Wales – Page 8 – Earth First!

Friends Of The Earth Cymru information stall against the Monster Incinerator at Ffos-y-fran

Friends Of The Earth CYMRU are having an information stall in Merthyr precinct this Friday.
Join the Facebook page “No Monster Incinerator in Merthyr Tydfil” for a powerpoint presentation on the Health Impact of incinerators by world renown expert Prof Paul Connett!
It looks as if Covanta are going forward with submitting planning application on November 1st – Direct Action and Awareness needs to be ramped up as much of the community of Merthyr Tydfil are blissfully ignorant of the scientific facts on the impact of dioxins, nano-particulates and other very nasty shit such as “Fly Ash”!

Crude Awakening info update

12 Sept 2010

THE CRUDE AWAKENING MASS OUTREACH EMAIL

A mass action to switch off oil

Saturday, 16 October 2010, Central London

12 Sept 2010

THE CRUDE AWAKENING MASS OUTREACH EMAIL

A mass action to switch off oil

Saturday, 16 October 2010, Central London

Have you been thinking it’s about time a whole load of people got together to take mass action against oil in central London? We thought so. And so it followed that the Crude Awakening was launched. The mobilization is now in full swing and everyone is invited to help publicize and prepare. There is loads to do….please have a read through this email and get involved!

The email is in three parts:

Upcoming events and how to get involved
Frequently asked questions
The call out – please copy and paste and help this get all over the Internet!

1. How to get involved and build up events you are all invited to.

Events already planned are listed bellow:

In London……

17th September, networking meeting at 6pm just inside the entrance to the Brunei Gallery at SOAS, a meeting for people interested in helping to do outreach in the London area the Climate Camp outreach group are meeting.

There is going to be a London coordinating and planning meeting for the Crude Awakening very soon, and the details will be announced shortly.

Thursday 23rd September at 7.30pm, Climate Action Film Night, London Action Resource Centre, Whitechapel (for address see www.londonarc.org)

An evening of films and discussion about climate activism and the oil industry, hosted by London Rising Tide.

A screening of two short films of recent actions against BP and Shell by Rising Tide and friends, plus Petropolis, a visually stunning and disturbing documentary about the Canadian Tar Sands. Followed by a brainstorming session on taking direct action against the oil industry in London – including all the latest info on the Crude Awakening, an oily mass action happening on Saturday 16th October. For anyone who believes in climate justice and wants to help make it happen; anyone hacked off with the greed and irresponsibility of oil giants like BP; anyone back from the Climate Camp and looking to get involved locally… everyone welcome….and there’ll be cake!

The Crude Awakening London Rabble Rouser – a mass outdoor team game, warming us up for the big day– date, place and time to be announced.

Saturday 2nd October. MOLASAPULTPARTY FUNDRAISER …. Venue TBC, more details to follow shortly

Saturday the 2nd and Sunday the 3rd October Stilt making workshop for the stilt block on the mass action!….
This time we’re thinking big, we’re thinking high, we’re thinking tall…. and we’re going as a Stilt Bloc.

Yep, thats right! On stilts!

So in order for this to happen we’re having a skill share weekend in London to build stilts and learn how to walk on them. The weekend is Sat 2nd and Sun 3rd October, 10am to 6pm.

And even if you don’t want to be up high, each stilt walker will need a buddy staying on the ground so there’s a place for everyone, young and old, big or small, high or low…… we need you at this weekend too!!!

Its all free and lunch is included….

We need RSVPs so we know numbers. Email: stilt.bloc@gmail.com

Oh and its MEXICAN DAY OF THE DEAD theme…..

In Manchester….

Sat 9th Oct – Mass Action training

Tue 12th Oct – Publicly announced rouser for CJA international day of action

Crude Awakening mobilisation

We hope that there will be loads more to follow but this is what is lined up so far. If you are planning a build up event let us know so we can advertise it please.

