MENU
Categories
Archives
Quit Coal!
June 1, 2009Watch the Nick Broomfield film about climate change and direct action
Do you remember the six Greenpeace volunteers who made history last year when they were acquitted for defending the climate?
They were accused of causing £30,000 of criminal damage to Kingsnorth coal-fired power station. Their defence of "lawful excuse" was accepted by the jury - because they were acting to safeguard property around the world "in immediate need of protection" from the impacts of climate change, caused in part by burning coal.
Internationally acclaimed director Nick Broomfield was so inspired by this story that he has just completed a 20 minute film celebrating the spirit of direct action. The film tells the story of the activists who scaled the 220m chimney at Kingsnorth and the landmark case with supporting testimony by the world's leading climate scientist Dr James Hansen of NASA.
Watch the trailer above, or see the whole film in indulgent HD.
Images from Climate Action on Capitol Hill
The Capitol Climate Action yesterday in Washington, DC concluded peacefully and with no arrests, despite being the largest incident of mass civil disobedience in the name of our climate. On the website they featured live streaming video, a twitter stream featuring posts direct from the action and live blogging. The above picture is my favourite from the Flickr stream so far - it shows people of all ages participating, and there is a great contrast between the red 'power' banners and the White House in the background. Along with a coalition of NGO supporters specially trained for the action other participants included Bill McKibben, Daryl Hannah, James Hansen and other prominent environmentalists and celebrities.
Also, if you look closely at the bottom right of the photograph you can see a man fiddling with his cellphone - probably posting to Twitter right at that moment. The online broadcasting of this event was really extensive, covering step by step, speech by speech, every moment.
Clean Coal Clean!
This parody ad being run in the United States by Reality is genius:
I arrest you in the name of E-on
Melanie, one of our climate campaigners, took part in an action against coal as a volunteer last weekend in Rotterdam. She writes...
Camping in November could be considered ill advised. Camping on the coast with the wind whipping in off the North Sea would, in any other circumstance, not be considered at all by any sane person. Nevertheless, that is what I spent my weekend doing. I attended a hippy camp to tell E-on that the Netherlands and the World do not want the new coal-fired power plant that they are trying to build in Maasvlakte, near Rotterdam.
We arrived on Friday, intending to set up a camp on public land for the weekend. We hoped to have some community based activities, such as painting a mural and games based on the climate message. We felt it was vital to demonstrate that this plant was neither wanted, nor necessary. Indeed, the Netherlands are set to become net exporters of electricity next year without this plant. However, after our arrival on Friday, there was widespread panic amongst other factories in the area, one of which was shut down temporarily, making for some angry factory workers who just wanted to go home on a Friday night. Once they had realised that we were not going to occupy their factory, the gates were opened, and the workers allowed to get on with their weekend.
NEW! Climate rescue weblog
We've just launched a climate rescue station next to a coal mine in Poland.
Previously we were using weblog.greenpeace.org/climate for political updates for last year's UN climate talks in Bali. This year we're back again with a new look and new stuff to blog about.
Not only will be at the UN climate talks again this year in December - but we've got a bunch of great stuff happening at our Climate Rescue Station and on the Rainbow Warrior. So we're going to post it all on the climate rescue blog.
Belgium Activist - Quit Coal Vlog
Here's a little video we made during the coal action in Belgium on Friday. I couldn't post it from the ship so apologies for the delay.
Meet Jonas - a Greenpeace volunteer boat driver and activist from Belgium.
Windmill warriors
Finally I have made it to the Rainbow Warrior! Well what can I say... having volunteered and worked with Greenpeace for nearly 5 years wondering when I will actually set foot on our flagship - it feels a bit strange to be here at last. It's like seeing a legendary celebrity walking down the street and realising that they actually exist in the real world and not just in the media.
Another thing I have found when seeing someone famous is they are always smaller than I expected. The same was true for the Rainbow Warrior. She has a huge reputation but she's actually rather little. But catching a glimpse of her through the window of the van when we arrived in the dark on Saturday night - still sent a surge of adrenaline gushing through my bloodstream as the myth suddenly became reality for me.
Now onboard only for a couple of days - it feels like I have been here before since I felt instantly at home as soon as I arrived. There are some familiar crew faces around but the ship itself seems to have a personality all of it's own. She is certainly the most friendly of all our three ships.
