June, 19 2015, 10:00am EDT
For Immediate Release
Contact:
Ryan Gillard, Rising Tide Vermont 802-359-3520
Pipeline Protestor Arrested, Released, Charged With One Misdemeanor
BURLINGTON, Vt.
Johanna Anderson, who had locked herself to a piece of Vermont Gas' fracked gas pipeline in Essex Thursday morning, was charged with one count of unlawful trespass in Chittenden County court. She was released from police custody late Thursday afternoon.
Despite earlier reports from police and several news outlets, Anderson was not charged with a felony.
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"I took action today because communities from Alberta to Monkton deserve a healthy and safe environment, and this pipeline is a direct assault on those communities," Anderson said upon her release. "The concerns of ratepayers, impacted landowners and the public have been ignored for almost three years, so we're forced to take direct action to stop this illegitimate project."
Anderson plans to participate in Monday evening's vigil outside of the Public Service Board technical hearings for phase 1 of the fracked gas pipeline.
Rising Tide is a grassroots network of groups and individuals who take direct action to confront the roots causes of climate change and promote local, community-based solutions to the climate crisis. Rising Tide was formed in the Netherlands in 2000 to bring a more radical voice to the COP6 (UN Conference of the Parties) climate talks that attempted (unsuccessfully, largely due to the efforts of the US delegation) to salvage what of substance was left of the Kyoto Protocol. Employing popular education and direct action to address the root causes of climate change with a focus on climate justice, Rising Tide now spans three continents.
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