There is a huge amount to do to mobilize quickly for an event this big. Maybe you could organise a film showing or talk (we can probably send a speaker if you email us). You could put on an affinity group or action training workshop, or host a fundraiser. You could book a coach and fill it. You could run a workshop so people can build practical stuff , for example a load of disposable bikes to bring along (email us to let us know if you do make lots of useful stuff). You could have a stall and hand out flyers at your freshers fair (again email for materials). You could make a stencil and graffiti advertise for it all across your city/ region. Unless everyone gets involved there is a real danger we won’t get the numbers we need.
The Crude Awakening is now on crabgrass! Join it, join a working group and lets get planning! https://we.riseup.net/thecrudeawakening (crabgrass is a little bit like facebook for activists and is a way of organising on line). And sign up for more information by email and text alerts on the website. www.crudeawakening.org.uk. Our facebook page is a little slow to get off the ground but it will soon be buzzing.

Please also raise The Crude Awakening as an agenda point at the next organising meeting at your Social Centre/ Friends of the Earth Group/ Union/ Climate Camp neighbourhood/ Housing Coop etc. Get people talking and excited and committed to the idea that they are going! If you are not already in a group or affinity group you are of course still totally welcome. You will probably want to make contact with some like minded folk to talk things through and make some plans before the big day. For example you could go to climatecamp.org.uk or risingtide.org.uk and find your local active group, or email us and we can try to signpost you on. At the least try to get a couple of mates to come with you, so that you have some support as a group of friends (known by activists as an affinity group).

2. Frequently asked questions

Q. Neither the website nor the flyer gives much info. What is going on?

A. As you have probably twigged there is also a deliberate sense of mystery around the action. So often with recent mass actions we have said exactly where we are going to go, and the police have had as much time to prepare as us, making things much more difficult for people who want to be involved in mass and effective direct action . With this project we are experimenting a little bit. The 10 targets are left unspecified, giving the action more chance of being successful. But at the same time we can openly advertise that we all need to be in Central London so we can get loads of people together at the same place at the same time for the mass action. And those people need to be ready to take action and to have fun. This is not a march and it’s not a camp. This is an action that needs preparation and we can all be involved in most of that preparation….although the targets will be a surprise until much later.

We can’t be sure that this mix of secret and public planning will work, but we can give it a go, have some fun and maybe make some progress…..but maybe, just maybe we have got it totally nailed and this will be the best mass action in London ever! If you don’t show up there it will be difficult for you to know. Our advice is don’t miss it 😉

Q. So what do I need to do to prepare?

A. People need to be ready to move, and to stand their ground. Don’t bring with you anything that you can’t easily walk with or get on a tube with. But do bring with you stuff that will help you and your affinity group hold a space in what ever way you feel you want to. Whether you want to bring armtubes, disposable bikes or a huge slow moving metal and wooden tower with a papier-mâché rhino head (that can fit on and off a tube!?); diversity of tactics and affinity group planning are key to this working. People can also prepare stuff to make this action look beautiful; puppets, masks, banners, a portable molasses fondue……you get the idea.

Q. Why Oil?

A. For a whole host of reasons. Here are just a few…..
Because oil companies search for new oil reserves to make themselves richer while our climate spins into crisis.
Because the UK government starts wars for oil.
Because of human rights abuses and murder in West Africa.
Because of the Deepwater Horizon spill.
Because of the destruction of wilderness in the Arctic and the coast of Rosport in Ireland.
Because of UK public money being used by bailed out banks to fund new oil projects.
Because London is brimming with oil money, oil sponsorship and oil companies.
Because global energy resources are the peoples commons.
Because oil companies and the filthy rich people who profit from them have no place in a sustainable future.
Because Copenhagen failed and now it’s down to us.
Because oil has had it’s day and it’s time we pulled the plug.

