Action Reports – Page 144

Coal Action Scotland InfoTour dates

The Mainshill Solidarity Camp is going on tour! Check our list of dates below to see if we’re coming anywhere near you. If you’d like us to to a talk where you are and its not on the list, email us at mainshill [at] riseup.net and we’ll get back to you as soon as possible.

10th March
Brighton
7pm at the Cowley Club
London Road

12th March
Leeds
7pm at the Bandstand Community Allotments
Woodhouse Ridge, Meanwood Road
15th March
Bradford
7pm at the 1 in 12 Club
21-23 Albion Street

16th March
Lancaster
7pm at the Lancaster Action Resource Centre
78a Penny Street

Lappersfort Forest Evicted

5th March –
Yesterday morning the Brugge police force emptied Lappersfort Forest. All environmental activists who had chained themselves into tree houses and tunnels have been taken. Five policemen have been injured.
The threatened land is the property of Fabricom and has been fully occupied since September 2008. Peace talks with the owners and a judge over the 3.2 hectares of land (Which has plans to be turned into industry and office ground) had been entered into to reach an agreement but had failed.

The activists chained themselves to the trees in the morning and chanted slogans as large numbers of police mobilised and entered the forest. 30 police constables cordoned off the area while 20 others – with specialist contractors – worked to remove the activists.

According to a spokesman for the Brugge police force 25 people have been obtained. Because some of the activists did not want to give their identities, immigration control has become involved. One activist has been taken to a prison on an immigration matter.
The activists who gave their identities will be released after 12 hours.
A large number of trees were cut down in a short space of time. The tree houses were also removed. According to the police, by yesterday evening 80% of the area to be ‘developed’ had been laid flat.

“Fabricom claim the social importance of serving the community and try to give themselves a green image” Says forest activist Robin “What they do in reality is put profits before nature and the population, of India the Amazon Rainforests and in Belgium. We find the increase of this type of mega-multinational particularly upsetting. They claim to be green, but where we see a forest, they see purely a speculation ground.”

—

4.3.2010
The eviction of the Lappersfort has started. At 7h55 today, the police entered the forest. Police is all over the forest and a cherry-picker is in front of the forest.

13 people have been arrested while 1 remains locked on to what seems to be a 400kg concrete block. 1 of the arrested occupiers has been transported to jail as they are believed to either be involved in an ongoing investigation or be illegal in the EU.

The eviction is almost ended. One activist is still in the fortress. The lock-on team is busy with opening the lock-on. It seems to be a 400kg armed, extra-strong concrete.

There is a solidarity action on the corner where 4 people pushed through the police lines but were immediately arrested.

Background at http://lappersfort.freehostia.com/en/background.htm

Transition Heathrow turns wasteland into community garden

1/3/2010
Community activists from the group Transition Heathrow have taken over an abandoned market garden threatened by the third runway. Around lunchtime, 20 people “swooped” on the land in Sipson, one of the villages due for demolition if the third runway at Heathrow goes ahead.

More photos on Transition Heathrow’s Flickr stream.

After securing the site, the group immediately informed their new neighbours and local residents of their intention to reopen the old market garden for the benefit of the local community. The ‘Grow Heathrow’ project aims to encourage and support locally grown produce in an area that once had some of the most fertile soils in Britain.

Transition Heathrow has launched the project to highlight the need for a community controlled food supply in order to remain resilient to the impacts of peak oil and climate change. It intends to use the old market garden not only for growing, but also for activities such as bike workshops, clothes making, solidarity support for local workers and direct action workshops for people trying to stop the third runway.

Transition Heathrow member and local resident Joe Rake, described the events of the day. “Around lunchtime, a group of us walked onto the site. Once we had secured the gate, we set about telling local residents why we were there and inviting them to join in. We also had to start tidying up as it appeared to have been used for scrapping cars. Since the last tenants were evicted, the site has attracted unsavoury characters, so we wanted to restart the market garden for the good of the local community.”

Many of those involved in the ‘swoop’ see today’s action as a positive way of resisting the third runway whilst building an alternative community solution in its place. Heathrow resident Amy Summer said “We’ve been fighting the threat of the third runway for years, and its blighted our community. This kind of action not only helps stop expansion but also helps regenerate the area, providing local skills, green jobs and organic produce instead.”

