and climate.

Elmer’s response to my query is worth quoting in its entirety:

The Rhode Island state law on this matter is clear and unambiguous, even if not everyone is familiar with the law. The Rhode Island statute I am referring to is R.I. General Laws § 44-3-30. That statute gives the Town of Burrillville (which, legally, would act through the Town Council) the right to set the real estate taxes for any electricity generation plant within the Town (including, but not limited to Invenergy) at any level the Town wants. Importantly, the level at which the Town taxes the energy plant (such as Invenergy) need not be sensible or reasonable. For example, the Town could legally charge Invenergy $1 per decade in property taxes. The Town could legally charge Invenergy $1 billion per week (or per day, or even per hour) in property taxes. One could have a reasonable argument as to whether any of those tax levels I just mentioned are sensible, or whether (or not) they represent good public policy. But under that statute (RIGL 44-3-30) they are legal.

“It is also important to note that the statute explicitly says that this is true notwithstanding any other state law to the contrary. Thus, even if someone could point to a different state law on municipal property taxation, the provisions of RIGL 44-3-30 would trump that other (possible) law. The statute also is true notwithstanding what tax rate the Town of Burrillville has on other properties (like local homes and businesses). The statute is also true notwithstanding the actual valuation of the Invenergy power plant.

“The short of it is that there is a specific, very detailed, state law that speaks to this exact question, and which trumps other state laws. By law, the Burrillville Town Council can set Invenergy’s property tax at any level it chooses; and, if the Town Council chooses, it has the legal authority to set that tax rate so high that Invenergy would pack its bags immediately and leave the Town forever.”

Earlier, Councillor David Place interrupted Katkevich, asking everyone present that even if the law as written and understood were true, “How long do you think it will be before that law is changed, if the Governor and the General Assembly want to pass the plant?”

Changing the law in the middle of negotiations to favor one party over another would be a pretty big move on the part of the Governor and the General Assembly, especially in the face of widening opposition to the plant and the rising unpopularity of our elected leaders. And the very idea of changing the law in that way is of dubious legality. But that’s a question for another day.

The “Town Council Special Meeting” was held in the Beckwith-Bruckshaw Memorial Lodge, a place with no microphones. From the beginning people in the back had difficulty hearing the proceedings. Only three Town Councillors, John Pacheco III, Stephen Rawson and David Place, attended. Town Planner Tom Kravitz gave a short presentation and answered many questions from those in attendance.

The general tenor of the meeting was one of distrust and exasperation. For instance, while the Town Council won’t reveal any details of tax deal negotiations with Invenergy, on Dan Yorke’s television show State of Mind, John Niland, Development Director for Invenergy and the company’s public face for the project floated the number $3.6 million a year in taxes and rising, over 20 years. This was more information than has ever been volunteered by the Burrillville Town Council.

The people of Burrillville have real concerns. Time and again Town Manager Wood says he “can’t discuss the particulars” of the pending deal with Invenergy, provoking those in attendance last night to reply that they “get all our information” from John Niland on Dan Yorke. In the video below, a resident points out that in her email exchange with Wood, the Town Manager didn’t seem to realize that her home was in the area determined to be affected by the power plant.

“How can we trust that you have our best interests at heart when clearly, I’m in a severely impacted area, and you’re saying I’m not?”

It gets worse.

Tiya Loiselle is a veteran whose home value has dropped nearly $50 thousand in value since January. She was hoping to build equity in her home, but instead she’s rapidly going underwater, because of the possibility of this plant coming to her town.

As much as the residents of Burrillville seem to distrust their Town Council, they distrust Governor Gina Raimondo more.

Governor Raimondo “has been on the wrong side of a lot of issues because she doesn’t listen to the people,” said one speaker.

“She doesn’t reply to your emails,” said another.

“Did she not say that she would meet” with us, asked a woman, who was answered by another woman with, “I followed up, and sent her a message asking ‘Are you still planning to come to Burrillville?’ and she said ‘You’ll have to talk to my advisory board.’”

“You can’t trust the Governor,” said the first woman, “You understand why you see Trump signs everywhere, because no one trusts the Governor any more.”

Perhaps no one at the meeting expressed the impotence, fear and anger felt by the people of Burrillville better than Deborah Krieg, a “mom from Burrillville”. Her short speech to the Town Council was heart breaking:

You can watch the entire Town Council meeting here:

April 24, 2016April 24, 2016

The Syrian Refugee Crisis: A report back from Greece and children’s toy, clothing and milk drive

The FANG Collective will host two events on Sunday at their new office space. There will be a toy, clothing and milk drive for Syrian children refugees throughout the day. The supplies will then be delivered to NuDay Syria, a New Hampshire based non-profit that ships supplies to refugee camps in Turkey, Syria and Lebanon. There will also be a talk by Heather Shepheard and Roger Benham, of Willimantic, CT about their experience of travelling to the Greek island of Lesvos in February to work with CK Team Lesvos, a grassroots group meeting boats full of refugees and migrants crossing the straits from Turkey. The event is free and open to the public.

What: Supply drive for Syrian refugees and a talk delivered by two people with direct experience working with refugees in Greece.

Who: The event is hosted by the FANG Collective.

When: Sunday, April 24th, the supply drive will be from 2-8pm and the talk will be from 4-6pm

Where: The FANG Collective’s new office space, located at 545 PAwtucket Ave, Unit #113 in Pawtucket, RI

[From a press release]

April 22, 2016April 22, 2016

FANG targets State Street Corp. in Boston over fossil fuel support

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A group of people associated with The FANG Collective carried out an action at the international headquarters of State Street Corporation in downtown Boston on Friday. Two members of the group locked-down to two doors at the main entrance of the building using bicycle locks while others swarmed inside urging the companies to end its investments in the fracked-gas industry.

Galen Shireman-Grabowski and Jay Gustaferro of Gloucester, MA were extracted from their lock down by security and police and placed under arrest.

State Street Corporation is Boston’s oldest financial institution and has $28 trillion in assets. State Street is one of the largest institutional shareholders of a multitude of companies involved in fracking, fracked-gas pipelines and liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports. Among their top holdings is Spectra Energy, whose pipeline expansions projects have come under intense scrutiny across the Northeast.

“State Street Corporation with it’s holding in companies like Spectra Energy, Anadarko and Dominion, is fueling the climate crisis and impacting communities that are being inundated with fracked-gas infrastructure across the country,” Said Shireman-Grabowski who traveled from Vermont for the action.

State Street Corporation has faced protests over the past year from activists resisting Spectra’s “AIM” pipeline expansions project, Dominion’s Cove LNG facility in Maryland and Kinder Morgan’s “NED” project. On Wednesday Kinder Morgan declared that they were indefinitely delaying the NED pipeline project that would have cut across Massachusetts.

Activists held signs that listed a number of the fracked-gas companies that State Street has holdings in that read “State Street We See You.” Another banner deployed on the site read “State Street Divest: No More Pipelines.”

“State Street Corporation is locking our world into a climate crisis and they can no longer hide from public scrutiny. We are watching them, and we will hold them accountable,” said Gustaferro.

[from a press release]

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