Hope that that made things a little clearer. And more specific information will be sent out soon. If you are still struggling with the idea, it is a bit like the Great Climate Swoop of 2009, except where we are going is kept secret. Remember, you are being asked to come and move around London, so stay mobile, be creative, be prepated and be ready to stand your ground. So talk in your affinity group about the ways in which you are going to be able to hold a space and equipment and materials that you might want to bring along to help you. The action is open, and will be shaped by the people who are there. Only the targets and how we are getting to them are secret.

3. The call out – please copy and paste and help get this all over the Internet!

THE CRUDE AWAKENING

A mass action to switch off oil

Saturday, 16 October 2010, Central London

Floods in Pakistan, drought in Russia, huge glaciers breaking up in Greenland…

Our climate system is rapidly sliding into crisis, as oil companies destroy people’s lives and the environment to keep sucking up their profits.

Oil saturates every aspect of our lives. Oil profits lubricate the financial markets and its sponsorship clings like a bad smell to our cultural institutions. It flows through pipelines to the pumps, airports and factories of our cities.

The failure of the UN COP15 process showed us – if there was ever any doubt – that government and industry can’t tackle climate change. It’s up to us and it’s time to up the ante.

As a movement, our actions against coal and aviation have made a real difference. Now oil’s time is up.

Together, on October 16, let’s give the oil industry a Crude Awakening.

Meet in central London. Be ready to move. Be ready to stay and stand your ground.

Be creative. Be prepared. Be there.

Find out more, get involved and sign up for text alerts at www.crudeawakening.org.uk
Facebook: http://bit.ly/c6S0kg
Twitter: @crudeawake

Part of the CJA global week of action for climate justice
Supported by: Space Hijackers, Climate Camp, Plane Stupid, Rising Tide, Liberate Tate, Laboratory of Insurrectionary Imagination, UK Tar Sands Network

Hope to see you on the streets,
Crude Awakening
crudeawakening.org.uk

Stop Nuclear Power gathering, 23-24 October 2010

Sat 23 – Sun 24 Oct 2010, Bristol

Meet, make plans, take action

Sat 23 – Sun 24 Oct 2010, Bristol

Meet, make plans, take action

Stop Nuclear Power is a grassroots network of groups and individuals taking action against nuclear power. If EdF get their way, Hinkley C will become the first nuclear power station built in Britain for 20 years and will sit next to two other radioactive and dangerous sites. Stop Hinkley is a long running community campaign to stop deadly nuclear reactors operating near their homes.
Their struggle is our struggle. Let’s sit down together in Bristol and make some plans together.

Hinkley is the battleground, if they get one in there, it opens the door for at least nine other nuclear power stations across the country. This Autumn, the government is taking its pro-nuclear propaganda on tour around the UK. We’ll be there. Come to the gathering or send us an email to find out how you can get involved.

www.boycottedf.org.uk

Info for the weekend:

Meeting space during the day on Saturday and Sunday tbc but will be in Bristol.
Crash space is available on a dry, warm and quiet floor space.
If you need a bed please get in contact with us as soon as possible and will try and help you out.
Lunch and dinner will be done communally on Saturday and lunch on Sunday.

For a telephone number to contact during the weekend send us an email.

Please help by letting us know you are coming so we can plan for space, food and logistics.

Email: nonewnuclear@aktivix.org

Climate Camp Cymru invades Nant Helen opencast site

17th August 2010
Activists from Climate Camp Cymru invaded Nant Helen open cast coal mine in south Wales earlier today.

Despite disproportionate policing at the 2010 camp, groups of activists persisted in their objectives to witness the destructive operations at Nant Helen open cast mine, owned by Celtic Energy.

17th August 2010
Activists from Climate Camp Cymru invaded Nant Helen open cast coal mine in south Wales earlier today.

Despite disproportionate policing at the 2010 camp, groups of activists persisted in their objectives to witness the destructive operations at Nant Helen open cast mine, owned by Celtic Energy.

The activists entered the coal hole at Nant Helen, where 450,000 tonnes of coal per year are dug out of a hole approximately 150m deep and 1.5 x 1 km wide. Celtic Energy have applied for planning permission for the mine to expand.