“This form of direct action is just as important as sitting on a runway, blockading the bulldozers or striking for more green jobs. There’s no point in growing your own veg if it’s going to be covered in tarmac by BAA. At the same time there’s no point in community resistance if there’s no community left to defend. We have to do both,” she added.

Livesey Occupiers Re-Open Community Museum

1.3.2010
Families flock to the Livesey Museum for the re-opening of the former children’s museum to mark two years since Southwark Council shut the building down

It was a wet Sunday morning in South London as community activists scurried round the beautiful Livesey museum on the Old Kent Rd, putting the final touches to the space for a free family funday.

Police had called the occupiers the day before stating their intent to arrest people opening the building, for burglary. After being being told that such arrests would be illegal, they rang back to say they would shut the building down on grounds of health and safety, and also take details of anyone going into the building . If details were refused, the individual would be arrested. Again illegal police work.

The fire service arrived at 11, and gave the thumbs up for the building to be used.

And then suddenly the family rush began!

———-

Two years ago Southwark council shut the Livesey down as part of a budget cut. The cost of running the building was less than money spent on council lunches. The council then tried to sell the building only to find that in the deeds George Livesey left the Livesey for the people of Peckham and Camberwell. As a trustee they had no right to sell it.

After a community campaign to save the children’s museum by the Friends of Livesey, the council accepted a proposal from Theatre Peckham to use the space for rehearsals. Two years later nothing had happened in the building.

And so it was occupied six weeks ago by a group who want to see the building used by the community.

A public meeting was held with 40 people and there was consensus to hold a re-opening for local families.

After two weeks of organizing families flocked from all around to attend the day of activities: vegetable growing workshops, a treasure hunt, storytelling, arts and crafts, a theatre workshop and bicycle maintenance.

Around 80 people attended, and the kids had a ball especially on the treasure island. The museum came back to life, and was placed back into use for its original community purpose.

Around 2.30pm the fire service returned to see what we would do if there was a fire. They walked around to see everything was fine and then let everyone play on the fire engine. Hoses and sirens went off, and there was a new activity for the event.

One police, and a community policeman turned up and hang around at the gate for a while, after being refused entry after asking to see inside for potential crime. So the phone calls the day before seemed to be an attempt at intimidation.

So the Livsey Museum was shut to the community two years ago, and yesterday the community re-opened it, to have a brilliant day with the fire service being co-opted into the fun.

With a court date imminent, we will see what happens next at the Livesey but for now it is re-open and in the hands of the community.

Lappersfort Forest Occupation expected to be evicted this week!

Updates Thursday 4th: the eviction has begun since this morning; it is still unclear how far the eviction is going, and if there are still people present to resist. this night at 8pm manifestation in Bruges, at ‘t Zand. Wednesday 3rd: yesterday, the federal police was seen in the neighbourhood of the Lappersforest. Several people were chased when they wanted to leave or enter the forest. There is constant patrolling in the surrounding of the forest. At this moment (Wednesday 8:00), everything seems quiet in the forest.

The eviction is still expected to happen this week.

—

According to a very reliable source, the occupied part of the Lappersforest will be cut down this week. We don’t know the exact date (yet), but the eviction and chopping will probably start at the beginning of the week. (This week!) Another indication is the fact that police have visited the forest three times last week.

What can you do?
– come to the forest as soon as possible
– prepare solidarity actions
– prepare actions at branch offices of GDF Suez, Fabricom, Electrabel…
– send displeased reactions to press and other media.

If you come to join the eviction resistance, bring a raincoat, warm clothes, a sleeping bag and maybe some blankets.

If you can’t make it to the inside of the forest, come to the green bridge of Steenbrugge (on the road from Oostkamp to Bruges), where there will be protest actions from the very start of the eviction. At night we gather at 8 pm on ‘t Zand in Bruges, for a demonstration.

No compromise in defence of the Earth!

