Pepe Escobar: Trump’s Sword Dance Sets Off the War of the Wahhabis

Source: Trump’s Sword Dance Sets Off the War of the Wahhabis

sputniknews.com

Pepe Escobar

June 7, 2017

US President Donald Trump could not possibly have predicted the game-changing after-effects of his triumphal sword dance in Riyadh.

Or could he?

© AFP 2017/ KHALED AL-SAYYED

Next Step – Invasion? Why Saudi Arabia Moved to Cut Ties With Qatar

The fact is the House of Saud went amok, in a flash, going after Qatar and bombing from the inside that glorious Arab NATO project – call it NATOGCC — sworn with pomp over a glowing orb.An excited Trump tweeted three times his approval for Riyadh going after Doha. 

Trump and NATOGCC had equaled Daesh and Iran as “terrorists”. The House of Saud went one up — and denounced Qatar for top terror financing, which equals Don Corleone hurling Mafioso accusations against Tony Soprano. 

But then, in an unexpected plot twist, Daesh, handily, graphically, underlined the cosmic stupidity of the whole charade – staging, or at least claiming to stage a terror attack against the Parliament and the Imam Khomeini shrine in Tehran.

© AP Photo/ Lukasz Szelemej, file

Qatari Conflict: ‘Proxy Battle Between Iran and Saudis Going to the Next Level’

The current Emir of Qatar, Tamim bin Hamad al Thani, now “guilty” for not blaming Iran as the root of all evils in the Arab peninsula, might even be following the steps of his own father, Hamad, who invented modern Qatar and deposed himself – under Saudi pressure – in favor of his son in 2013.We can’t forget that Bandar bin Sultan, a.k.a. Bandar Bush, notorious former top assembler/weaponizer of jihadis, and frustrated “liberator of Syria”, had famously described Qatar in the past as “300 people and a TV station”.

So what is really going on in this noxious petrodollar swamp?  

The Israel-UAE connection

Let’s cut to the chase and establish that this nasty inter-GCC cannibalization has nothing to do with the Global War on Terror (GWOT). 

Among massive disinformation crossfire, a trail of evidence points to a concerted strategy elaborated by the Israeli lobby (via the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, founded, among others, by nefarious casino schemer Sheldon Adelson, and very close to Bibi Netanyahu); US neocon/Ziocon/neoliberalcon elements; and the UAE ambassador in Washington, Yousef al-Otaiba.

Leaked emails have shown how Otaiba – widely idolized in the Beltway because of his “largesse” – and the neocon Foundation for Defense of Democracies have discussed means of teaching Qatar a lesson for its support of Hamas, and overall non-confrontational policies towards Iran. Otaiba also happens to be close to Jared Kushner – which would explain Trump’s reaction to the anti-Qatar blitzkrieg.

CC BY 2.0 / momo / Israel National Flag

The Usual Suspect: Israel Accused of Seeking to Destroy Gulf States’ Unity

Unlike Qatar, the House of Saud and the UAE are one step away from establishing diplomatic relations with Israel – the sine qua non condition imposed by Washington to insert Israel in an anti-Iran Arab NATO guided by Riyadh.A previous row in 2014 offers additional background. Regional intel operatives confirm at the time there were military Emirati maneuvers not far from the Qatari border; London and Paris, for instance, knew all about it.

But the head of the House of Saud in charge at the time was the late King Abdullah, who was in fact an appeaser. The Head-Chopper-in-Chief now is Warrior Prince Mohamed bin Salman, a.k.a. MBS, an arrogant twat who’s already, miserably, losing a war on Yemen — conducted with billions of dollars in US and UK weapons — that has provoked a horrific humanitarian crisis in the poorest nation in the region. It is MBS who ordered the Saudi demonization of Qatar.

Let me out of the terror train

The “terra terra terra” shorthand, for the House of Saud, applies mostly to the accusation of Qatar supporting Shi’ite protest movements in eastern Saudi Arabia. That’s ridiculous; Doha is not involved.

And then there’s the accusation of Qatar supporting Islamists. That’s exactly what powerful Saudi donors – many linked to the monarchy – do.

