This article, by David James Duncan, is an adaptation from The Heart of the Monster, a book written by Duncan and Rick Bass to protest ExxonMobil's attempts to turn the Pacific Northwest and Northern Rockies into an industrial corridor. The book can be ordered at allagainstthehaul.org.
The single largest petroleum project in the world, the Alberta Tar Sands, sits some 700 miles north of my home in Western Montana, and until recently seemed a foreign and abstract threat. I'm a very busy man, happily employed on a novel-writing project. The crises of the world fade into white noise once I've given myself to my work. Sure, I'd heard that the Tar Sands are the single largest energy-consuming project in the world. Sure, Tar Sands carbon-dioxide emissions could quadruple in the next ten years, and have been likened by leading climatologists to an act of war by Canada against itself and every other nation in the world. Sure, forty million acres of pine forests in the North American West have died and turned to tinder thanks to those same CO2 emissions, and yours and mine. But my church consists of trout streams, and trout rise to a fly even among dead trees, so I could still conduct my kind of worship. As I say, I was a busy man.
Then, two years ago, ExxonMobil decided to convert 1,100 miles of beautiful American rivers and roads—including my home rivers and road—into a so-called "High and Wide industrial corridor" connecting the industrialized nations of the Pacific Rim to the Tar Sands.
The 1,100 mile conduit's purpose will be to ship mega-loads of giant stripmining modules from South Korea to Vancouver, Washington, barge the gear upriver to Lewiston, Idaho, load it onto the most gigantic trailers ever to attempt an American highway, drag it along three of our most beloved rivers and over two formidable mountain passes in Idaho and Montana, then creep the gear north to the Tar Sands. The concerns of four states, their residents, and millions of annual tourists are not being seriously weighed. Thousands of sustainable jobs in Idaho's and Montana's leading industry—outdoor recreation and tourism—could be diminished or lost. Access points to rivers and wilderness will be barricaded for the sake of ExxonMobil and its loads. Some of the gear creeping through our designated American wilds will be longer, taller and heavier than the Statue of Liberty.
ExxonMobil, which claims it will run the loads only at night, has conducted its own environmental assessment, finding that the project will have "no significant impact." No other enviro, economic or engineering analysis has been seriously considered. And Exxon's self-assessment carries the weight of smoke: this company's history of environmental debacles, catastrophic oil spills, and junk climate science speak for themselves. The giant stripmining gear is stockpiled at the Port of Lewiston at this writing, temporarily delayed by local activists and two lawyers. Among the American treasures slated to be pierced, bilked, culturally warped and degraded are the Columbia and Snake Rivers, the historic and heart-breaking Nez Perce trail, the epoch-making Lewis and Clark trail, the homelands and treaty rights of three sovereign Indian tribes, the steelheaders' paradise that is the Clearwater River, the kayaker's paradise that is the Lochsa River, Montana's Bitterroot, Clark Fork, and Big Blackfoot River of A River Runs Through It fame, two formidable mountain passes, Motorcycle Magazine's number one rated long-distance American joy-ride, and the federal highway system's number one rated Scenic Byway.
If ExxonMobil's plan is not stopped, tourists en route to Yellowstone and Glacier National Parks, the glorious Front Range of the Rockies, or the Sturgis Motorcycle Fest could soon be waiting in line for hours, then darting around police cars escorting 220 foot-long, three-story-tall loads of Tar Sands stripmining gear. ExxonMobil's South Korean refinery equipment will creep along behind super-tractors towing two twelve-axle trailers. The loads will be nearly the length of a Fenway Park home run, three stories in height, and will weigh up to 670,000 pounds—about four times the legal federal load limit. For 200 miles of the journey, Exxon will try to maneuver these 26-foot-wide loads around the tight curves of a byway that, from painted fogline to fogline, is only 22-feet wide and overhangs the trout- and salmon-rich waters of the Clearwater and Lochsa rivers.
Exxon spokespersons gloat about the money—$67.8 million—the company is paying to "upgrade" 600 miles of America's wilderness-piercing roads. This is rather like turning the roads through Yellowstone and Glacier into industrial conduits and asking to be thanked for it. The scenic byways through Idaho and Montana are among America's most wild and beautiful, and a crucial part of that beauty is their scale. This is my home address. I know these roads very well. The deer, elk, foxes, coyotes, eagles, ravens, bear, flocks of wild turkey and quail, moose, and squirrels I so often encounter survive because the roads are modest, curved, often steep, and must be driven with extreme (but rewarding!) caution.
The transportation of the first 220 or so modules of mining equipment will create eighty-two temporary jobs for flaggers, pilot car drivers, and (already employed) police. Meanwhile, in Missoula County alone, more than 32,000 residents are gainfully employed by the tourist industry. In 2007, annual spending by out-of-state, non-resident visitors for outdoor recreation and tourism was $422 million. Even a five-percent reduction in tourism caused by the industrialized corridor could result in the loss of thousands of jobs. Real estate prices are predicted to plummet by 20 to 40 per cent. And the first big beneficiaries of this hijacking will be Exxon and a South Korean steel company hired by Exxon. Canadian steel workers could have manufactured the same gear right next door to the Tar Sands. The financial losers will be the residents with the green recreations jobs, and the American people who own and—through taxes—pay for these rivers, roads and wild places.
Comments
Unfortunately those in Idaho that make thes decisions, caved. Very sad.
Flag ThisRecently watched Ken Burns' National Parks series [and have been to many in person, as well], and the message they repeatedly delivered is spot-on and apparently ignored by so many in big business today: our National Parks [and wildnerness areas] are a national treasure and an important part of the essence of America. The willingness of ExxonMobile and other companies to put these areas at risk in pursuit of profit is disgusting. The business of America may be business, but not at this price.