Quit coal - plug into the wind
The Rainbow Warrior arrived in Belgium waters today and visited the first Belgian offshore wind park that will very soon be connected to the Belgian grid. With journalists and politicians on board the crew were congratulating the Belgian government for taking the first step towards an energy revolution.
We're now asking for further development of wind energy offshore in the North Sea and for this energy to be widely integrated on the European grid by connecting the North Sea wind farms together. This would decrease the variability in the electricity production from wind and make this clean energy a much more powerful solution for fighting climate change.
I have just arrived in Belgium and will be taking part in another energy adventure here shortly - so watch this space!
Photography © Greenpeace/ Will Rose
UK waves farewell to the Rainbow Warriors
Sadly, all good things come to an end and, on Tuesday, the Rainbow Warrior hauled up her lines and left London, heading for mainland Europe to continue her global Quit Coal tour.
As a thanks to her amazing crew, we've put together the above slideshow capturing the quieter moments inbetween the frenetic events, open days and direct actions. The photographs are all by Will Rose (onboard photographer and one of the Kingsnorth Six) and Kajsa Sjolander (Rainbow Warrior deckhand and garbologist, when she's not being a photojournalist).
Captain's Blog - Medway Morning Mooring
The latest from Mike, our captain on the Rainbow Warrior
“Rainbow Warrior you are entering the Medway compulsory pilotage area without a pilot. You must stop your vessel and leave the area. You are breaking maritime law.” That’s what the Medway Vessel Traffic Service told me this morning. But, I kept the throttle down and Rainbow Warrior (flanked by eight zodiacs) pointing at an antiquated technology that is consuming the planet. I did inform the VTS when we passed Grain Edge navigation buoy, that we’d entered the Medway channel. I chose not to take a pilot this morning for fear of implicating my fellow mariners in a civilly disobedient activity. In the past week I have done two trips down the Medway, past Kingsnorth, to Chatham Ness - both trips under pilotage with me paying utmost attention to the local navigation.
“Medway VTS, Rainbow Warrior bound for Kingsnorth Power Station.” I reported at all the calling points and I slowed as we passed the heavy lift crane working at the LNG terminal. A police RHIB rushed passed (the men in black), they looked jolly professional. Then, with less than a mile to Kingsnorth Jetty, I brought the engines to a stop and let the tide take us the rest of the way in. There were two large police boats in the water, blue lights flashing - in addition to the men in black - and the quay was lined with security wearing reflective orange working jackets and hard hats. I put Chris on the helm, gave him a course to steer.
With engines going astern we reached the tip of the jetty and launched the canoes from the pilot door. Then with a few ahead/astern movements I had Rainbow Warrior turned around, stemming the tide and whilst the zodiacs and canoes entertained the police, I brought the old girl to rest upon Kingsnorth Jetty fenders. Ropes ran out with the zodiacs and were tied to the pilings beneath the jetty. The police rushed in, they cut the ropes with their knives. More ropes were run out - beneath the jetty by the canoes - which the police could not reach. We hauled them tight and brought Rainbow Warrior alongside. In position and finished with engines at Kingsnorth Power Station.
Live from Rainbow Warrior at Kingsnorth
Up to the moment blogging from Bex
The Rainbow Warrior is on her way to Kingsnorth coal plant
As Lisa mentioned, the Rainbow Warriors in the UK, continuing on its mission to free the world from the threat of coal.
Right now, I’m sitting on the Warrior as she steams towards Kingsnorth power station – potentially the site of the first new coal fired power plant to be built in the UK in over thirty years.
It’s a crucial time for coal in the UK. Just one year ago, hardly anyone had heard of Kingsnorth. Over the past few months though, Climate Camp booted the issue up the media agenda; a not guilty verdict for Greenpeace volunteers at the Kingsnorth trial sent shockwaves through the government; and Gordon Brown’s new appointments to his government mean that the hope for stopping coal and kick starting renewable energy is no longer just a distant dream. There’s everything to play for.