© REUTERS/ U.S. Air Force/Tech. Sgt. Terrica Y. Jones

While Trump Says Qatar Funds Islamic Extremism, Pentagon Urges Business as Usual with Doha

Doha does support, big time, the Muslim Brotherhood – which has not much to do with al-Qaeda and/or Daesh, and is hated with a vengeance by Riyadh and its puppet al-Sisi in Cairo, who survives on Saudi handouts. What powerful Qatari donors did (up to $3 billion) was support al-Qaeda in Syria, a.k.a. Jabhat al-Nusra, which vast US neocon/neoliberalcon sectors brand as “moderate rebels”.

The Saudis, meanwhile, supported their own jihadis in Syria – and elsewhere. WikiLeaks has unequivocally proved how “donors in Saudi Arabia constitute the most significant source of funding to Sunni terrorist groups worldwide”.

Apart from complex tribal rivalry issues, the key religious factor is that Qatar – unlike Saudi Arabia – is tolerant towards non-Salafis, or “revolutionary” Salafis like the Muslim Brotherhood, and does not try to globally export its version of Wahhabism. For all practical purposes, hardcore Saudi imams consider Qataris heretics. As if they’re almost as bad as “apostate” Shi’ites. 

© AFP 2017/ FAYEZ NURELDINE

Clinton Emails Give Evidence of Saudi, Qatari Gov’ts Financing Daesh – Assange

The schism has translated, in practice, into a proxy war in Libya for example. Doha supports Islamic militias in Misrata as well as those faithful to the “Mufti of Qatar” Sadiq al-Ghariani. The Emirates and Egypt support Gen. Khalifa Haftar, the chief of the self-styled Libya National Army (LNA).It’s a gas, gas, gas

Saudi intel disinformation agents are spreading that “Turkey and Qatar are the last two states run by the Muslim Brotherhood. Most probably Qatar will experience a change of regime and exit being the bankroller on behalf of Britain to support all kind of chaos in the region, and that include playing from behind the scenes with Teheran.”

Utter diversionist nonsense. The plain fact is the House of Saud is absolutely desperate. Oil price remains low, around $50 a barrel. The monster Saudi IPO on Aramco is only 12 months away. The House of Saud needs to move the markets towards a higher oil price by any means necessary – ultimatums and threats of war included.

A non-ideological US intel source goes further, stressing how “Turkey, Iran and Russia are moving closer together. The question remains who will control the Gulf States and the oil price — which was being manipulated so far to destroy Russia. The deal between Saudi Arabia and Russia is really just a minor improvement.”

© AP Photo/ Leo Correa

Global Oil Prices Unlikely to See Big Impact From Diplomatic Tension in Middle East

So no wonder obfuscation remains the norm – with narratives taking attention away from the House of Saud and placing it on Iran, and now also Qatar.And then there’s the key Pipelineistan angle, mixed with how Qatar as a natural gas powerhouse is immensely annoying OPEC producers Saudi Arabia and UAE. 

Qatar is the largest global exporter of liquefied natural gas (LNG). That’s what has allowed it to shape a foreign policy completely independent from the House of Saud. Add to it that Qatar’s fabulous gas wealth yields from the massive offshore North Field, shared with Iran (who controls what it calls South Pars). 

There’s been speculation, obviously unconfirmed by Tehran and Doha, that Iran and Qatar may have reached an agreement on sharing the rights for a gas pipeline from North Dome/South Pars to the eastern Mediterranean in Syria, as long as Doha stops supporting al-Nusra.

Were that to happen, it would signal the spectacular closure of one of the key motives for the Syrian tragedy. The Obama administration had fully approved a Qatar to Turkey – via Saudi Arabia and Syria – gas pipeline as a means of trying to undermine Gazprom. It took a lot of dead bodies and horrific destruction for Doha to realize Moscow would never allow it. 

