Placing stones.

Greenpeace boats, the Beluga II and the Fehn Coast, sailed into Swedish waters today and began placing 180 granite rocks on the seabed in order to prevent bottom trawling in areas listed under European Union protection. The selected areas, Fladen and Lilla Middlegrund in the Kattegat, are listed as needing protection under Natura 2000 of the EU Habitat Directive because of their unique and rich sea life. There’s been a lack of protection and bottom trawlers frequent the area and so we are taking the matters into its own hands.
Fishermen tried blocking the port of Varberg, where a large cargo ship loaded with tons of heavy granite blocks headed out for the action. Fishermen (especially Danish fishermen fishing in that region) aren't too happy with us and have called on the government to stop the action. Yet the placing of these ecosystem friendly blocks was determined lawful by the Swedish government.
“This is a conversation measure in order to protect habitats, which is what governments are supposed to do,” Greenpeace spokesman Staffan Danielsson said.
A similar initiative was taken last year off the German coast which really ticked off Dutch fishermen fishing in those areas. But the German action proved effective in discouraging fishing.

A greener tissue - Greenpeace Victory:

It took almost 5 years, tens of thousands of activists and hundreds of companies, but the Kimberly-Clark Corporation, a giant in the paper-goods industry, has finally bowed to Greenpeace pressure. Kimberly-Clark announced last week that it will reduce the amount of old-growth forest cut down to make its Kleenex and other products. We targeted Kimberly-Clark with the “Kleercut” campaign because its wood source came from endangered forests. Under the new agreement, Kimberly-Clark said as much as 40 percent of the wood for tissue products will come from recycled paper or from environmentally responsible lumber operations. "I believe this agreement is good for the environment and good for business," said Scott Paul, director of the forest campaign for Greenpeace USA.

“Deep water, deep water/Senseless denial”

The awaited Heath Ledger directed anti-whaling music video for Modest Mouse has been released. The animated video for the song "King Rat" was completed by a collective of film-makers and artists called the Masses. The song is a bonus track from Modest Mouse's 2007 album “We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank” and was directed by Ledger after the actor randomly met the Modest Mouse frontman, Isaac Brock in Australia. The video illuminates the late actor's passion for animal rights. "Heath was very interested in defending the lives of whales and dolphins ... So it was very important for him to make a video that would make an impact,” Daniel Auber, the video’s concept designer said. It may not feature Ledger's handsome face, but it's raising awareness about whales and it's a pretty rocking song, too.

"This is a real ecological disaster”

Agence France-Presse and Reuters both report on a massive oil leak in France, which leaked 4000 cubic meters of oil in a nature reserve. Environment Minister Chantal Jouanno visited the site to see the damage. “This is a real ecological disaster,” she said.
The cause of the leak is yet to be determined but authorities said there was no reason to fear an impact on water supplies as the spill took place at least 5km from the nearest source. Francois Trabucco, SPSE deputy technical director said, “it's impossible to tell you here and now that it's a cause of concern for the environment." We called for enhanced security measures especially near the coast.

The Guardian featured WWF’s new report titled “The Eastern Himalayas – Where Worlds Collide,” which lists 350 new species discovered in the Eastern Himalayas in the last 10 years. But experts warn the new discoveries are under pressure from demand for land and climate change. These species, which include plants, amphibians, reptiles, fish, birds, mammals and invertebrates, like the rest of the region are pressured for survival by population growth, deforestation, overgrazing, poaching, the wildlife trade, mining, pollution, and hydropower development.
The WWF is asking the governments of Bhutan, India and Nepal to commit to cooperate on conservation efforts to protect the landscape and the livelihoods of people living in the Eastern Himalayas.
“In the Eastern Himalayas we have a region of extraordinary beauty and with some of the most biologically rich areas on the planet. Ironically, it is also one of the regions most at risk from climate change, as evidenced by the rapid retreat of the glaciers, and only time will tell how well species will be able to adapt – if at all," said Mark Wright, WWF's conservation science adviser.

In Brazilian news: the Brazilian government tired of being seen as an obstacle to negotiations and fearing the loss of a new agreement on global warming, has decided to mount an offensive for the climate conference in Copenhagen in December. The strategy includes a change in the positions of Brazil and the acceptance of targets for cutting emissions. For the first time, Brazil will put a number of total emissions that are available to reduce by 2020 on the table.

Meanwhile Brazil's environment minister has announced he will step down in March to run for state deputy in general elections next year. Since Carlos Minc took over from Amazon defender Marina Silva in May last year, he has intensified the crackdown on loggers, ranchers and farmers behind deforestation in the Amazon.
Like Silva, Minc complained about the lack of support from government colleagues for environmental issues. The co-founder of the Green Party in Brazil will run for deputy in the Rio de Janeiro state legislature where he had served as a deputy for the past two decades.
"He thinks that's where he can be most effective in bringing about change," his spokesman said.

The Associated Press reports that vast expanses of Arctic ice melt in heat. The Arctic Ocean has given up tens of thousands more square km of ice in a relentless summer of melt. Scientists are observing through satellites for a possible record low polar ice cap. On the arctic shore of Canada, the ice edge now lies some 80 miles in the sea. "The water was really warm," veteran observer Eddie Gruben said, "The kids were swimming in the ocean.”