Simon Fraser University’s professors, librarians and instructors are banding together to oppose the Kinder Morgan pipeline. The move is quite rare, given the faculty association generally stays away from politics and controversial issues.
“It is safe to say the faculty association gets political almost never. The association tends to stay away from making political statements,” said executive director Brian Green.
The SFU Faculty Association, which represents more than 1,000 staff, passed a motion opposing the pipeline at the last general meeting in July and in September gave the go-ahead to tell media.
The motion states the association opposes Kinder Morgan’s pipeline expansion and cites health and environmental risks.
Communication professor Bob Hackett, who helped bring the motion forward, commented on the message of the motion.
“It says we’re part of widespread community opposition to this particular proposed project, but as the motion says, the range of concerns is wider than the immediate impact in our city,” he said.
Many researchers and grad students from different disciplines are conducting research on various aspects of climate change, Hackett added.
The association is not registered as an intervenor in the National Energy Board’s hearing for the project.
SFU has been a source for many pipeline opponents. Lynne Quarmby and Stephen Collis, both SFU professors, were key figures in the fall demonstrations against Kinder Morgan’s survey work on Burnaby Mountain.