CC0 / Pixabay /

Good or Bad for Russia? What Impact the Qatar Crisis Will Have on Natural Gas Prices

Thus Qatar’s strategic pivot towards Russia – materialized, for instance, via Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund investing $2.7 billion in Rosneft. This may be spelling out, in the medium term, a Qatar way more amenable to the Russia-Iran-Syria connection. Considering that Qatar hosts CENTCOM and is home to Al-‘Udayd, the largest US military base in the Middle East, that certainly does not go down very well at the Pentagon. As far as the US game is concerned, it’s terminally naïve to believe Washington would not have provided a green light to its Saudi satrap to go after Doha.

Add to it Qatar opening the first yuan clearing center in the Middle East; that’s something that did not go down well with financial Masters of the Universe. In parallel, the much-lauded Trump $100 billion weapons deal announced in Riyadh may have been devised in exchange for the House of Saud delaying as long as possible Chinese oil payments in yuan that would bypass the petrodollar.

To weave conspiracy theories is an idle undertaking. “T.Rex” Tillerson, from his ExxonMobil days, knows the Qatari leadership quite well. And so does “Mad Dog” Mattis, former head of CENTCOM. Watch them; how they act in the follow-up will unveil at least some layers of the current shadow play – and whether the whole charade packs way more punch than mere House of Saud desperation. 

The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official position of Sputnik.

Water Protectors Were Right: DAPL Already Leaking as ND Pipelines Spill Oil Every 12 Hours

“Over all, more than 18.4 million gallons of oils and chemicals spilled, leaked or misted into the air, soil and waters of North Dakota from 2006 through early October 2014.”

Source: Water Protectors Were Right: DAPL Already Leaking as ND Pipelines Spill Oil Every 12 Hours

thefreethoughtproject.com

By Claire Bernish

May 11, 2017

In just four days, North Dakota’s sweet, light crude from the Bakken Shale region will begin flowing through the sharply contentious Dakota Access Pipeline — the Black Snake, to Indigenous Americans of the Standing Rock Sioux and Cheyenne River Sioux Tribes — despite over a year of efforts to quash the project by an immense opposition movement, who rightly term themselves ‘water protectors.’

They have a valid point.

Only days before the well is set to be fully operational, the DAPL is already leaking. In a report released this week by the South Dakota Department of Environmental and Natural Resources, a spill was documented on April 4 in Tulare Township in Spink County. The spill occurred just 100 miles from Lake Oahe, the Sioux tribes precious water source which became the impetus for the massive protests against the pipeline.

Camps of water protectors near the banks of the Missouri River’s Lake Oahe reservoir ultimately proved ineffective in quashing the Dakota Access project — but North Dakota’s horrendous record on pipeline safety more than proves their concerns Big Oil infrastructure will inevitably sully the state’s drinking water supply legitimate.

In just the past year, the North Dakota Department of Health recorded 745 oil spills — as analyzed by KCET Environment Editor Chris Clarke — a figure tragically substantiating fears of water protectors for the future of the state’s water supply.

For perspective, for the number of pipeline incidents for the year ending on May 1, 2017, North Dakota’s oil infrastructure experienced an average of one spill every 11 hours and 45 minutes — that’s one leak, contaminating the planet, two times per day, every day, over the last twelve months.

“And we’re not talking small leaks here. One event on the 18 May 2016 saw 400 barrels of oil (16,800 gallons) leak out in Bowman County, spreading more than 100 metres outside the refinery gates and into the surrounding environment,” Science Alert keenly notes.

“That same event saw an additional 2,500 barrels (1 million gallons) of brine leak outside the facility.”

Although leaks ranged tremendously in size, some comprising just 20-gallon dribbles, major spills managed considerable damage, when electronic alert systems — meant to notify a pipeline’s operator of unexpected changes in pressure and other factors which denote emergencies — failed or malfunctioned.

One notorious major accident occurred in Billings County, when oil spewed from the Belle Fourche Pipeline into Ash Coulee Creek in December, due to an alert system failing so miserably, five full days elapsed before the company was made aware of the leak — and only then, because a civilian happened upon the noxious spill and notified authorities.

At that point, escaping crude had snaked its way almost five-and-a-half miles from the source breach — contaminating the creek, delicate ecosystems, and pristine countryside as it belched forth without obstruction.

