“We strongly urge you to stand up for healthy communities, clean air and water, indigenous peoples, property rights and a stable climate by committing to vote No on the TPP,” they urged in a letter.

The TPP is the “free trade” deal between 12 Pacific Rim nations — Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the United States and Vietnam — that critics say amounts to a huge power-grab by large corporations.

The alliance, including Sierra Club, Indigenous Environmental Network, Bold Alliance, SustainUS, and Friends of the Earth, also demanded changes to the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) — a proposed agreement between the US and the European Union.

They particularly objected to the investor-state dispute settlement system in these deals, which would allow firms to sue governments if laws and regulations hit their profits.

TeleSUR English said the groups pointed out that the TPP would allow fossil fuel companies to contest US environmental rules in extrajudicial tribunals.

They warned that companies could challenge US environmental standards in tribunals outside the domestic legal system under provisions of TPP and TTIP.

TeleSUR English said: “Congress is expected to vote on the TPP after the November 8 election during a lame-duck session. President Barack Obama wants the agreement ratified before he leaves office on January 20, but opposition to the deal has grown during this year’s presidential campaign.”Voter anxiety over the impact of trade deals on jobs and the environment has helped empower the campaign of U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders, who is running against Clinton for the Democratic nomination, as well as Republican candidate Donald Trump, who has also criticized job-cutting trade deals.“The green groups noted that in January, Canadian energy company TransCanada asked for a private tribunal through the North American Free Trade Agreement to seek compensation exceeding US$15 billion, after Obama last year rejected a permit for its Keystone pipeline, citing global warming concerns.”The TPP and TTIP would more than double the number of fossil fuel corporations that could follow TransCanada’s example and challenge U.S. policies in private tribunals," the letter said.

Green Left Weekly