Valve Turners

Valve Turners in Minnesota

The ‘valve turners’: Activists faced jail time to briefly stop the flow of Canadian crude oil

Many environmental activists join rallies or marches, sign petitions and lobby legislators. But some feel the need for more drastic steps. In October 2016, five activists known as the “valve turners” halted the flow of crude oil through four different pipelines along the US-Canada border, knowing they would be arrested and possibly convicted.