Now estimated to comprise some 530,000 gallons — more than threefold the original appraisal of 176,000 gallons — the Belle Fourche spill is believed one of the largest in North Dakota history.

But the state’s largest spill engulfs the aforementioned — and it, too, had been wildly underestimated on first assessment.

In December 2013, a farmer discovered crude bubbling six inches high in a remote corner of a wheat field from an underground six-inch pipeline, which had ruptured unbeknownst to operator Tesoro. Company estimates at first claimed a mere 750 barrels, or 31,499 gallons, of crude spilled from the rupture — but that had to be increased by orders of magnitude, and on readjustment, that spill comprised 20,600 barrels, or 865,199 gallons.

That embarrassing spill still isn’t entirely cleaned up, and both of those incidents — incidentally, each occurring within 200 miles of the now-vanished Dakota Access Pipeline opposition camps — poured from cracks in six-inch pipelines.

Dakota Access — again, slated to be operational Sunday — is a 30-inch pipeline. And it runs underneath Lake Oahe, the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe’s sole source for drinking water, and the Missouri River — the drinking water supplier of some 18 million total people downstream from the pipeline’s crossing points.

Clarke explains the ramifications of such hefty spills from pipelines, which industry leaders claim to be far safer than rail or road transport of oil and gas, and why such deceptive marketing of safety concerns could be detrimental to North Dakota and the rest of the United States,

“Less than four months after the 2013 Tesoro spill on the Jensens’ farm, a train collision near Casselton dumped the contents of 16 tank cars full of crude oil onto the ground, where the oil flowed into a culvert and caught fire. Around 11,500 barrels [482,999 gallons] of oil were spilled in that incident.

“Shipping oil by rail is undeniably risky, and communities across the country are organizing in opposition to rail oil shipments through their neighborhoods. But it’s worth noting that the December 2013 derailment near Casselton, the worst railroad oil spill in North Dakota history, did considerably less damage than two pipeline spills that have happened since.”

Not only that, but train derailments aren’t exactly a frequent occurrence — not even approaching the frequency of pipeline leaks, breaches, and spills.

In a period of almost nine years, from the beginning of 2006 through October 2014, there were 1,327 reported pipeline spills — 638 of which included the release of at least one barrel of oil, the rest, other petroleum substances or byproducts of industry, like brine or wastewater.

“That’s a pipeline oil spill every five days, on average, over nearly nine years, and 41,672 barrels [1,750,223 gallons] of oil spilled onto the North Dakota landscape,” Clarke notes. “In other words, more than two gallons of oil for every resident of North Dakota. Does it really matter whether it hits the earth all at once, or just one or two barrels at a time?”

Affirming those telling figures — and a bleak future for North Dakotans concerned for the integrity of the state’s ecosystems — a New York Times article from 2014 added,

“Over all, more than 18.4 million gallons of oils and chemicals spilled, leaked or misted into the air, soil and waters of North Dakota from 2006 through early October 2014. (In addition, the oil industry reported spilling 5.2 million gallons of nontoxic substances, mostly fresh water, which can alter the environment and carry contaminants.)”

Water protectors who have carried on the fight to end this nation’s and planet’s reliance on fossil fuels in favor of renewable energy sources need look no further than the state where the fight exploded onto the world stage.

As shocking as these figures might be, they comprise the data from a single state — and a severely limited time period — while oil and gas spills happen every day around the planet.

One example is the 1989, 11 million-gallon Exxon Valdez disaster in Alaska’s Prince William Sound. Black crude from that spill — over 18 years ago, now — can still be found by digging an inch or two deep into the sandy shores of the sound.

But the raspberry for the worst oil accident in U.S. history must be reserved for the BP Deepwater Horizon catastrophe, which began on April 20, 2010, when a failed well spewed crude into the Gulf of Mexico and continued, unhindered, despite attempts to halt it, until the breach was officially capped on September 19.

In total, it is believed the deadly and deleterious disaster comprised 4.9 million barrels of oil — some 210 million gallons — enough, some scientists have found upon studying resultant environmental impacts, to kill off or severely impinge most life in the albeit enormous Gulf.

