Oil and Natural Gas

The announcement yesterday that two of three pipelines are going ahead, when in actuality only one is going to be done right away. Both approved pipelines will run where there are already pipelines present. We can celebrate that not all pipelines are approved. People however, are polarized over the issue, believing that any pipeline construction is a defeat. All or nothing arguments are not often helpful. The difficulty is to try and find some language that all can agree on. It is difficult to decide what is best. My family has been fed and warmed because of the gifts Mother Earth has given to us. We had a garden that we gained food from. Of course being in a country where the North Wind rules for many months of the years, it was also important that our relatives the fish and moose, deer, rabbit and others gave themselves to us so we would have food. Our people also had shelter and clothes. We used to heat and cook with wood and coal. Of course this was too much pollution as the world became more complicated. Natural gas and heating oil were cleaner sources of heat than coal and wood, so it was a good thing when we could heat with those things. Hydro electric is a difficult one because it changes the environment, floods the land, and takes away the homes of many. It has a limited return and the land will never come back from being flooded. The debate is not whether we use oil or natural gas forever, it is how we move to better utilize what Mother Earth has given us. No one wants an oil spill but they happen and we must learn to deal with them. We have vilified the evil oil, but we must talk in a respectful way with each other to find a longer solution.

We must hunt and eat, so how do we do that in the best way? Traditional knowledge could help us get to a different place - to be respectful and thankful. To try and use everything that we can from what we take from the earth. To put something back for everything we take. To make sure that we share so everyone has enough and no one has too much or too little. To use our freedom for the good of everyone, so that we can live in harmony with the earth, other people, and creator. Perhaps if we could do that, seeking a spiritual solution as well as an economic solution, it would help us think in other ways. We must all work harder to find positive ways forward in the light of decisions that are not popular with everyone. This is the hardest part, but our elders tell us we must talk and try and find a solution to live like family in the land. It is a good world, “all my relatives".