Posts

The Clean Power Plan Is Not Enough

/in , /by
Stop Acrtic drilling now!

Stop Acrtic drilling now!

The Clean Power Plan is both good news and bad news. It’s a positive step in lessening our society’s impacts on climate, but the plan still leaves a number of alarming issues unaddressed and is inadequate in others. Before Portland Mayor Charlie Hales met with President Obama on Monday, Mia Reback, a 350PDX community organizer, spoke with the mayor about the plan. “I appealed to Hales to ask the president to reverse his stance on Arctic drilling,” Reback said. “Approving a new large-scale fossil fuel development, like Shell’s proposed Arctic drilling, is reckless and puts American people at risk. Obama should rescind Shell’s permit to drill in the Arctic.”

Read more

Me, Mayor Hales and the Race to Save the World

/in , , /by

_MG_2709This morning, before Portland Mayor Charlie Hales met with President Obama to discuss his Clean Power Plan, Mayor Hales and I spoke on the phone to talk about climate change, Arctic Drilling, and the need for strong action on climate. It was such an honor that an elected official like Mayor Hales took time out of his busy day to talk with me. Below are the notes I wrote up before our call that outline the conversation we had. I look forward to continuing my relationship with the Mayor to take stronger action on climate and build a just, equitable society for all.

Read more

People vs sHell: An account from the blockade

/in , /by
_MG_2544

Maintaining the blockade day and night.

It was a beautiful moment to see sHell’s Fennica icebreaker turned back by our human blockade taking its stand at the St. Johns bridge: 13 people suspended from the bridge, a wall of kayaks in the water and all backed up by dedicated support staff on shore. Compared to the size of the ship, they looked like tiny insects, yet for the moment, victory was ours.

It was 28 hours earlier, as the camp in Cathedral Park was just stirring for the planned 4 a.m. kayak blockade, that people started to notice the activists one by one dropping down from the side of the 200 foot tall span. They seemed like little spiders as they slowly lowered down, connecting lines between themselves, creating the web that would block the ship for 40 hours. Read more

The “sHELL NO” Campaign Continues at The Big Float

/in , /by

Big Float-5The Fennica has arrived. On Saturday, July 25th, Shell’s notorious icebreaking ship docked near Swan Island, where it was confronted with several waves of “kayaktivists”. As they paddled through dim, unduly warm Willamette waters, the kayakers chanted, waved banners, and sailed flags in protest. Organized in part by 350pdx, the event made national news headlines, succeeding in bringing awareness to the ominous shadow the Fennica casts over the river.

sHell No activism continued into the next day at The Big Float, an event intended, according to its website, “to encourage people to ‘get into the river’ and support its preservation and healthy development as a recreational resource”.

Big Float-1Participants entered the Willamette River at Tom McCall Waterfront Park in Portland, where they floated on inner tubes, air mattresses, rafts, and kayaks. Despite the overcast skies, hundreds of people showed up to play in the water. Passersby were supportive as 350pdx volunteers joined in, parading several blocks carrying a “sHell No” banner along with a conglomeration of tubes and a small boat. Once they reached the water, 350pdx tied their floats together to create a united front and once again display their signs in protest of arctic drilling.

Read more

sHell No Protest at sHell Station – Thursday July 23rd Report

/in , /by

sHell-No-Station-2As part of the sHell No Portland campaign, 30 people spontaneously organized a protest at the Shell Station at the southeast corner of Laurelhurst Park.

People held two banners: “Keep The Arctic Oil Free” and “Idle No More”. There were multiple chants, folks talking to motorists and speaking to passersby and a couple people spoke to the Shell attendants.

 

Photos from the protest

With the Ice-breaker ‘Fennica’ coming into Portland for repairs, activists have mobilized to protest Shell and the beginning of drilling in the arctic. It is especially telling about our society that as we have just passed the 1°C mark and the arctic land region is facing an unprecendented fire season that the plan to drill in the arctic is still a go. It is a form of insanity. We have to collectively break through that to chart an intelligent course.

Upcoming sHell No Events:
Friday July 24th – Portland Vs. Shell Speak Out at City Hall 1 pm

Saturday July 25th – Portland vs Shell! Kayak Flotilla
WHEN: Meet at 3:00pm. Will launch the flotilla by 4:00pm and expect to be on the water roughly an hour and a half.
WHERE: Launching from the Swan Island Boat ramp, at the end of N Basin Ave.

Sunday July 26th – Big Float outreach and awareness event.

Other actions you can take:

Sign the petition asking Mayor Hales and the City Council to take a public stand against drilling in the arctic.

Download and print a PDF of the petition and go out and collect names from friends, family or at events. Then you can mail or return them to the 350pdx office!

sHELL NO! rally launches climate activism plans to stop Shell

/in , /by
sHell No-21

Senator Merkley speaks up against drilling in the Arctic.

Last minute rally against Shell builds power! Activists plan to stop Shell before the corporation can drill in the Arctic by fighting back on our home turf–here in Portland. The kickoff rally happened last Saturday morning as people gathered to make t shirts and hear Senator Jeff Merkley speak (among others) and this is just the beginning.

Fennica is predicted to arrive in Portland on Sunday. If you’re asking what you can do right now to stop Shell, look no further! We need resources to make it happen. Donate now to stop Shell.

For a full article on the rally and upcoming plans against Shell, see this OPB link. And check out our photo gallery for more photos of the rally!

Read more