Fossil fuels are a finite resource, and long overdue for replacement with tenable options — if for no other reason than that the companies hawking petroleum can’t manage to adhere to the most basic of safety standards.

 

 

Environmental journalist suggests domestic terrorism to blow up oil and gas wells is justifiable

“If the oil and gas industry puts fracking wells in our neighborhoods, threatening our lives and our children’s lives, then don’t we have a moral responsibility to blow up wells and eliminate fracking and workers?” Kevin Kaufman

Source: Environmental journalist suggests domestic terrorism to blow up oil and gas wells is justifiable – NaturalNews.com

With permission from

http://www.naturalnews.com

by: Isabelle Z.

May 08, 2017

 

(Natural News) Hearing about serious environmental abuse like fracking can incite explosive feelings among those of us who care about the environment, but one environmental journalist has taken this sentiment too far.

In a glaring example of poor logic, the executive editor of the Boulder Daily Camera, Kevin Kaufman, said that those who support the decision of President Trump to bomb Syria must therefore agree that anti-fracking activists would be justified in blowing up gas and oil wells in our country.

His statement came in response to questions about his paper publishing a letter that promotes violence against the fracking industry. The letter, which was published on April 19, says that Coloradoans have a moral obligation to demolish pipelines and get rid of oil jobs.

It read: “If the oil and gas industry puts fracking wells in our neighborhoods, threatening our lives and our children’s lives, then don’t we have a moral responsibility to blow up wells and eliminate fracking and workers?”

While editors ultimately changed the piece after it was published, the main sentiment that violence is the only solution to preventing pipeline construction was kept intact. The paper added a note saying it does not endorse or condone property destruction or violence.

Editorial Page Editor Dave Krieger issued an apology on Monday, saying that the wording of the letter left it open to multiple interpretations and that he had not considered that some might view it as a call to commit violence when he first read and approved it.

“It could be construed as advocating destroying oil wells, thereby eliminating the fracking and workers that come with them. But it was immediately clear when I read the published version it could also be construed as advocating violence against oil and gas workers. I would not have let that go through if it had registered, but it didn’t,” he wrote.

However, not everyone at the paper was as willing to concede that publishing the comment was a bad idea. In fact, when confronted about the situation, one of the paper’s editors was quick to use the opportunity to get in some digs against the Trump administration.

When contacted by the Daily Caller News Foundation’s Chris White, Kevin Kaufman responded via email that the issues of bombing Syria and blowing up the wells were essentially the same, and those who can justify the former must theoretically support the latter. The full text of his email can be seen on the Daily Caller‘s website.

Free speech is one of the fundamental rights that makes America great, but it’s also important for journalists to use their platform responsibly. There are better ways to encourage the debate about a very real and concerning issue than by implying that domestic terrorism is a solution.

Outrage over fracking is justified; violence isn’t

Fracking is a dangerous and deeply disturbing practice that devastates the land, water and air near the sites where dangerous chemicals are injected into the earth, leaving people vulnerable to a horrific list of problems like cancer, birth defects, autoimmune disorders, and autism. People in Colorado are justifiably outraged about this practice taking place in their neighborhoods, but it is not quite on the level of a chemical weapons attack.

Moreover, it’s a slippery slope; you could then argue that anyone is justified in committing violence for any cause that they personally deem righteous. Is it also okay to blow up abortion clinics if you are pro-life? Nevermind the fact that such an act would only lead to an escalation of violence, just like many believe the U.S. bombing of Syria – justified or not – is setting us on the fast track to war.

Sources include:

DailyCaller.com

DailyCamera.com

NaturalNews.com

TransCanada Gets Presidential Permit for Keystone XL

Source: TransCanada Gets Presidential Permit for Keystone XL

With permission from

blacklistednews.com

Source: Zero Hedge

March 27, 2017

It’s official: moments ago TransCanada said the U.S. Department of State issued a presidential permit for the construction of the Keystone XL Pipeline, ending a multi-year controversial, at times acrimonious debate over the future of the pipeline. The pipeline linking Canadian oil sands to U.S. refiners had been blocked by Barack Obama, who said the pipeline would do nothing to reduce fuel prices for U.S. motorists and would contribute emissions linked to global warming.

