earthfirst – Page 255

Greenpeace campaigners climb on top of Heathrow short-haul flight (& video clip)

As the banner on top of this London – Manchester flight says, we’re in the middle of a climate emergency. The fastest growing source of greenhouse gas emissions in the UK is just about to get another boost from Brown’s government. On Wednesday, the consultation on whether to nearly double the size of Heathrow by building a new runway will close, and the government looks set to cave in to the aviation industry.

This morning, four of our volunteers have climbed on top of a plane at Heathrow and are wrapping a banner around the tailfin. The plane – one of 32 flights every day between London and Manchester – had just arrived in Heathrow and the passengers had disembarked when four volunteers walked through the double doors at Heathrow Terminal One, crossing an area of tarmac and climbing onto the fuselage of the British Airways flight.

100,000 flights a year go between Heathrow and destinations that are easily reachable by train (the most popular destination is Paris – easily reachable by the Eurostar). And, looking at the price of train travel in Britain, it’s understandable that some people are still choosing to fly. If the £9 billion tax subsidies the aviation industry receives to make flying cheaper and airports bigger were spent on making trains cheaper and better, we could reduce the environmental impact of Heathrow instead of vastly increasing it.

Security threat? Yes, we’ve exposed a security hole at Heathrow, but we’ve done it to expose the gaping hole on Brown’s climate change policy. Brown’s carrying on as though climate change has never happened. The planet’s leading scientists are warning us we only have a few years left to get climate change emissions down, yet, if the aviation industry is allowed to expand as predicted, aviation alone would destroy any hope of hitting his emissions reductions targets.

The move came as protesters were gathering in Westminster on Monday to oppose plans to expand the airport.

A government consultation on the plan closes on Wednesday.

We are here to draw a line in the sand and tell Gordon Brown his new runway must not and will not be built

Anna Jones, Greenpeace activist

Greenpeace said protesters put a banner reading “Climate Emergency – No Third Runway” over the plane’s tailfin at about 0945 GMT.

It said two women and two men crossed the tarmac at the airport after the passengers had disembarked.

One protester, Anna Jones, said: “Our planet and the people who live on it are in danger.

“Climate change can be beaten but not by almost doubling the size of the airport.

“We are here to draw a line in the sand and tell Gordon Brown his new runway must not and will not be built.”

The four were arrested and taken to Heathrow police station at about 1100 GMT, a BAA spokeswoman said.

Video

Sea Shepherd Finds Japanese Whaling Fleet: They Are On the Run Again

The Japanese whaling fleet is on the run again. The Sea Shepherd Conservation Society ship Steve Irwin re-located the Japanese whaling fleet at 0600 hours this morning, February 23, 2008.

A few hours earlier, the Steve Irwin had been side tracked when it chased a vessel that turned out to be a Namibian Toothfish vessel. The Antalles Reefer registered in Walvis Bay was found at 0200 Hours. The vessel refused to give a fishing permit number and threatened the Steve Irwin by reporting that it was armed. The Captain of the Antalles Reefer claimed to speak only Russian. The Steve Irwin has a Russian speaking crewmember and during the conversation the Captain said he would resist with force if there was any interference with his operations.

Captain Paul Watson relayed the information to the Australian Customs vessel Oceanic Viking and reported that a suspicious toothfish fishing vessel was operating inside the Australian Economic Exclusion Zone. At 0600 Hours, the Steve Irwin encountered the Fukuyoshi Maru No. 68 which immediately headed eastward to lead the Sea Shepherd crew away from the whaling fleet. The Steve Irwin continued west and the Fukuyoshi Maru No. 68 turned and began to pursue the Steve Irwin. It is believed that the Fukuyoshi Maru No 68 carries armed Japanese coast guard officers.

The Steve Irwin is now pursuing the Nisshin Maru and two harpoon vessels with the Fukuyoshi Maru No. 68 in pursuit of the Steve Irwin. “The great Southern Ocean whaling ship chase is on again,” said Captain Paul Watson. “I don’t think any whales are going to be dying today. Our goal is to keep the harpoons quiet for the next three weeks.”

The weather is good, the seas are calm and the chase is threading its way southwest through an obstacle course of icebergs, growlers, and bergy bits. The Steve Irwin has plenty of fuel, water and provisions and a crew that is committed to shutting down the illegal whaling operations of the Japanese fleet. “I can’t think of a place I would rather be right now,” said Jeff Hansen from Fremantle, Western Australia. “Seeing the Japanese whalers running like cowards from the Steve Irwin is a very satisfying experience.”

