-David Daniel, STOP Organizer, Founder, and President
UPDATE: S.T.O.P. has grown and has various other very active citizen groups in Texas. There is a very strong group in Cherokee County and the surrounding area. Also, another very strong and active group is the Nacogdoches County S.T.O.P. group. Please visit their website at: http://www.nacstop.org/
Here I am with my wife, Clara, and our daughter, Naida.
My name is David Daniel. I am a landowner in Texas whose land will be split in half by the Keystone XL pipeline and whose family will be forced to live in danger for the next, according to TransCanada, one hundred years.
When I asked about potential leaks due to the combination of heat, high pressure, composition of contents, and a thin wall, TransCanada told me that there is “No study available” and that “This can only be determined after the pipeline has been put into service and this might take years to determine.”
My family should not be forced to be lab-rats in some for profit corporate experiment. Our lives, health, and safety need to be treated with respect not lies.
TransCanada representatives have lied to me from day one. They lied about trespassing and broke agreements. They told me they do not pay for timber and I had to fight them on that. They told me they had all the necessary permits to build this pipeline and I later found out they do not. They are lying about the contents by telling me that any additives are no more harmful than the oil itself.
These are only some examples of my dealings with TransCanada. There is no reason why should I trust them about the contents flowing through my property.
Therefore, I believe the EPA and other organizations who tell me that tarsands is more harmful to air, land, water, and lives than regular crude. TransCanada has demonstrated a disregard and disrespect for the lives of my family by denying access to an Emergency Response Plan, and denying any form of landowner warning label concerning contents and emergency procedures, and then claiming that the information is proprietary, which is a corporate loophole that means “we don’t have to tell you squat.”
TransCanada declares our lives as low consequence, then plans on using less than a half inch wall thickness to save money, and is willing to operate at pressures that exceed current U.S. safety regulations. This should provide a small glimpse in to what the people and communities are forced to deal with.
This is a different pipeline and it should be treated differently and the people need to be treated differently as well.
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Visit our you tube page at; http://www.youtube.com/user/StopTarSandsOil
Listen to the Tar Sands Fight Song written and performed by S.T.O.P. organizer Eddie Radillo http://www.youtube.com/user/StopTarSandsOil#p/u/21/70mR29ABfOY
Follow STOP on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Stop-Tarsands-Oil-Pipelines/157160017661362
Follow STOP on Twitter at http://twitter.com/stop_etx
You need to start a Facebook Group. Under something like “TransCanada Pipeline” because when I searched – most of what I found on Google was positive. As a matter of fact – I only found out about this on UK newspaper online.
So when I Googled – nothing but the company info came up.
If you start a page – people will join and you will move up in the rankings.
I live in Florida – on the Gulf side – so this is worrisome to me too. And another deep water well permit was just okayed.
Hi Sally,
We do have a Facebook Page- Just search “Stop Tarsands Oil Pipelines” on Facebook. There’s another group of Texans who have a page and we post nearly the same content, you can search “Texans Against Tar Sands” for that. Thank you for your suggestions!
In 2000 both state and federal governments were told that the southern fourth or fifth of the country could be ran on solar power. Instead, the real solar incentives were ignored and not even implemented. Instead, big oil and gas companies bought out any remaining integrity that may have existed in those governments.
In my area we are fighting a new nuke power plant. The existing nuke plant is offline for the present but the site has over 16 years worth of radioactive waste (spent fuel rods) stored above ground in concrete bunkers and setting on the swamp muck that is all around this part of Florida. Instead of implementing the solar alternative the companies and the governments are determined to build this nuke even though there is still no waste plan.
Those who profit from destruction must be smiling broadly – all the way to the bank.
p.s. Those bunkers that store the nuke waste are only 200 yards from the Gulf of Mexico. Considering they are not anchored to anything what do you think will happen should we be hit with a Cat 5 hurricane?
I do not know what the eminent domain laws are where you live, but here in Florida they lean towards benefiting the property owner. In Florida the taking party has to pay for the property owners attorney and expert witnesses that are use to plead your case. I am sure that if you (as a group) got a good attorney you may well be able to influence the outcome of any takings. For one, make them legally demonstrate that they have the right to take. If necessary take them to the Supreme Court if possible. Delay this thing till it becomes economically unfeasible for them to do it.
Just my 2 cents.
Good luck to you all.
Rod
Orlando, Florida
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