Daryl Hannah arrested for protesting proposed Keystone XL oil pipeline
It makes sense that an actress who played a mermaid would be concerned about the environment. 鈥淪plash鈥� star Daryl Hannah was arrested on Aug. 30 during a protest organized by a group called Tar Sands Action against the Keystone XL tar sands oil pipeline extension.
Ms. Hannah joined about 100 other protestors to sit on the sidewalk outside the White House, refusing to move 鈥� channeling her tough character Elle Driver in the 鈥�Kill Bill鈥� movies, perhaps. She has been arrested for other environmental causes and told the Associated Press, 鈥淲e want to be free from the horrible death and destruction that fossil fuels cause, and have a clean energy future.鈥�
Hannah was fined $100 and released.
Would this story even have been buzzworthy without a celebrity moniker attached? When eco author Bill McKibben was imprisoned last week for protesting the same project, his name wasn鈥檛 trending on Yahoo! or Google. The fact is, boldfaced names work in getting attention for a cause.
Proposed in 2008, the 1,661-mile would send oil from the Athabasca Oil Sands in Alberta, Canada, to refineries in Illinois, Oklahoma, and on to the US Gulf Coast. It is opposed by the Natural Resources Defense Council and other environmental groups, 50 members of Congress, celebrities like Hannah and actress Margot Kidder, all concerned about impact and air and water pollution due to possible leaks.
Ms. Hannah is an organic gardener and strives to 鈥渃arbon-neutralize鈥� herself by living in a house that is off the grid and driving a bio-diesel El Camino. She even has a 鈥済reen鈥� called 鈥渄h love life鈥� that features her doing things like visiting a vegan junk food joint, exploring an eco-home, and spending time with mountain gorillas in Rwanda.
