Straight Talk

Extinction Rebellion Vancouver plans an afternoon takeover of Lions Gate Bridge

It comes as oil consumption and the concentration of carbon dioxide equivalents in the atmosphere continue rising

by Charlie Smith on May 3rd, 2021 at 6:28 AM
    1 of 1 2 of 1

      Some B.C. environmentalists are hoping to shut down a fixed link today between the North Shore and downtown Vancouver as part of their "Spring Rebellion".

      Extinction Rebellion Vancouver protesters plan to gather in Devonian Harbour Park at noon before moving toward the Lions Gate Bridge.

      The 1,823-metre suspension bridge, including the north viaduct, can carry about 60,000 to 70,000 vehicles per day.

      However, in March, the numbers were significantly lower, averaging just over 52,000 vehicles on weekdays, according to the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure.

      Today's action is scheduled a day after members of the same group occupied the Granville Bridge to push its four demands:

      1. A just transformation away from a reliance on fossil fuels that is actively decolonial and that prioritizes the livelihoods of workers and the rights of those most oppressed by the present system, including nonhuman relations;

      2. Governments must tell the truth by declaring a climate and ecological emergency, working with other institutions to communicate the urgency for change;

      3. Act now to halt the loss of biodiversity and bring greenhouse gas emissions down to net zero by 2025;

      4. Convene a randomly selected citizens' assembly on climate and ecological justice.

      Eight people were arrested in connection with the Granville Bridge demonstration.

      Oil consumption and atmospheric carbon rise

      The Spring Rebellion comes after the release of a University of Exeter study showing that the Brazilian Amazon rainforest released more carbon than it stored over the past decade.

      The paper was published in Nature Climate Change. It revealed that 3.9 million hectares were lost to deforestation in 2019, nearly double the total amount lost in the two previous years.

      This coincides with the presidency of right-wing politician Jair Bolsonaro, who came to power after a runoff election on October 28, 2018.

      The Energy Information Administration estimates that the world consumed 96 million barrels of petroleum and liquid fuels in March. That was 4.7 million barrels per day higher than in March 2020, when the World Health Organization declared that COVID-19 was a pandemic.

      By next year, the EIA estimates global consumption will average 101.3 million barrels per day, primarily as a result of higher gross domestic product forecasts.

      The concentration of carbon dioxide equivalents in the atmosphere peaked at 417.14 parts per million in March at the Mauna Loa Observatory in Hawaii, according to the Scripps Institution of Oceanography.

      At the start of the Industrial Revolution, there were about 280 parts per million. This means the concentration has risen 49 percent since then.

      Update

      Extinction Rebellion Vancouver tweeted this afternoon that its supporters are in discussion with police in the Stanley Park Causeway. 

      Comments