The chase is taking place some 80 miles north of the Shackleton Glacier off the coast of Queen Mary land, well inside Australian Antarctic Territorial waters.

On January 15th, 2008, an Australian Federal Court ordered that Japanese whaling be “restrained” in Australian territorial waters. The Sea Shepherd crew is acting to enforce that court order and to uphold numerous international regulations that the Japanese whaling fleet has and continues to violate.

For previous coverage on the Sea Shepherd see the UK Indymedia feature article.

http://www.seashepherd.org

Weird Load visits leafy Chiswick

23.02.2008
After January’s thousand strong meeting against Heathrow expansion, protest continues apace.

23.02.2008
After January’s thousand strong meeting against Heathrow expansion, protest continues apace.

This week saw a 50,000 leaflet doordrop, and today local campaigners were joined by Baroness von Reichardt, partner Mr Spunky and members of her World Famous Treatment Rooms.

WEIRD LOAD

Saturday morning shoppers – more accustomed to bumping into Richard Briers or Ant’n’Dec than an anarchist art troop – were handed leaflets headlined “Last Chance to Stop This”, encouragement to turn up and show their opposition at Westminster’s Central Hall this Monday at 7pm

A straw poll outside Marks and Spencer indicated a likely showing of around 500 residents promising to meet up at Turnham Green Station for a mass move on Westminster. Past experience of active opposition in W4 however means that might well be an underestimate.

They join residents from all over London and the Heathrow villages – 6 coaches have been reserved from Sipson already – traveling to hear speakers as diverse as Lib Dem top banana Nick Clegg, Green MEP Caroline Lucas, Climate Change guru Mark Lynas and Plane Stupid’s Leo Murray.

This is a battle that can and will be won by the people, but only if the people act together. Do everything you can to be there on Monday and show the government and the corporations what they’re truly up against.

Sabotage against the Glensanda Quarry Expansion

An aggregates processing plant on the edge of the Yorkshire Dales National Park has been sabotaged. The Plant is owned by Bardon Aggregates a member of Aggregate Industries, part of the Holcim Group. Aggregate Industries own the Glensanda Quarry on the north west coast of Scotland. The quarry is europes biggest coastal quarry and has it’s own port. Aggregate Industries plan to expand the quarry from 125 ha to 206 ha giving reserves of 814 million tonnes of granite. They currently extract 7-8 million tonnes a year and can increase this to 15 million tonnes. The expansion plan includes removing the peaks “The Mam” and “Lag a ‘mhaim” from the skyline. This would be visible from the Scottish islands and will effect the ecology of many species including otters, seals, and golden eagles. 20% of the stone extracted will go to major road network construction across europe.
The Plant in Yorkshire was entered and sabotaged. Vehicles including all bulldozers had holes drilled in vital parts of their engines and their tires. Both control rooms were broken into and all computers and instrument panels were smashed. Keys to all buildings and machinery were removed from the site. The message “Stop Glensanda” was left. Aggregate industries have sites all over the UK and the World, you know what to do!

‘Not An Eviction Party’ at the secret social centre

21.02.2008

Today, the backup venue for the rampART social centre faced a court hearing as the owners sought an interim possession order which would have seen the occupiers given just 24 hours to back up and leave. However, as luck would have it, only the squatters turned up to court so the case was adjourned. No eviction tomorrow and we guess not for at least another week…

21.02.2008

It was intended that we’d be having a day of resistance on Friday to see off the bailiffs, starting from 2pm with a vegan cafe and transforming into an all night party to get at least one big event out of the place we’ve put our blood, sweat and tears into since the new year. However, now there is no eviction threat tomorrow we’ve decided to party anyway with the RAMpart2 ‘Not An Eviction Party’

If you don’t already know the address, phone a friend. Anyone who regularly attends the rampART should know the address by now but we’re not posting it here.

Wanna perform or DJ? give us a call (you’ll have to be very self sufficient in terms of equipment).

This won’t be the last event at RAMpart2, but almost.