—
http://lappersfort.freehostia.com

– E-Mail: mgriks(at)gmail.com Website: http://www.ourmediaindymedia.blogspot.com

Climate Camp Invades Lewes Tesco

28.02.2010

28.02.2010
Climate change activists teamed up with local residents to invade the Tesco superstore in Lewes, East Sussex on Saturday in protest at plans to increase the size of the supermarket by 50%. More than 80 protesters took part, entering the store and embarking on a game of Tesco Whirl. The idea is to grab a trolley keep it empty and form up with others to create a giant conga chain.

The point of not actually shopping was to highlight that for every £3.00 spent on retail in Lewes, £2.00 is spent in Tesco.

By increasing the size of the store, money will be drained from the independent shops, harming the town’s local economy. But police had received a tip off about the action and were on hand to prevent some protesters entering the shop while ejecting those who attempted to form a chain. Still a chain of 10 trolleys at a time did form.

As activists were thrown out of the store a party formed at the entrance with music and dancing from activists in endangered animal masks.

Climate Camp activist and Lewes resident Marina Pepper said: “Tesco is more expensive than people realise, thanks to their misleading advertising campaigns. They also rip off farmers and destroy local communities by undercutting and bankrupting competition leading to high unemployment and boarded up town centres.

“Tesco has a strong foothold in Lewes. It’s only the robustness of the local economy that has saved it so far. But these expansion plans are madness and could spell the end, destroying so much that our town holds dear – namely our independent shops which provide us with choices as to how we shop and what we buy.

“This action today was only the launch of a campaign that will see Climate Camp working side by side with community groups to ensure one way or another Tesco’s growth plans are thwarted. We implore people to contact their local councilors, especially those on the planning committee and tell them a bigger Tesco is unwelcome here. Ever y little extra will hurt.”

The activities of massive supermarkets like Tesco involve scandalous waste, pollution and environmental degradation.

Supermarket food travels vast distances, products are over packaged and customers travel ever greater distances once local shops are driven out of business. This leads to an increase in road congestion, accidents, noise, air pollution and CO2 emissions which contribute to climate change.

Supermarket demands are also behind the continuing industrialisation of agriculture. Big farmers are getting bigger to survive while small farmers are going bust. This leads to increased disease among livestock and cruel factory farm practices.

Further information.

Tesco stores erode local choice as smaller, independent shops struggle to compete. Independent stores in the UK shut at the rate of 2,000 a year in recent years. Over 17,000 independent shops closed in England and Wales last year.

Large supermarkets like Tesco also:
• Siphon money away from local communities and towards distant corporations
• Increase traffic and congestion from lorry movements and customers
• Destroy local jobs and undermine local job markets
• Every large outlet causes the net loss of 276 local jobs on average
• Generate waste and over-package their products
• Exploit suppliers and damage the environment
• Cynically manipulate prices to fleece shoppers

Tesco is the largest retailer in the UK:
• Over £1 in every £7 (14.3%) of UK retail sales is spent at Tesco
• It has takings of more than £1 billion a week
• It made profits of over £3 billion last year
• It has £30 million turnover in Lewes compared to £17m for all other shops

southcoast@climatecamp.org.uk
http://climatecamp.org.uk/get-involved/local-groups/south-coast

EARTH FIRST! ITALY GATHERING, 1-4 APRIL 2010

(soon it’ll be translated in english)
EARTH FIRST! ITALIA GATHERING
Narni (Umbria), 1-4 Aprile 2010

TRE GIORNI AD ALTA SOSTENIBILITA’ CONDIVIDENDO ESPERIENZE, IDEE ED EMOZIONI.

(soon it’ll be translated in english)
EARTH FIRST! ITALIA GATHERING
Narni (Umbria), 1-4 Aprile 2010

TRE GIORNI AD ALTA SOSTENIBILITA’ CONDIVIDENDO ESPERIENZE, IDEE ED EMOZIONI.

Alloggio: L’evento si terrà all’interno di una grande fattoria con animali, orto biologico, fiumiciattolo e bosco. All’interno del bosco verrà allestito lo spazio tende che dovranno quindi essere portate da casa.
Alimentazione: Il cibo (pranzo e cena) verrà cucinato dalla fattoria e sarà vegetariano ed il più possibile biologico e a km0.
Workshop e attività: Verranno organizzati workshop e attività a partecipazione volontaria. Tra questi: escursioni nei boschi, tree climbing, mountain bike, azioni di disturbo alla caccia e altro ancora. (a presto il programma dettagliato).
Programma serale e musica: La sera ci sarà occasione di cantare, suonare e ballare. Se sei un musicista/artista e vuoi proporti all’interno del programma serale puoi mandarci una email già da ora.
Prendi parte all’azione: Ci saranno anche momenti più pratici in cui pianificare campagne e azioni a livello locale. Se sei interessato ad entrare in EF! sei già dei nostri!.

