Environmental Justice: Pipeline impacts

Environmental and Social Degradation as a Result of Crude Oil Pipeline Projects 

by Mae Guinn

Project Overview:

The fossil fuel industry within this country is the source for so much environmental and social damage. We, as a nation, have relied on unsustainable and exploitative practices to energize our world, the need for a switch to alternative fuels intensifies. The oil industry makes up a large amount of America’s GDP and is one of the largest political actors in our world, controlling policy, land, and lives. Pipeline projects, used to transport fuel across our lands, are the most “economically efficient” way of moving crude oil, yet hold devastating consequences for our ecosystems and communities that surround them. The construction, use, and abandonment of these projects all hold such destructive capability, and the Indigenous people of this country disproportionately bear the burden of this environmental degradation. Their lands and natural resources are actively disappearing as the gas and oil industry tear through our ecosystems for profit and external gain. A Lot of these communities were forced off of their ancestral lands, regardless of time passed it largely disrupted their practices and ways of life. These projects are destabilizing the communities that have had to build up many times before. Displacement or stripping of natural resources creates a vacuum of pain and poverty in these already marginalized communities, with no repercussions or attention to the companies forcing this danger onto Indigenous communities. There is little to no legal protection for our lands in this country, let alone lands that have been begrudgingly given to people we have taken everything else from. Why not take the last connections to the land that they have? These pipelines directly displace people as well as disrupting natural processes such as migratory patterns, soil health, clean air and water, etc. The management of these projects are not safe, and malfunctions cause destruction to the ecosystems as well as acute illnesses caused by exposure to these harmful chemicals pipelines are transporting. There is no future within the fossil fuel industry and it is more important than ever to help the people that have faced the brunt of our harmful actions. 

For this project I wanted to reach the Eckerd student population. I appreciate that this university is environmentally conscious, yet I feel that we as a whole fall short in the area of actual direct action. We have amazing projects at this school for engaging in activism, but the population at large does not interact with our outside communities. I wanted to show the Eckerd students that this is realistic and an option for them as well. Through the creation of this website, I wanted to make it obvious that we can not continue to turn a blind eye to these destructive practices. By compiling resources and information to emphasize the importance of direct action, I hoped to influence my peers to get involved and to show community support in areas that they could have been ignoring or unknowing. I linked my website to a wide variety of different resources with different levels of activism and involvement to encourage the Eckerd population to get involved to some degree. By making QR codes around campus I was able to get a wide variety of students involved. It made interactions simple and easy on the go to minimize pressure. 

The indigenous population has largely been left out of climate conversations, I highlighted this disparity and allowed a platform for people to, free of guilt, facilitate their own learning and activism. My website connected the Eckerd population with communities and issues that may not be directly affecting their ways of life. 

Results:

My project was successful in reaching my target audience. I did not approach the project with a set number of students that I wanted to interact with my site but I received over 50 visits to my website. I was unable to receive any demographic information, though it can be assumed that the majority of visits were from students as I placed the QR codes predominantly on the residential side of campus. I believe that every viewer of my site was given some resource or information that helped develop their understanding of pipelines in America. I intend to place more around my campus as the semester ends and to incorporate any organizations or events that are suggested through the comment section on my site. 

Connection to class: 

My information that I chose to share on my site encompassed many of the frameworks and approaches that we as a class have discussed. I wanted to compile information in a way that showed the direness of our situation, without placing blame onto my readers. There are three main attitudes that one can have when it surrounds activism or charge, affective, behavioral, and cognitive attitudes that all compound to result in solid and confident actions (Stoknes 2015). The subtlety of my information and the levels of engagement were strategic to minimize panic or eco anxiety within my audience. This tactic was to draw on the reader's care for the environment or connection to the land to encourage a personal call to action. Having a clear call for action without guilt, allows for a nudge approach to action. This approach has the reader to come to their own conclusions, and choose their own level of engagement. 

I tried to have a clear urgency through this, while still trying not to invoke cognitive and social dissonance that comes with disconnection between thought and action. This highlighting benefits to an increase in demand for action, which would in theory “decrease” the “cost” of individual action Humanizing impact also eliminates the “burden” of trying to make someone care by prioritizing one's own mental and physical wellbeing. Confronting and combating issues together, to inspire hope is the most effective method of communication in my opinion.  My project incorporated all of these concepts to create the most guild free and pressure free environment for the reader to feel as though action is their decision without influence. 

Sources: 

Stoknes, P.E. (2015). What We Think About When We Try Not to Think About Global Warming. Chelsea Green Publishing.