“This is a significant milestone for the Keystone XL project,” said Russ Girling, TransCanada’s president and chief executive officer, said in a statement. “We greatly appreciate President Trump’s administration for reviewing and approving this important initiative and we look forward to working with them as we continue to invest in and strengthen North America’s energy infrastructure.”

Transcanada also said it would continue to work with Nebraska, Montana and South Dakota to get necessary permits and approvals to advance project to construction

Full statement is below:

TransCanada Receives Presidential Permit for Keystone XL

TransCanada Corporation (TSX:TRP) (NYSE:TRP) (TransCanada) today announced that the U.S. Department of State has signed and issued a Presidential Permit to construct the Keystone XL Pipeline. 

“This is a significant milestone for the Keystone XL project,” said Russ Girling, TransCanada’s president and chief executive officer. “We greatly appreciate President Trump’s Administration for reviewing and approving this important initiative and we look forward to working with them as we continue to invest in and strengthen North America’s energy infrastructure.”

Keystone XL is an important piece of TransCanada’s comprehensive U.S. growth portfolio driving an investment of more than US$15 billion in liquids and natural gas projects that will create thousands of well-paying jobs and generate substantial economic benefits across the U.S.

TransCanada will continue to engage key stakeholders and neighbors throughout Nebraska, Montana and South Dakota to obtain the necessary permits and approvals to advance this project to construction.

In conjunction, TransCanada has discontinued its claim under Chapter 11 of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and will end its U.S. Constitutional challenge.

Canada: Enbridge pipeline leaks 200,000 litres of oil condensate in Strathcona County

Cleanup efforts are underway after an Enbridge pipeline leaked 200,000 litres of oil condensate at an industrial site in Strathcona County.

Source: Enbridge pipeline leaks 200,000 litres of oil condensate in Strathcona County – Edmonton – CBC News

CBC News

By Andrea Ross,

Feb 18, 2017

The pipeline was damaged by a third-party line strike caused by construction in the area, Enbridge says

Enbridge has shut down five nearby pipelines as a precaution, the National Energy Board says. (Martin Weaver/CBC)

Cleanup efforts are underway after an Enbridge pipeline leaked 200,000 litres of oil condensate at an industrial site in Strathcona County.

The Line 2A pipeline was damaged by a third-party line strike involving Ledcor and TransCanada, who were doing construction in the area on Friday afternoon, Enbridge said in a media release.

• Paying for pipelines: How consumers can end up footing some of the bill
• Pipeline progress means crude-by-rail slowdown could be much more long-term

Enbridge immediately shut down five other pipelines in the area as a precaution. Crews are now working to clean up the spill, which is contained in an excavation pit.

Air quality is being monitored, Enbridge says.

The National Energy Board was notified of the spill Friday at around 3 p.m.

NEB staff have been called to the site east of Edmonton to oversee cleanup and remediation of any environment effects caused by the spill.

Around 200,000 litres — or 1250 barrels — of oil condensate has leaked from the pipeline. No one was injured, there was no fire and no evacuations were ordered as a result of the spill, the NEB said.

‘There is no product that has travelled off-lease’

There is no risk to public safety, NEB spokesman Darin Barter said.

“The incident is still under investigation. All of the product is actually contained within a pit that was being excavated at the time, so there is no product that has travelled off-lease,” Barter said.

Oil condensate is a “very light” oil that is produced from a gas formation and turns into a liquid as it enters a pipeline, Barter said.

It is usually used for fuel at refiners or for other industrial purposes, he added. 

Barter could not say how long cleanup would take, but said NEB staff will remain on-site for as long as they’re required.

“I know they’re making good progress right now,” he said.

“We want to see all of it cleaned up as soon as possible. It’s not in a sensitive area, it’s within a pipeline right of way. But any time you have product outside a pipeline, we want to make sure it’s done properly.”

