There are headlines almost every week about a new oil spill or pipeline leak somewhere in North America.

Since the 2010 BP disaster in the Gulf of Mexico, there is a heightened awareness of the dangers stemming from our society's addiction to oil.

Here in BC's Lower Mainland, I meet people all the time who are deeply concerned about climate change. Many are aware that the tar sands are the largest industrial project in history, with pipelines for shipping the crude oil expanding across the continent with little or no regard for the ecosystems and communities that lie in thier path.

However, most of these same people are genuinely shocked when I tell them that Vancouver's harbour is quickly becoming a key shipping terminal for tar sands crude.

Without any kind of proper public consultation, massive oil tankers have been allowed to pass through the narrows of the Burrard Inlet - already two tankers a week, each carrying more than three times more crude oil than was spilled by the Exxon Valdez. Kinder Morgan has applied to expand their Trans Mountain Pipeline so they can carry far more tar sands crude to the Pacific, and plans to ship even more crude oil are in the works.

All over North America, people are taking action to say 'No' to the expansion of tar sands pipelines. A mass civil disobedience action has been called for the end of August in Washington DC to pressure the US government to stop approval of the Keystone XL Pipeline proposed to carry tar sands crude oil from northern Alberta to refineries in Illinois, Oklahoma and the U.S. Gulf Coast.

At the same time, here in the Lower Mainland, we are taking action to spotlight and protest the tar sands pipeline in our own backyard - in North Burnaby.

One group of people that is only too aware of the dangers of tar sands pipelines is the local community in North Burnaby. Back in 2007, they dealt with a pipeline rupture caused oil to gush out from underneath a city street. Residents also face poor air quality from the nearby Chevron Refinery.

This is why I am asking you to please join me on Saturday, August 27th, for a rally starting at 2pm at Inlet Dr. & Hastings St. in Burnaby. From Vancouver, you can take the 135 Hastings Street bus to get there. The Wilderness Committee is organizing this event with allies, including: the Council of Canadians, Tanker Free BC, Streams of Justice and StopThePave.org.

The action in Washington, D.C. has been endorsed by social and environmental activists including Maude Barlow, Danny Glover, James Hansen, Naomi Klein, Bill McKibben, and David Suzuki.

Our numbers are growing. Together, we can help turn off the taps on the tar sands. Together, we can stop Enbridge, stop Kinder Morgan, stop Keystone and ban tankers from Canada's Pacific coast.

Ben West | Healthy Communities Campaigner
Wilderness Committee