B.C. anti-pipeline activists throw maple syrup at Emily Carr painting

Climate activists calling for an end to a gas pipeline project in northern British Columbia threw maple syrup on an Emily Carr painting and glued themselves to the wall at the Vancouver Art Gallery.

Climate activists calling for an end to a gas pipeline project in northern British Columbia threw maple syrup on an Emily Carr painting and glued themselves to the wall at the Vancouver Art Gallery Saturday.

A spokesman for the environmental group Stop Fracking Around told The Canadian Press two activists splashed maple syrup on Carr's painting “Stumps and Sky,” which is on display at the gallery.

Don Marshall, speaking for the environmental group, said the protest action at the museum aims to focus public attention on the global climate emergency.

He said the protesters are demanding an end to the Coastal GasLink Pipeline project, which is currently under construction from Dawson Creek to Kitimat on B.C.'s north coast.

The pipeline has been a source of controversy in B.C. for years, and sparked nationwide protests and blockades in early 2020 in solidarity with the Wet'suwet'en First Nation hereditary chiefs who oppose the project. 

Protests against the pipeline have continued throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, including at a rally in Vancouver in August. 

A construction site along the pipeline route was also the site of a violent attack in February of this year.