The Enbridge facility in Strathcona County, Alberta. (Martin Weaver/CBC)

Company Behind DAPL Reported 69 Accidents, Polluted Rivers in 4 States in Only 2 Years

The company constructing DAPL has had nearly 70 accidents in just two years, contaminating rivers in four states and wreaking havoc on the environment.

Source: Company Behind DAPL Reported 69 Accidents, Polluted Rivers in 4 States in Only 2 Years

thefreethoughtproject.com

Claire Bernish

February 15, 2017

 Although it obstinately insists pipelines are safe, the company responsible for the Dakota Access Pipeline racked up 69 reported accidents in just two years — leaking hundreds of thousands of gallons of oil products and tainting rivers in four states.

That averages nearly three spills each month.

A new report from the Louisiana Bucket Brigade and DisasterMap.net on Energy Transfer Partners and subsidiary Sunoco Logistics documents accidents filed with the National Response Center — the federal contact point for oil spills and industrial accidents — noting 69 accidents between 2015 and 2016.

However, as the study crucially notes, “These are just the accidents that are reported.”

“Heavy rain was the explanation for some of the worst accidents,” the report states, noting, “Bad weather, however, just exposes faulty equipment. While Energy Transfer Partners and other companies portray weather related accidents as unavoidable, they are in reality a result of poor planning and neglected maintenance. For example, the largest tank fire in history happened in south Louisiana in 2001. Because it occurred during a storm, Orion Refining blamed the weather. In truth, a faulty drain on the tank sank the roof, exposed the gasoline and attracted lightning.”

According to the report, ETP’s horrendous track record over the two-year period in the analysis — including the contamination of the Delaware River in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, the Schuylkill River in Pennsylvania, and the Red River in Louisiana — “thereby confirm[s] the concerns of the Standing Rock Sioux tribe who fear the Dakota Access Pipeline would pollute the Missouri River.”

“Sunoco and ETP accidents stretch from Texas to Massachusetts,” asserted Dr. Ezra Boyd, a geographer with DisasterMap.net who analyzed data for the report. “While these accidents cover a large area of the map, the Bayou Bridge pipeline would put an entirely new area at risk: south central Louisiana, including the Atchafalaya Basin.”

EcoWatch reports:

“Dallas-based Energy Transfer Partners owns about 71,000 miles of natural gas, natural gas liquids, refined products and crude oil pipelines across the country.

“The report lists 42 known oil spills, 11 natural gas spills, nine gasoline spills, three propane spills, two ‘other’ spills and two ‘unknown’ spills. Those 69 incidents led to eight injuries, five evacuations and a total damage dollar amount of $300,000. In all, the total known amount of various substances spilled was 544,784 gallons.”

image: http://thefreethoughtproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/3-1024×423.png

image: http://thefreethoughtproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/1-1024×337.png

image: http://thefreethoughtproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/22-1024×215.png

Pipeline companies and the oil and gas industry contend pipelines are the safest means of transporting fossil fuels — and, in comparison to rail and tanker truck methods, they are technically correct.

However, while pipeline accidents occur less frequently, the quantity of oil released tends to be far larger, given the substance is under pressure to flow through the lines and equipment tasked with sensing and stopping leaks doesn’t always function properly — meaning many accidents in desolated areas aren’t discovered immediately.

Take the case of a North Dakota wheat farmer less than two miles from where water protectors remain encamped in opposition to the Dakota Access Pipeline, which will run under the Missouri River’s Lake Oahe reservoir and could threaten the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation’s water supply, and that of around 18 million people downstream.

In 2013, Steve Jensen discovered thick, black, crop-killing crude contaminating a distant corner of one of his wheat fields — not realizing at the time a pipeline under the property had bled nearly one million gallons of the hydrocarbon. Tesoro Corporation got the alert for the spill from Jensen, not from remote pipeline sensors as it should have, and has since dug 50 feet in some areas to alleviate the environmental nightmare sprawling across the land the size of 13 football fields.