This coal is mostly destined for Aberthaw Power Station, to be burnt for electricity, which is one of the dirtiest and most carbon
intensive industrial processes.

Activist Ffion Dafys said “ripping up mountains to dig holes hundreds of meters deep destroys the landscape and the local
environment. The coal removed and burnt will generate millions of
tonnes of CO2 over the next four years.”

“Coal seams in Glynn Neath will continue to be exploited and extended by open cast mining corporations like Celtic Energy, causing environmental destruction until these operations cease. Observing from the bottom of the coal hole really brought home the enormity of the destruction.”

Climate Camp Cymru is evicted long live Climate Camp Cymru

* * * IMPORTANT UPDATE * * *

15-08-2010 20:55 CLIMATE CAMP CYMRU UP AND RUNNING AGAIN. Having been evicted by South Wales police from a site near Glyn-Neath (see below), Climate Camp Cymru is now established on a new site on the Gower Peninsula near Swansea.
If you fancy joining the camp, give site a call on 07040909147 and they’ll give you directions and a warm welcome.

* * * IMPORTANT UPDATE * * *

CLIMATE CAMP CYMRU EVICTED

Climate Camp Cymru, which was due to continue until Tuesday 17th August at Glyn-Neath in South Wales, was evicted by the police on its second day (Saturday 14th) over alleged complaints about possible damage to the site chosen by the campers, a Roman Hill Fort.

SPURIOUS GROUNDS FOR EVICTION

Having stood by uselessly for years while the beautiful landscape of the Welsh Valleys has been systematically trashed by opencast mining companies, South Wales Police seem to have suddenly developed a touching concern for the environment, moving in en masse with riot vans and on horseback to evict the campers on these spurious grounds. While Climate Campers have a deserved reputation for clearing up after themselves and are unlikely to have done more damage than stick a few tent pegs in the sacred soil, opencast mining companies destroy whole mountains | 1 | 2 | and important wildlife habitats without the cops appearing to notice or care.

We are still awaiting first-hand reports from campers, but Climate Camp Cymru has issued a press release which states that Cadw, the government body responsible for the site and whose aims, incidentally, are ‘to protect and sustain, encourage community engagement in and improve access to the historic environment of Wales’, had ‘visited the site and accepted that the camp could go ahead with police monitoring.’ It seems likely that the cops interpreted this to mean they could stop the camp whenever they wanted. A spokesperson for the camp said: ‘This just goes to show the priorities of the current government, who are more interested in protecting climate criminals like Celtic Energy and in repressing those taking action on climate change, than on actually tackling the climate crisis themselves.’

Ffos y fran coal train verdict + action snaps

13 of us were in court today (13.8.10) to be sentenced for blockading the railway at Ffos y fran mine back in April, when several people locked on to the tracks in order to stop a train carrying coal to Aberthaw, the dirtiest power station in Wales.

We received conditional discharges and restraining orders away from the mine and the power station. Four people were ordered to pay compensation costs to Miller Argent, the company who owns the mine, The judge acknowledged that the action had been carried out carefully to ensure there would be no danger to anyone.

With their hands in the pockets of corporations, it’s not surprising that governments failed us at the Copenhagen climate summit. We can’t rely on their false solutions anymore. It’s up to ordinary people taking direct action to stop climate chaos. Fossil fuel extraction devastates communities and is being resisted around the world, from opencast mining in Merthyr to tar sands oil in Alberta, Canada.

Meanwhile, Climate Camp Cymru set up camp today near Nant Helen and Seler opencast mines, elsewhere in south Wales.

http://www.risingtide.org.uk

More cool photos

Climate Camp Cymru meetup point announced

*Climate Camp Cymru*
*13 – 17 August*

Opencast is trashing the south Wales landscape – it’s time to take action…

From midday on Friday 13th August you are invited to a convergence space in central Cardiff. The location of this space is Cardiff Quaker Meeting House, 43 Charles Street, Cardiff.

