Mariner East Opponents Tactics: Protests and Politics
Tomorrow protesters will take front stage in the State Capitol Rotunda in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania to demand relief from “clear and present danger” the Mariner East pipeline project allegedly presents.
The “Rally for Pipeline Safety and Environmental Protection” looks to be the most civil demonstration yet…a ways away from baiting wild animals onto pipeline easements and sabotaging heavy machinery to stop construction.
Of course, the gathering will also be politically expedient for some of the pipeline’s most adamant opponents. State Senator Andy Dinniman, who has continually called for a halt to the project, is expected to hold a press conference after the rally to introduce a Pipeline Safety Caucus and package of pipeline safety bills for consideration alongside State Representative Danielle Friel Otten.
The pair of politicians have made a name for themselves through the Mariner East project. Sen. Dinniman has long called for additional review and consideration of the permitting. Rep. Otten ran solely on an anti-pipeline platform.
Both elected officials refuse to acknowledge the rigorous permitting the project underwent, including state and federal processes and regulations, which the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection acknowledges as the “most stringent” ever issued for a project.