TU!
Siamo tutti parte dello staff. Il successo dell’evento dipenderà anche da te. Ogni mattina ci sarà un breve meeting in cui discutere e gestire la giornata. Se hai dei consigli o vuoi proporre un’attività puoi mandarci una mail da subito o proporla direttamente al raduno.

PORTA CON TE…Porta con te tenda e sacco a pelo invernale. Ti ricordiamo che la temperatura all’interno del bosco potrà scendere durante la notte motivo per cui è bene portarsi vestiti e maglioni pesanti. Ricordati delle scarpe da trekking ed un coltellino svizzero. Se hai la possibilità di portarti la tua mountain bike fallo!

DOVE
Il posto è vicino a Narni, in provincia di Terni, Umbria. Alta sostenibilità significa anche evitare di prendere
l’auto se non necessaria, motivo per cui ti consigliamo di raggiungere il posto
con altri mezzi (treno o pullman).

CANI
I cani sono bene accetti. Nonostante ciò chi li porta avrà la responsabilità di
far si che i nostri amici non disturbino né compromettano le attività o il momento dei pasti. Essendo il posto all’aperto c’è il rischio che il cane si possa allontanare.

COSTI
La quota richiesta è di 45 euro (15 euro al giorno) per l’intero gathering e comprende:
– posto tenda (3 notti)
– pasti (6 pasti)
– attività
– bevande calde

ALTRE:
I fondi verranno destinati esclusivamente all’organizzazione del gathering stesso. Il luogo preciso del gathering verrà annunciato una settimana prima dell’evento. Chiunque fosse interessato a prendere parte al gathering è pregato di confermare la propria partecipazione (mandando una mail con nome, cognome e data di arrivo) una settimana prima al fine di coordinare al meglio l’evento stesso.

Maggiori informazioni:

Earth First! Italia blog:
http://earthfirstitalia.blogspot.com

Earth First! Roma:
earthfirstroma@autistici.org

Camp Bling back up and awaiting chainsaws – chopping on Sunday?

27.2.2010
Important Update

Cuckoo Corner tent 27.2.2010
Important Update

6pm – so far, so good at Camp Cuckoo; food donations coming in but still need more people; latest twitter updates on PPPS website below or SKIPP facebook page.

Various sources have now confirmed that the Council will be felling the trees on Priory Crescent during Sunday. The affected stretch of Priory Crescent is going to be closed to traffic between midnight and 8pm Sunday.

There will be people climbing the trees to prevent them being felled – if you feel up to it, please volunteer! We also need as many people as possible on the ground to lend support, witness the Council’s, private security and Police’s actions and so on.

Please come down to lend your support. People have been campaigning against this road widening since 1972 and it’s all coming to a head tonight.

Additional from SKIPP: Urgent notice – help needed NOW! Tree felling begins tonight in Priory Crescent, anyone who can please come down to site, your help is desperately needed, if possible please cancel what ever you are doing, it is now or never, passive or active, you can help save the trees if we act together NOW… SKIPP Committee Contact: 07799414887 – mark 07747755205 – patsy Please let us know if you can help.

—-

After years of patient occupation and apparent victory, Southend activists have had to reoccupy land to prevent the councils new road building scheme. Evictions are expected imminently and crew are urgently needed.

Southend Borough Council has reneged on the agreement made last April with Bling and Parklife which resulted in an agreement with the residents to vacate the site.

Local Group SKIPP has since been campaigning to prevent the revised plan from becoming a reality, last week SKIPP joined force with Parklife, and Blingers to occupy a site in Priory Crescent with a view to preventing tree felling which is due in the next few days.

This morning a source within the Council informed us, that tree felling and eviction is now imminent.