Bikes against the bomb bikeride, London to Aldermaston, March 22-26

To mark the 50th anniversary of the Aldermaston Peace March,a bike ride will be leaving London on 22 March arriving at Aldermaston on Monday 24 March to join ‘ Surround the Base’ CND mass action planned for that day.

We intend to take an active stance against organisations implicit in the nuclear arms industries.

Accomodation is organised and we will be riding about 30 miles per day.

Join us for part of the journey or the whole ride.

More details at www.bikesnotbombs.org.uk

info@bikesnotbombs.org.uk

Earth First! Blockades Power Plant Construction Site, 27 Arrested

18th February 2008
Palm Beach County – Early Monday morning dozens of concerned community members from Palm Beach County and all over the nation put their bodies on the line to halt construction of FPL’s West County Energy Center (WCEC), demanding energy efficiency, truly clean, renewable energy and a moratorium on development in south Florida. Everglades Earth First! blocked the main entrance to the WCEC site, a proposed massive 3800 MW gas-fired power plant that would emit 12 million tons of CO2, a leading greenhouse gas, every year. The plant is currently under construction despite ongoing legal challenges to the plant’s needed permits and certification, which have been spearheaded by the local Palm Beach County Environmental Coalition.

West County gas power plant blockade 2 18th February 2008
Palm Beach County – Early Monday morning dozens of concerned community members from Palm Beach County and all over the nation put their bodies on the line to halt construction of FPL’s West County Energy Center (WCEC), demanding energy efficiency, truly clean, renewable energy and a moratorium on development in south Florida. Everglades Earth First! blocked the main entrance to the WCEC site, a proposed massive 3800 MW gas-fired power plant that would emit 12 million tons of CO2, a leading greenhouse gas, every year. The plant is currently under construction despite ongoing legal challenges to the plant’s needed permits and certification, which have been spearheaded by the local Palm Beach County Environmental Coalition.

A dozen activists locked themselves together through metal pipes as 200 supporters rallied around them. The blockade stopped work on the construction site for six hours before a total of 27 people were arrested.

This confrontational action was taken to protect the Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge which sits 1000 ft from the power plant site and to protect the larger Everglades system. Restoration would be undermined by new development that the power plant is expected to encourage in the area. The civil disobedience action also aims to protect the entire planet from the destructive effects of climate change caused by power plant emissions.

“We just don’t need this plant,” said Lynne Purvis, an activist with Everglades Earth First! who was born and raised in the Loxahatchee area. “I’m not willing to threaten the integrity of the Loxahatchee, one of the last large, intact pieces of northern Everglades, so that people can fuel their greedy energy desires.”

Purvis says that the Everglades Earth First! group intends to continue a sustained campaign of direct action against this power plant and its adjacent gas pipeline.
The protest was also attended by grassroots activists and group across the United States who have been participating in the annual Earth First! Winter Rendezvous. One such group, Rising Tide North America, is part of an international movement for climate justice, which connects the social and environmental issues related to the growing
climate crisis and calls for urgent and bold responses to the global human-caused dilemma.

Brian Sloan, an organizer with Rising Tide North America and participant in Monday morning’s protest, said “FPL is doing what we call ‘green-washing’. Gas-fired power is not a clean or sustainable energy. It is a dirty and dwindling fossil fuel.” Sloan also states that Rising Tide does not trust energy companies to solve the climate crisis. “The solutions to climate change will never come from the people who created the problem.”

Earth First! and the Rising Tide movements recognize that the fight against fossil fuel power is being used by the energy industry to push a new wave of nuclear energy. These grassroots groups are committed to extending their fight against the dangers of nuclear power with an eye on other FPL proposals, such as Turkey Point and St. Lucie.

For info on local Earth First! efforts, visit: www.earthfirst2008oc.info

Contact: Everglades Earth First! (561) 588 – 9666
Photos available at www.risingtidenorthamerica.org

Everglades Earth First! group intends to continue a sustained campaign of direct action against this power plant and its adjacent gas pipeline.

WE NEED YOUR HELP with bond money & legal fees for the 27 who were arrested. We need to raise $10,000 to cover the bond fees. Please visit the Palm Beach County environmental Coalition’s website to donate online or email us for how to send a check!