Flag ThisIf only there were enough fed up citizens here, tightly amassed, and as united in effort as the people in Egypt, imagine what could be stopped. This "we need it (oil), so go ahead" pass that government officials bestow upon the oil industry heavyweights will never end without significant and heretofore unimaginable actions. This is an example of the havoc wreaked that is acceptable....In July 2010, an Enbridge pipeline spilled 819,000 gallons of oil into the Kalamazoo River and Lake Michigan!!!!
Flag ThisIf only there were enough fed up citizens here, tightly amassed, and as united in effort as the people in Egypt, imagine what could be stopped. This "we need it (oil), so go ahead" pass that government officials bestow upon the oil industry heavyweights will never end without significant and heretofore unimaginable actions. This is an example of the havoc wreaked that is acceptable....In July 2010, an Enbridge pipeline spilled 819,000 gallons of oil into the Kalamazoo River and Lake Michigan!!!!
Flag ThisInformed, compassionate and powerful writing. Makes you want to pull on your snow pants, buy chains and head on over to help the resistance. Buy the book, sign the petition and get updates at All Against the Haul and Fighting Goliath. An epic example of the insanity of hubris and greed. Big rigs were stopped on the second night: 10 excessive traffic delays (one of an hour), a scrape against granite outcropping, hydraulics acting up in the cold and predicted adverse weather conditions.
Flag ThisIdaho and Montana senators & governors caved. Not our citizens---we were never asked. It's time to put up a fight. Not only do we need to stop the insanely huge equipment loads crawling through our wild and scenic mountain river corridors, we need to stop the flow of commerce between S. Korea and Alberta. If we allow this industrial route to be established, the lower four salmon-killing dams on the Snake R. will never be removed.Stop Big Oil. Save our salmon, keep our mountain rivers alive.
Flag ThisWhat can we do to stop this?
Flag ThisThank you for brining this issue to the public eye. As someone who has spent a fair amount of time in Northern Idaho, your story is spot on in terms of the peaceful experience when travelling this brilliant part of our country. Building an industrial conduit to serve the share holders of Exxon/Mobile would forever change the landscape not to mention the interruption of a "pristine" piece of mother nature that is off the beaten path for a reason. Do keep us posted on this net loss operation
Flag ThisThank you for brining this issue to the public eye. As someone who has spent a fair amount of time in Northern Idaho, your story is spot on in terms of the peaceful experience when travelling this brilliant part of our country. Building an industrial conduit to serve the share holders of Exxon/Mobile would forever change the landscape not to mention the interruption of a "pristine" piece of mother nature that is off the beaten path for a reason. Do keep us posted on this net loss operation
Flag ThisI am surprised James Lee Burke, has not spoken, he may not be aware of this HEMP is only immediate solution, for everything, and for high protein oil for fish food, NOT GM corn and soy Revolution kill the monarchy
Flag ThisIf only our appetite for oil would go away, this would not be happening. Yet, there are roads, and many cars and trucks that drive these roads, along all of these rivers mentioned in this article. Surely, even the author, whose books I have truly enjoyed over the years, drives along these roads, looking for his next fishing stop. The tourism in the area rely on oil, and so do the many small communities in these corridors. We all rely on oil. Until that changes, these projects will continue.
Flag ThisI have a thought... Why does this corridor have to run through the US? Unless I'm missing something, there is a seaport in Vancouver, BC also correct? Seems logical to me. Of course, ExxonMobil have already considered this and determined that it would be much cheaper to destroy our mountain regions as opposed to crossing the Canadian rockies. Shame on our elected officials who've caved into these bastards.
Flag ThisFor those of us who live in wonderful, spiritually uplifting places, this may be the old, unpleasant theme growing rampantly into the 21st century. ExxonMobil is out to supply the energy demands of an ever-increasing population, and more essentially to make big profits. And if they "suck the breath from a hummingbird" (David James Duncan's words, I seem to remember, from The River Why), it's all for their cause. May Duncan's powerful writing help to begin a movement to save what can be saved.
Flag ThisFor those of us who live in wonderful, spiritually uplifting places, this may be the old, unpleasant theme growing rampantly into the 21st century. ExxonMobil is out to supply the energy demands of an ever-increasing population, and more essentially to make big profits. And if they "suck the breath from a hummingbird" (David James Duncan's words, I seem to remember, from The River Why), it's all for their cause. May Duncan's powerful writing help to begin a movement to save what can be saved.
Flag ThisI work in the wind turbine industry after working in the Nuclear Industry for 22 years. I climb the towers and look out at the beautiful earth. The steel towers for all the manufactures of these turbines are made in Korea. The Large blades and top enclosures (Nacelle) are made in Brazil. These parts of the turbines are barged into Houston harbor and trucked across the US to build the wind parks of the US and Canada. Corporation leaders are employed to made as much profit and growth as possi
Flag ThisIf corporate leaders do not strive for profit and growth they would be replaced by others who would. This is not immoral it is the structure of the corporation model. It has produced much for humans. The nature of this model of business demands it be regulated to balance the needs of the people it serves. Owners and the people involved in a corporation constantly change. People live and die. The results of our actions while we are here on earth goes on into the future.
Flag ThisGovernment leaders are elected to serve the people. Many serve their own needs and the corporations that finance their re-election campaigns. They rationalize they can not do the things that need done with out being re-elected. They are elected by the people not paper entities that are corporations with a relatively small number of owners and employees that constantly change. Vote and get involved in business of your future and the future of the generations to come and the earth we live on.
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