Now estimated to soar to $60 million, the cleanup isn’t projected to ever reach full completion.

image: http://pixel.watch/qut7

Incidentally, that spill — and a second belching 176,000 gallons into Ash Coulee Creek — were the handiwork of six-inch steel pipelines. Dakota Access, in comparison, is a 30-inch steel pipeline slated to transport nearly 20 million gallons — daily.

Nasty track record aside, ETP has nearly completed construction on DAPL — to the condemnation of the Standing Rock Sioux and a global movement of water protectors seeking to halt all new fossil fuel infrastructure and shift to renewable energy. And DAPL, like the Tesoro pipeline under the Jensens’ field, will be located underground in bedrock — something ETP claims is the safest possible method of crossing the Missouri, no matter the evidence to the contrary.

This week, the final battle to halt Dakota Access began winding down in federal courts after the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers granted the easement necessary for ETP to complete the pipeline.

A judge denied the tribe’s request for an emergency restraining order to stop ETP from drilling under the river — but a new motion was filed by the tribe on Tuesday, attempting the same, under the premise an imperative environmental impact study should have been carried out as promised.

Dakota Access isn’t the only controversial pipeline project on Energy Transfer Partners’ roster — the Trans-Pecos Pipeline in Texas and Bayou Bridge Pipeline in Louisiana have sparked new encampments like those in Standing Rock as water protectors branch out from North Dakota.

Bayou Bridge — a relatively short, 162-mile pipeline planned to run through precarious ecosystems in the Louisiana bayou — is of particular concern to the Bucket Brigade, whose mission per the website is to “end petrochemical pollution” in the state. EcoWatch explains:

“The planned route crosses major bodies of water and important ecological sites, including the Atchafalaya Basin, Calcasieu, Vermillion and the Mermentau Rivers, as well as Bayou Lafourche and Bayou Teche. The Vermillion River and Bayou Lafourche are sources of drinking water and the Atchafalaya Basin is the country’s largest wetland and swamp, and home to several endangered species.”

With such an atrocious safety and spill record under its belt, Energy Transfer Partners seems so hell bent on profiteering, potential destruction of the environment matters little — if at all.

 

“Energy Transfer Partners’ records contradict their claim that pipelines are a safer way of transporting oil,” Renate Heurich of 350 Louisiana told EcoWatch. “Pipelines make transporting tar sands cheaper, thus stimulating dirty tar sands extraction despite low oil prices. The real question is: Why do we still invest in more pipeline infrastructure when we urgently need to invest in sustainable alternative energy sources?”

The real answer is simple, at least when it comes to ETP: profit from foreign markets. In preparing to construct the Dakota Access Pipeline, ETP worked furiously behind the scenes to ensure a ban on the export of unrefined crude in place since the 1970s would be lifted specifically so the company could cash in on exporting the Bakken sweet, light crude it would carry.

That single act of surreptitious legislative legerdemain opened the crude and cash floodgates for Big Oil — nearly guaranteeing the fossil fuel industry will opportune the chance to run roughshod over anyone or anything in the way of profit, while duplicitously claiming in the face of evidence otherwise that pipelines are perfectly safe.

End of the Wold Alert! Black Snake Prophecy Happening NOW – Standing Rock (18 min)

Ancient Native Prophecy of the Black Snake is happening at this very moment. This is number 8 of 9 Hopi & Lakota Prophecies. The first 7 have all come into fruition. It is of the utmost importance that you watch, share and get involved now for the future of our water and all of humanity is at stake right now.

Right now thousands of natives and others have come together to stop the black snack Dakota Access Pipeline from crossing over the Missouri river into the land of the Lakota Indians. According to prophecy if the black snake crosses the river into the land the waters will be poisoned and it will mark off the end of the world. They do not call themselves protestors but instead they are the water protectors. They are protecting your water and your future so you must not sit there, you must get involved. If you at all care about the future of your children and grandchildren.

Spiritual Medium Joseph Tittel describes in detail the prophecy along with the last prophecy to come true. Joseph explains the current situation along with signs that have appeared from spirit. Very powerful signs. Included is detailed information on how you can get involved.
You can start by sharing this video with everyone you know.