Swedish climate action update

Climate activists in detention after trying to break into airport

On Friday, groups of activists connected to Klimax, Sweden’s direct action movement against the root causes of climate change, struck against the country’s domestic aviation industry. At Malmö Airport, seven activists were apprehended when trying to brake into the runway, some of them dressed as polar bears. They were transferred to a detention centre in another city in southern Sweden and kept in solitary confinement for more than 60 hours. The seven activists were interrogated throughout the days, charged with “intent to sabotage air traffic” and threatened with four years in prison if convicted.

Climate activists in detention after trying to break into airport

– It’s totally absurd to place people in solitary confinement for more than two days when they’ve done nothing but attempting to cross a fence, in a peaceful, symbolic action. The activists did what everyone should do: they tried to stop climate change from accelerating. With their heavy-handed repression, the police are trying to deter us from further direct action, but we vow to step up our struggle. Since the police succeeded in nabbing the activists in Malmö this time, we will have to be more creative when planning our next actions, says Shora Esmailian, media spokesperson for Klimax.

Also on Friday, scores of activists entered the terminals at Bromma Airport in Stockholm and Landvetter Airport outside of Gothenburg. Many were dressed as polar bears and penguins. The demonstrations were followed by die-ins in front of queuing passengers. In Uppsala, a city north of Stockholm, yet another Klimax group staged a protest against a planned local airport. Pictures from the actions can be found at this website.

On Saturday, activists in Stockholm broke into a police station to demand the immediate release of their comrades in Malmö, and a solidarity manifestation was held in Gothenburg. All in all, more than a hundred activists were involved in the coordinated activities over the weekend.

On late Sunday, the last remaining Malmö-activist was released from the detention centre. All seven activists will face trial, as will another group of activists who successfully seized the runway at Bromma Airport in April last year.

Klimax is a rapidly growing movement in Sweden. In Stockholm, the group has focused on an upcoming decision to extend the premises of Bromma Airport to the year 2038, allowing it to increase traffic with at least 20 percent. The contract, due for final approval in March, will be impossible to abrogate if politicians elected in Stockholm in the coming decades wish to do so: it can only be annulled by the national government. This is considered deeply undemocratic by Klimax, but even worse, Bromma Airport is now poised to continue propelling domestic flights to Gothenburg, Malmö and other destinations well covered by railway connections, thus increasing unnecessary carbon emissions at a time when they have to be slashed. Already at this date, the aviation industry accounts for at least 10 percent of Sweden’s carbon emissions, according to estimates from the Royal Institute of Technology, and the share is growing. Klimax is determined to fight this wholly irrational development until Sweden’s domestic aviation is abolished in its entirety, as a first necessary step to a fossil-free society

Free Paper War – LONDON LITtEr

15.2.2008
Ten tonnes of waste per week is generated by the free newspapers in Westminster alone, which is not a problem that can be solved just by recycling. The only solution to the problem is to remove it – stop printing the papers.

In an attempt to get this message out, a group of intrepid paper boys and girls decided to use the tactics of The London Paper and London Lite, putting their own pro-recycling anti-waste propaganda into copies of the papers then aggressively and relentlessly forcing them on the public.

At approximately 5pm sharp, paper distribution began. The London Paper and London Lite teams competed for the attention of commuters, pointing out the numerous differences between the papers and the quality of their contents. The teams, while obviously agreeing that they were both giving away highly sophisticated and intellectually stimulating publications, didn’t agree on which one was in fact superior. Sarcasm aside, this is another issue with the free newspapers – that they are filled with second rate celebrity gossip, inane half-stories, and above all, advertising. Really, do these newspapers contain any actual news? Is what they have to say so important that it’s worth 10 tonnes of waste paper a week?

As the competition grew more intense, war paint was smeared and the battle began. Papers were given and replaced and given again, with distributors from each team competing over individual members of the public, leading to violent confrontations with each other. The official employees of both free papers seemed baffled but amused, taking photographs of the event. However, an employee of The Evening Standard, driving up in his van, seemed to be less than impressed, attempting to take away some of the papers and generally behaving in a rather ungentlemanly fashion.

Then, as two opposing team members were locked in combat, a policeman on a horse appeared and politely and calmly requested that all the students just stop that and come and speak to him right now. As only a couple of the group were students, the action mostly continued until he got a bit upset. When all the paper boys and girls were gathered around the horse, they were told “You just can’t do that!” “Stop it!” “I’ll arrest you!” “Just stop it!” and “Calm down!”.