*Climate Camp Cymru*
*13 – 17 August*

Opencast is trashing the south Wales landscape – it’s time to take action…

From midday on Friday 13th August you are invited to a convergence space in central Cardiff. The location of this space is Cardiff Quaker Meeting House, 43 Charles Street, Cardiff.

From here people will be directed to a train station, where minibuses will be available to transport people to the the site. Experienced cyclists may wish to bring bikes and cycle to the site.
NB: you will need £4.50 each way for the train fare.

The location of the site will be announced at approximately 2pm on Friday 13th August.

At 2pm on 13th August people will be sentenced at Merthyr Crown Court for the lock-on to the railway line between Ffos-y-Fran and Aberthaw power station. It would be great if people could go to the court to support them. Transport will be arranged to the site after.

The convergence space in Cardiff will be open until 5pm. We encourage everyone who can to reach the site on Friday night, although the minibuses will be available throughout Saturday from the train station.

Please watch this space for more detail.

Things to bring:
Tent
Sleeping bag
Warm clothes and waterproofs
Plate, bowl, mug and cutlery
Loo roll

and a bike could be useful too

www.climatecampcymru.org
info@climatecampcymru.org
07040 909 147

Legal support phone contact during the camp will be 07587 220197

Trashing, dashing, bashing, mashing: the new EF! Action Update

So what have you been up to the last few months? Just hanging around?
Maybe you’ve been part of human wheel-clamping aeroplanes, climbing up scaffolding tripods inconveniently placed in the road, smashing machines at open-cast mines, playing nuked-dead in the street, kayaking against borehole drill rigs in Ireland, burning mobile phone masts, resisting Tesco, camping against trashing of woodland, with some success at Titnore (& other protest camp updates), or getting in on BP’s act, spilling oil in public places.

Or have you been on holiday, taking part in indigenous blockades against logging, dams and mining, spilunking against high speed trains, slashing tuna cages, blockading Monsanto HQ, trashing GM fields, and more?

Maybe you’re in need of a break. But if you’re not, and are just champing at the bit, the return of AUntie MIffy’s problem page might help, addressing what to do if there’s no local group near you. There’s an article about the beginnings of EF! in this country, looking forwards to the next 20 years, to help inspire. If you need support to get things going where you live, do get in touch. And if all that’s not enough, here’s a quotation, from Paul Watson, the Sea Shepherd captain:

“Future generations will not have the chance and those that came before us did not have the vision nor the knowledge. It is up to us — you and I.”

Print version
Other issues and extra info

Earth First! Summer Gathering set-up plans announced

We can now announce that set-up will begin from around 2pm on Saturday, 31 July. Marquees, tools and construction materials will be arriving on site from Saturday morning so there will be plenty to do. You will be able to camp on the site from Saturday and there will be skeleton facilities (water, basic kitchen) from that time.

We also have a mobile number for setup which is 07766 947852. This will be on-site from Saturday lunchtime, and may well get answered in the few days beforehand but please don’t try ringing until then – e-mail will remain the main contact point until nearer the time – summergathering -{at}- earthfirst.org.uk

What we need to know:

*Please can you let us know when you are coming? – this helps us plan foods, facilities and what jobs to do when.

*It is also helpful if you can let us know if you have any particular skills or interests with respect to set-up – we might need drivers, so if you are over 25, hold a clean licence, are confident driving a 3.5 tonne Luton AND can bring along both parts of your driving licence please let us know.

*Similarly if you are arriving in a vehicle and could potentially provide lifts, transport equipment en route or run errands from site once you arrive please let us know. In this case it is very helpful if you are able/willing to supply us with a contact phone number.

How to get there

As you maybe aware that we do not announce the exact site of the gathering until one week before the main event, this means directions will be available on the website http://www.earthfirstgathering.org.uk/ from Wednesday, 27 July. We realise this will be short notice for people arriving on the Saturday, however to make things easier we will e-mail directions to set-up crew on that day (that still 4 days to check a map!).

