Protestors hold up signs at Klyde Warren Park in Dallas during rush hour on
Monday, Feb. 3. 

Photo courtesy of John Bryant.

 

 

 

Feb. 4, 2014

By Julie Thibodeaux 

North Texans joined a nationwide protest against the Keystone XL Pipeline on Monday, with three demonstrations in the DFW area.

The NoKXL vigils were organized by CREDO, Rainforest Action Network and the Sierra Club with support from several national environmental organizations, including 350.org and the Natural Resources Defense Council.

Over 250 demonstrations were held across the country following the release of the Final Supplemental Keystone Environmental Impact Statement by the U.S. State Department on Friday. 

According to the State Department, the document does not recommend a decision regarding whether to approve the pipeline but provides information to be used during the Presidential Permit review process. 

John Bryant, a member of the Social Justice Committee at Horizon Unitarian Universalist Church in Carrollton, organized the NoKXL protest held at Klyde Warren Park in Dallas. The rush-hour demonstration drew about 50 activists. Vigils were also held at the Denton Courthouse and at ExxonMobil Headquarters in Irving.


Above and below, protesters in Dallas on Monday. Courtesy of Linda Cooke. 

He said the protests are largely symbolic but can have a cumulative effect.

“It’s a linked arms kind of thing,” he said. “We have three in the area, then your talking about tens of thousands of people across the country.”

Bryant, an international hotel architect who travels extensively, said he stays active in opposing the pipeline by writing letters, signing petitions and engaging to social media. He also attended a pipeline protest in Washington DC.

“I hope to slow the process down a little until somebody notices it’s a crappy deal,” he said. “Particularly in Texas. It’s a messy pipeline and we’re going to get very little money out of it.”

Molly Rooke of the Dallas Sierra Club said in an email that it’s important to show President Obama, Canada and TransCanada that Texas environmentalists are not giving up the fight. 

“We will stand with our neighbors in Nebraska to the Canadian border to oppose its approval even though the southern segment is built here/running in Texas.”

The public can provide comments to the State Department during a 30-day public comment period, which runs Feb. 5 through March 7.

“Every one of these actions is sending the same message,” said Bryant. “It’s time for President Obama to be a climate champion, not the pipeline president, and reject Keystone XL.”  


Julie Thibodeaux is the Managing Editor for Green Source DFW. Previously, she worked as an editor and writer at the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Contact her at Julie@greensourcedfw.org.

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