Stop tar sands expansion | Support the Beaver Lake Cree

As well as risking runaway climate change, expanding tar sands developments in Alberta, Canada, are bringing about a local ecological disaster with profound consequences for indigenous communities such as the Beaver Lake Cree Nation.

Not willing to stand by and let this happen, the Beaver Lake Cree have launched a legal challenge [link to: legal challenge page] to stop further tar sands developments within its ancestral lands, taking on not just the governments of Alberta and Canada, but also the world’s largest oil companies.

The Beaver Lake Cree vs tar sands

In 1876, the Beaver Lake Cree signed a treaty with the government ceding an area of land the size of England and Scotland in return for guaranteed rights to hunt, fish and gather plants and medicines on these lands, as they had always done, forever.

These lands are now being destroyed by tar sands developments, which clear formerly pristine boreal forest, pollute the air and water, disturb wildlife and threaten the Beaver Lake Cree’s traditional way of life.

The legal challenge seeks to enforce recognition of the Beaver Lake Cree’s treaty rights and to protect their environment. It will include injunctions against new developments, which, if successful, would affect Shell, BP, ExxonMobil, ConocoPhillips and Total.

We view the Beaver Lake Cree’s challenge as perhaps the last and best hope we have to stop the expansion of the tar sands. The Co-operative has every confidence that this principled and inspiring community will eventually win and has provided significant support throughout 2009. But the Beaver Lake Cree are going to needs more help.

Support the Beaver Lake Cree and help stop a potential climate and local ecological disaster:

Donate to the Beaver Lake Cree– a charitable trust has been set up to support their legal challenge to stop further tar sands expansion

Spread the word – tell your friends, family and colleagues to join this campaign and support the Beaver Lake Cree

See the destruction for yourself - and how tar sands developments are destroying the Beaver Lake Cree’s traditional lands.