This is a follow up to a diary I posted a couple of weeks ago about how ecological activists have been attacking geological research, some with sabotage, others with legal manoeuvres. In either case, the combination of a brazen lack of logic with political influence evokes that of Christian conservatives. Comments to the diary brought out a more general problem with ecological organizations such as Sierra Club and Greenpeace straying from their missions and engaging in flashy but often foolish moves that are more about attracting donations than fulfilling their missions.
There have been new developments. In one of the cases I cited, Ecojustice, the Canadian legal spinoff from the Sierra Club, launched a last-minute lawsuit to stop a research vessel from sailing out to use airguns to explore the geological processes underlying the Endeavour Hydrothermal Vents Marine Protected Area out of concern for possible impact on whales. The Endeavour site is off the coast of Vancouver Island and is a volcanic zone from which the seafloor is spreading. It has an unusual ecosystem and is a source of major earthquakes.
The ship did set sail after agreeing to reduce the decibel level of its tests and conduct its research with several observers of marine mammals on board. Although Ecojustice representatives cited various endangered species that could be in the area, and got the Canadian press to run with stories about Americans blasting a Canadian whale preserve, the researchers encountered no marine mammals whatsoever. In fact they had responsibly done their research and timed the expedition for the season when whales were least likely to be in the area.
In their arguments, Ecojustice and its allied groups (The Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society/CPAWS and Living Ocean Society) conflated intrusive naval sonar with the more benign acoustic pulses of the researchers to frighten and mobilize those concerned about endangered whales. They framed the question of a US-based research vessel as practically an American invasion of Canada, whipping up a nationalist moral panic. Canadian newspapers printed their press releases almost verbatim without checking their facts or the scientists' side of the story. As a result, one researcher described facing an unexpected wave of threats to his life and to his family.
It has emerged that CPAWS, one of the litigants, had a representative at the meetings setting up the research and could have raised concerns but instead stayed quiet until the last minute. They sprung the lawsuit just as the ship was about to set sail, raising questions about their sincerity. Ecojustice claimed it was a whale refuge where even scientific research was forbidden when in fact it was set aside explicitly for research. Their concern was that it would set a precedent that might open the way towards oil exploration along the British Columbian coast and even suggested that the researchers were looking for oil in a volcanic zone. Judging from comments in their blogs, they were appealing to romanticist donors who believe that no scientific research is worth any risk whatsoever no matter how trivial. It appears they judged that scientists were an easy target, especially as they tend to be narrowly focused on their work and muzzled by university public relations offices.
There is vigorous discussion on Ecojustice' facebook page (although their moderators have removed much of it) and on the comments to the Canadian news stories which are more informative than the stories themselves. Panda's Thumb, a blog that normally confronts Creationists, has the most thorough account. The Asian version of Time Magazine did a piece in connection with a similar incident off Taiwan.
The sad result is that the ecological organizations have squandered their credibility and undermined future cooperation between environmental organizations and university-based researchers. The scientists are finally pushing back, and I only hope that the ecological organizations will begin to behave more responsibly, as their work is so desperately needed.