Kayaktivists rally against Arctic drilling
Hundreds of activists took to a bay at the Port of Seattle, Washington state, yesterday in kayaks, canoes, paddleboards and other vessels to send the message that Royal Dutch Shell should cancel its plan to drill in the Arctic Ocean.
The ‘‘Paddle in Seattle’’ – a daylong, family-friendly festival in a West Seattle park and an on-thewater protest by ‘‘Shell No’’ kayaktivists — was held only blocks from where Shell’s Polar Pioneer drilling rig is docked at the port.
The brightly
coloured
boats lined the grass as paddlers loaded gear while lights on the towering rig twinkled in the background.
Once out on the water, kayakers gathered in formation and hoisted signs and banners that read: ‘‘Climate Justice’’, ‘‘Oil-Free Future’’, ‘‘Shell No, Seattle Draws The Line’’, and ‘‘We can’t burn all the oil on the planet and still live on it’’.
Many had posters or red scarfs that had the Shell logo with crossed kayak paddles underneath – resembling the skull-andcrossbones image.
Later in the afternoon they paddled to the base of the towering Polar Pioneer drilling rig and sang songs, chanted banners.
Eric Day, with the Swinomish Indian Tribe, was one of many Native American paddlers who brought their canoes to the event. Drilling in the Arctic would hurt those who lived off the land.
‘‘This is our livelihood. We need to protect it for the crabbers, for the fishermen,’’ Day said. ‘‘We need to protect it for our children.’’
Annie Leonard, executive director of environmental group Greenpeace USA, said there was a long list of reasons why drilling in the Arctic was a bad idea.
The focus should be on renewable energy in this time of climate
and
displayed change, not dirty fuels, she said.
‘‘Why would we invest in an energy source that scientists say is leading us to catastrophe?’’ Leonard said. Many also fear that an oil spill in such a delicate and remote region would be a disaster on many levels.
Greg Huyler, a 51-year-old scuba diver from Yakima, Washington state, shook his head in opposition to the event.
‘‘It’s a bunch of crap,’’ he said. ‘‘The problem is, all of these kayaks are petroleum products, and they’re going to gripe about drilling for oil. And 90 per cent of them drove here in cars that use petroleum products.’’