Say NO to dirty fuels and YES to clean energy!

On Saturday, May 17, join communities around the country to ask the president and local officials to reject the Keystone XL pipeline, offshore drilling, hydraulic fracturing (fracking) and other dirty fuel projects that threaten our communities and destabilize our climate.

A crowd will join hands forming a line across the beach north of the Ventura pier in a local "Hands Across the Sand" gathering, one of hundreds of synchronized events globally, to raise awareness about the dangers of dirty fuels and the need to speed the transition to available, affordable clean energy solutions. The events are particularly salient this year as new plans are pushed forward to drill in the Arctic's Polar Bear Seas, the impact of which would extend far beyond the icy north. Here in Ventura we aim to raise awareness about potential issues with hydraulic fracturing, or ‘fracking’. Fracking has been around for decades but recent advancements in technology have increased fracking operations locally both on land and offshore with limited environmental review.

Surfrider Foundation is also hosting a beach cleanup at the site starting at 9am. We will have poster boards and markers available to make signs and encourage people to bring their own homemade signs.

WHERE: Beach north of Ventura pier, look for the Surfrider Foundation tent. For the beach cleanup we will be set up on the promenade at the end of California Street, next to the Crowne Plaza hotel.

This National Day of Action is being jointly organized by the Tar Sands Coalition and Hands Across the Sand / Hands Across the Land. Hands, founded in 2010, grew into an international movement after the BP oil disaster in April of that year. People came together to join hands, forming symbolic barriers against spilled oil and the impact of other forms of extreme energy.

We invite activists across the nation to organize rallies, marches, and vigils that call on the president to reject KXL and other tar sands pipelines, while at the same time asking our state and local leaders to say no to the dirty fossil fuel projects that endanger our local communities. Whether it's Arctic drilling, mountaintop removal, dangerous tar sands pipelines, fracking, exporting liquid natural gas, or shipping crude by rail through our hometowns, we all have reason to be concerned -- for the health of our families, and the health of the planet.

Join hands! Join us!