Trees have been moved from a road in Rexton, N.B. but protesters are continuing to block shale gas testing equipment.
The protesters have defied a court injunction not to interrupt efforts by SWN Resources to test for shale gas – a court order that was extended for another 10 days on Friday.
SWN Resources originally asked for a 30-day extension but a Moncton judge agreed to 10. The company says it is losing thousands of dollars every day while their trucks sit idle.
“I don’t think anyone’s going to cry any tears for an oil giant that nobody wants around that’s losing money,” says shale gas opponent Pamela Ross.
The injunction will not be served directly to those blocking SWN equipment; instead, a public notice will be placed in a local newspaper.
“There are aboriginal rights and treaty rights and title issues, that the court has to exercise extreme caution in giving a chance to negotiation,” says lawyer Franklin Gertler.
Shale gas protests spread to Fredericton on Friday as demonstrators demanded the province evaluate their support of SWN Resources.
“There were a lot of misrepresentations of facts,” says rally organizer Mark D’Arcy. “We have Dr. LaPierre’s academic fraud itself and we have a total absence of any discussion of any alternatives to shale gas.”
The protests have been ongoing in Rexton since Sept. 29 and protesters are vowing to stand their ground, despite the court order to disband.
The RCMP say, as long as the two sides are still negotiating a peaceful outcome, they will simply monitor the situation.
With files from CTV Atlantic's Jonathan MacInnis
