It’s getting harder and harder for Trans Mountain to find insurance for its climate-wrecking pipeline – and that’s no accident.
Over three years ago we realized that pressuring Trans Mountain’s insurers to cut ties with this toxic project could be one of our best strategies for stopping it (and all expansion of the polluting tar sands) once and for all.
Eighteen insurers and counting have since caved to our collective pressure and dropped Trans Mountain, but there are still some companies (looking at you Liberty Mutual) providing the coverage the project needs to proceed.
Kevin, the remaining insurance companies must now decide again whether or not to renew their contracts with Trans Mountain on August 31st, which gives us just over a month to pressure them to back out.
For over a decade now, our global, Indigenous-led movement has been doing everything in its power to block the Trans Mountain pipeline – and here are just a few reasons why:
The project never got consent from all Indigenous Peoples living along the pipeline route. A UN committee has explicitly called on Canada to immediately cease construction due to Indigenous rights violations.
New documents from the Canadian government have shown that they hope to operate the pipeline for at least 100 years, locking in enormous amounts of climate pollution at a point when we need to be transitioning off fossil fuels – not building more of them.
On top of this, the pipeline is years behind schedule, billions of dollars over budget, and destined to be a permanent money loser (according to the government’s own budget watchdog).
It’s no wonder that eighteen insurers and counting have publicly confirmed they want nothing to do with this disastrous project, but we can’t let up the pressure until Trans Mountain can’t find insurance anywhere. And some companies like Liberty Mutual and Lloyd’s syndicates like CNA Hardy, Beazley, and Navigators are refusing to budge. To shift some of the largest insurers like Liberty, we have to demonstrate that our opposition is even bigger and more powerful than ever before.
I’ll be honest with you. Transforming the entire insurance industry as a means of stopping a pipeline is a wonky strategy – and it’s not going to be easy.
But Stand.earth community members like you have been a part of this campaign for over three years now, and every year we get several more insurance companies over the line. Last year we pushed Chubb, the world’s largest publicly traded property and casualty insurer, to drop Trans Mountain. This year, two Llloyd’s syndicates (who alongside Liberty Mutual are some of the top insurers for Trans Mountain) have already cut ties with the pipeline in quick succession. We know the tactics that work, and we’re already working closely with our partners on a winning strategy to cut off the pipeline’s insurance options before the insurance renewal deadline.
Let’s make it impossible for Trans Mountain to find insurance. Starting now.
Sven Biggs
Canadian Oil and Gas Programs Director
Stand.earth
Stand.earth challenges corporations, industries, and governments to prioritize the well-being of people, our environment, and our climate by creating long-term, effective solutions. None of this work is possible without your support.
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