Support is urgently needed, the site is situated in Priory Crescent on land adjacent to the Cuckoo Corner Roundabout; by car head into Southend using the A127, following the town centre signs, by train the nearest station is Prittlewell on the Liverpool Street Line.

(for background please refer to: www.campbling.org / www.ppps.org.uk / on facebook search for Saxon King In Priory Park.

Limited accommodation is available on site in the form of tents, please bring warm clothing and harness/lock on gear if poss, same old things needed; people, climbing gear/lock on gear, herras fencing, scaff bar/clips, kit and donations.

On Friday a council meeting was halted for 20 minutes following protests over the new plans.

Fossil Fools Day 2010

Climate change is no laughing matter – but that doesn’t mean we can’t confront the Fossil Fuel Empire with subversive humour.

WHAT: Direct actions, practical jokes and throwing a spanner in the works to stop the fossil fools.
WHERE: Your street, town or city.
WHEN: April 1st, 2010.

Climate change is no laughing matter – but that doesn’t mean we can’t confront the Fossil Fuel Empire with subversive humour.

WHAT: Direct actions, practical jokes and throwing a spanner in the works to stop the fossil fools.
WHERE: Your street, town or city.
WHEN: April 1st, 2010.

Last December in Copenhagen, the politicians sold us out to the fossil fools, corporate lobbyists and big banks. Now we’re left with “green capitalism,” a deeply unjust carbon market and continued assaults on our communities and ecosystems. If we’re going to stop climate chaos, the only real solution is to keep fossil fuels in the ground.

The stakes couldn’t be higher: destabilisation of the global climate, local communities destroyed by dirty energy extraction and combustion, devastating freak storms, droughts, floods, the list goes on …

This April 1st, join Rising Tide in some creative direct action … use the simply subversive to the downright disruptive: office occupations, banner drops, clownish parades, road blockades, spoof websites, subvertising, street theatre, leaflets, lock-ons or laugh-ins. Whatever works for you and your group.

Join us this Fossil Fools Day and hatch some harebrained schemes that will strike a blow to climate criminals everywhere!

WANT MORE? Fossil Fools Day also marks the launch of the BP Tar Sands Fortnight of Shame: a two-week campaign culminating in actions surrounding BP’s AGM on April 15th. The goal? To stop BP from going into the Canadian Tar Sands – the biggest, dirtiest fossil fuel project on earth. Find out more: Tar Sands in Focus.. And a word to BP: be afraid… be very afraid.

NEED A HAND? If you would like ideas for actions, graphics for leaflets or websites, advice on dealing with the press, etc., send us an email and we’ll do our best to help out: info@risingtide.org.uk

For more information see: Fossil Fools Day.

In the words of that master of pranks: “That’s All Folks”.

Faslane noise demo & Free Cafe (every first Saturday each month)

Every first Saturday of the month we’ll be holding a noise demo at the base.

With workshops, afternoon kids space, discussion groups and free cafe at the camp.

For those wanting to stay longer there will be a film-screening and action meeting on Sunday.

Anyone is welcome to come along and get involved!
Call us for information on this or other upcoming events

Every first Saturday of the month we’ll be holding a noise demo at the base.

With workshops, afternoon kids space, discussion groups and free cafe at the camp.

For those wanting to stay longer there will be a film-screening and action meeting on Sunday.

Anyone is welcome to come along and get involved!
Call us for information on this or other upcoming events
Would be good to see old friends, and is also a great way to see camp if you’ve never been before.

Directions –

The camp is situated 6 miles North of Helensburgh. Helensburgh can be reached from Glasgow by train, for £5 return, trains leave every half hour from Glasgow Queens Street (Low level station).Or the 216 from Jamaica St – Helensburgh.
You can catch the 316 bus from Helensburgh Central train station (for Coulport or Garelochead, stops outside the camp) it only costs £1:50, and you can ask to be dropped off at the peace camp.

-F.P.C. is on the east verge of the A814 road, which leads to HMNB Clyde and beyond. The Camp is therefore visible to all traffic coming towards the base from the direction of Helensburgh.

We are about 30 miles west of Glasgow, by the Gareloch, a river Clyde estuary sea loch. Faslane Naval Base is on the Gareloch.
CAMP PHONE 01436820901

Faslane peace camp
faslaniapeacecamp@yahoo.co.uk