After agreeing that it was indeed rude to force newspapers on unsuspecting pedestrians, but that they would calm down, the paper distributing continued a little less violently. Passers-by were offered ‘The London Litter’, ‘free rubbish’, and ‘news’ (though unfortunately there was no news available), and were assured that they could throw it away whenever and wherever they liked. In fact, the more they threw away the better. Some people seemed quite keen to get their free rubbish, some were irritated and a few were genuinely interested in what was being said.

Sadly, some more policemen (who didn’t have horses) turned up and told the paper girls and boys that really it was time to stop it now. Moderately aggressive at first, they were won over by the charm of the paperers, reportedly even taking some (100% recycled!) leaflets for their colleagues. By this point all the newspapers had gone and it was at least half past beer o’clock, so after a little chat with the police (and picking up any litter that may have been left), it was declared a victory and they headed off.

http://www.spacehijackers.org

Stop the Swedish “Triangle of Death” Seven polar bears held for attempted air travel

Climate activist group Klimax in Sweden are tired of unnecessary short haul and national flights. Especially between the major cities of Gothenburg, Stockholm and Malmo/Copenhagen, all directly coupled by the nearest thing Sweden has to a high speed train. That’s why that on Friday the 15th of February strange things started happening at airports around Sweden.

Time might be money but how much climate change is ten minutes worth? If you don’t have any luggage and check in on-line that’s about how much time you can save by flying between Sweden’s major cities. Considering that the Swedish trains run on renewable electric energy, that’s a hell of a lot of climate change for ten minutes. Ok, it’s not that simple. Why would any sane person without a climate conscience or a fat wallet take the train when it’s cheaper to fly? A railway system that makes the UK’s look modern could also help weigh the balance when it comes to choosing how to get there.

Here’s a round up of the different actions around the country:

Malmo http://svt.se/svt/play/video.jsp?a=1057410
At the time of writing seven activists are being held in custody. It seems that the crime of running about the countryside dressed as a polar bear is frowned upon in the south of Sweden. The seven were arrested running towards the perimeter fence of Sturup airport outside of Malmo by the large police presence. It seems that the boys in blue were out on a mass training exercise at the time. The police should be happy to get a bit of real life training. Attempting to get onto runways whilst dressed as a polar bear is definitely one of the fastest going crimes of our time. An interesting high publicity court case seems to be in the pipe line. At least one solidarity demonstration (Gothenburg 2pm Gustaf Adolfs Torg) is planned on Saturday in Sweden to demand the release of the Malmo seven.

Stockholm
The polar bears of Stockholm were treated to ice cream by the airport authorities at Bromma. A pleasant gesture but hardly making up for helping to destroy the bears northerly habitat. Sorry you family drowned but here’s a raspberry ripple to make up for it,sort of thing. A die in was staged as other peaceful protesters with banners and flyers roamed the terminal raising awareness of the environmental harm caused by air travel. There are presently plans to enlarge Bromma airport in Stockholm. The question is what are the politicians and planners thinking. In a time and a country where every nine year old knows about global warming and its causes, the authorities get the idea of expanding airports. It might be time to let the kids take over the power. They could hardly do a worse job than the climate criminals doing the job now. But then the kids are selfishly more worried about their future than in the honest business of making short term financial gains.

Gothenburg
A die in was staged in front of the security gate at Landvetter airport outside of Gothenburg. Twenty activists arrived at the airport to stage the protest on Friday evening. The die in was for the benefit of passengers on their way to emit the largest possible amount of greenhouse gases whilst covering the 300 or so miles to Stockholm. After miraculously reviving themselves the activists formed a banner wall to welcome three plane loads of arrivals from the capital. The whole thing went down peacefully with the massive police presence (at least three coppers for every climate crusader) standing around looking bored.

Uppsala
The university town of Uppsala north of Stockholm doesn’t have a nice warm passenger airport to stage an action in. The company Uppsala Air is doing its best to change this. They want to provide a pleasant passenger terminal so that local climate activists would have somewhere warm to stage protests. In the best “make do with what you’ve got spirit“, the Uppsala activist created their own runway in the city center to illustrate how pleasantly an airport can convert a boring piece of countryside into noisy polluting climate challenging strip of asfalt.

This is just the start of the Swedish resistance against climate criminality. Watch this space for the next move. We think cars are also plane stupid. Honest!

http://klimatet.org/