The nearest train station is Derby if you want to pre-book train tickets, you will also need to take a local bus service from Derby (these are frequent). We are aiming to have a vehicle on site that can assist if people have difficulties between Derby and the site, so hopefully everyone will be able to get there okay.

There may be a very small number of lifts available from the Nottingham area across the weekend of Saturday 31st July/Sunday first of August. There may also be lifts from the Leeds area first thing on 31 July. Let us know if this may be of interest to you.

What to bring

*Everything you need to the gathering, tent sleeping bags etc. and especially a torch

*It may be wise to come a bit more self-sufficient in food and snacks than you would need to for the main gathering – we will have a basic kitchen but Veggies and the tuck shop are not arriving until Wednesday

*If you are able to bring any tools, especially for basic carpentry, these are often useful

Big thanks for offering to help out

Do get in touch if you have any questions

Love & rage

The EF! Gathering crew

summer camps in the UK & Merthyr coal train action sentencing – solidarity demo

The next month and a half are busy times if you like camping and politics! Peace News, EF! gathering, Welsh & UK climate camps….

The Peace News Summer Camp is almost upon us in sunny Oxfordshire, “an inclusive, democratically-run five-day experience-in-miniature of the kind of world we are trying to bring about”. This year, feminism joins our standing themes of peace and justice.
http://peacenewscamp.info/

The EF! Summer Gathering is of course in early August in the beautiful Peak District. “5 days of workshops, skill sharing and planning action, plus low- impact living without leaders. Meet and share skills with others who care. Plan actions and campaigns. Have fun. We’ve got over 80 workshops, planning, strategy and ‘Where Next’ sessions planned, get in touch if you want to offer a workshop! ”
A tonne of varied and amazing workshops and training sessions, full details at http://www.earthfirstgathering.org.uk/2010/front.html

And the Welsh Climate Camp is in mid-August (see callout below), “a basic ‘lite’ action-focused camp in South Wales; with its attention fixed firmly on coal. This will be linked to a sister-site /info-shop in Cardiff which will act as a point of contact before and during the camp. Workshops will be mostly limited to action-based training and information although there will be space to hear from community campaigns and open discussion forums throughout the camp.”
http://climatecampcymru.org/?page_id=1000

The UK Camp for Climate Action is heading north to Edinburgh at the end of August, “Our sustainable and collectively organised basecamp will give you the chance to learn, train up, and meet like minded individuals. Exciting action plans are currently in the plotting stages, so watch this space.”
http://www.climatecamp.org.uk/actions/edinburgh-2010

—-

Open cast is trashing the south Wales landscape
It’s time to take action
Climate Camp Cymru
13 – 17 August

A momentum is building. Last year we camped next to Ffos y Fran – one of the largest opencast mines in Europe – for a week of workshops and sustainable living. This summer we’re going back to basics with a light action-based camp, targeting coal somewhere in south Wales.

Our current economic system is based on an addiction to fossil fuels and on maximising profit at the expense of people and the environment. Fossil fuel corporations cannot be allowed to progress unchecked. We need green jobs for Wales, not dirty destruction.

On the 13th we’ll meet in Cardiff and make our way from there to the site.
Things to bring:

> Tent
> Sleeping bag
> Warm clothes and waterproofs
> Plate, bowl, mug and cutlery
> and a bike could be useful too

Burning coal is destroying our climate, while opencast mining damages the earth and the health of local people. We must leave it in the ground.

Join a growing number of ordinary people taking direct action, and exploring alternatives, to stop the madness that is destroying the earth. This August 13th -17th come to Climate Camp Cymru.

www.climatecampcymru.org
info@climatecampcymru.org
07040 909 147

—-

Heading to Climate Camp Cymru on August 13th? 13 people who blockaded the railway at Ffos y Fran opencast mine in April are being sentenced at Merthyr Crown Court that day at 2pm. Why not drop by around 1pm for a solidarity demo.