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Police are still investigating two pipeline bombings that took place the week of Oct. 12 in the Canadian province of British Columbia. The attacks, while amateurish, represent an escalation in opposition to energy industry activities in the area.

Authorities are still investigating two pipeline bombings that took place in the northeastern part of Canada’s province of British Columbia the week of Oct. 12. No arrests have been made in connection with the blasts, and police have not yet named any suspects. While neither blast caused significant physical damage, the second attack did create a hole in the pipeline, which carries about 50 million cubic feet of natural gas per day to a nearby processing plant, causing pipeline owner and operator EnCana to shut the line down temporarily Oct. 16 while workers repaired the leak.

These attacks, however amateurish, represent an escalation in recent opposition to oil and natural gas activity in western Canada. While these two most recent attacks did not yield major damage, an increase in force or frequency could disrupt oil and natural gas transport in western Canada — an industry that brings in $2 billion in annual revenue for British Columbia and brought in nearly $12 billion to Canadian oil companies in 2007.

Before the pipeline bombings, a local newspaper received a letter demanding that EnCana and other energy companies leave the area of Tomslake, where the attacks occurred. The letter’s author wrote that there would be no negotiations and accused the oil and gas companies of causing health problems in the author’s community. The letter also says oil and gas production endangers “home lands,” a term closely linked to indigenous groups referred to in Canada as First Nations.