Quit Coal tour back in action - Update
Yesterday, I promised you an update on the action going down as part of the Quit Coal tour in Italy. Turns out the action ended with some pretty good news. Activists stuck it out for 14 hours as they called attention to the plans that E.ON and the Sardinian authorities had to expand coal capacity in the region. The action got the attention of the regional environmental minister and while the activist stood their ground we met to discuss the region's energy plans. At the end of the meeting, he promised the regional government would revise its energy plans to meet EU climate protection targets.
Read more.
Quit Coal tour back in action
An update from Quit Coal tour in Italy
Very early this morning, several teams of activists from the Artic Sunrise took action at the E.ON coal power plant in Sardinia. The activists stopped two conveyor belts carrying coal into the furnace of the plant while 13 climbers positioned themselves on the actual conveyor belt and the net directly below.
E.ON has plans to convert two older groups of the plant from oil to coal, to join the other two groups of the plant already using coal. They are also planning a €50 billion investment programme for 2008-2010 to expand its generation capacity in Europe, building at least 8 new coal plants.
We’ll keep you updated as our activists take action against E.ON and its dirty plans. Check out activists from the Quit Coal tour in action just a few days ago.
Painting a bigger picture
Inês - a volunteer from Portugal (above left - standing by for action with fellow crew members on the Arctic Sunrise) - writes about her recent experience .
From day one, life aboard the Arctic Sunrise has been a roller coaster filled with constant thrills. The ship is a whole new world, where there seems to be an infinite wealth of things to learn. Naturally, this is taken to new heights during actions, which constitute the peaks of intensity of the campaign at hand. All my life I had heard and seen pictures of Greenpeace activists riding the waves to peacefully oppose crimes against the environment.
To know that I was going to be one of the crew on the inflatable during the recent action - made the adrenaline begin running through me well before we started. In fact, though the finished product consists of stunning images, part of the beauty of the action resides in the careful planning beforehand.
The day started early with briefings and then we got ready to take action. As told to me by Po Paul, “Here, we hurry hurry to stand by.” And may the importance of standing by not be in any way undermined. The minutes and the hours preceding actions are precious. It is during this time that we dress and properly gear up. The adrenaline and energy really began to build inside me, but simultaneously, I was able to manage that energy and mold it into something purposeful. Calm and cool-blood are indispensable to carrying out an action successfully. So we took some silly pictures!
Italian coal gets Greenpeaced!
Here's a great slideshow of the action in Italy yesterday against coal
VICTORY! Coal gets the boot in Greece
Some excellent news from Dimitris, our climate and energy campaigner in Greece.
Last week we had a meeting with the CEO of the company that we targeted during the Greek leg of the Quit Coal tour with the Rainbow Warrior. In the meeting the company was represented by their CEO, ED, their Communications Director and a scientific expert.
During the meeting we were able to present our Energy Revolution vision and also warn him that we will actively oppose his coal plans, should he continue. The CEO agreed that he now thinks it is rather hard to invest in coal, due to economical reasons but also said that he is not willing to confront Greenpeace and other local anti coal movements.
We got in writing that he is not willing to invest in coal and that if ever he changes his mind, he will only do so after getting a consensus from local communities (which we aim to make sure will never happen). We also got in writing that the aluminium factory he owns (sited next to the location of the proposed coal plant and has been dumping toxic waste for more than 40 years) will reduce dumping by 65% by the end of 2008 and phase out dumping by 2011.
One coal plant out of the four proposed is now stopped in Greece largely due to the hard work we (the local communities and Greenpeace) have done here. We will now focus on the other three proposed coal plants, in close cooperation with local anti-coal movements.
I would like to thank the fantastic crew of the Rainbow Warrior, without which we wouldn't have made it happen.
From the Greek team we wish all the best to the rest of the Quit Coal Tour.
D
The Rainbow Warrior is currently on its way to the UK to give coal the boot over there! Stay Tuned.
Image: © Greenpeace/ Pierre Gleizes
Captain's Log - The Rainbow Warrior is on a war footing
The current captain of the Rainbow Warrior is not only a very skilled sailor but an incredibly talented writer! Here's the latest installment from one of my heroes - Mike Finken
I am back at sea, presently in the Atlantic Ocean heading up the coast of Portugal towards London. They will lift the Tower Bridge to let us through and we will moor opposite the HMS Belfast to talk to the Tories. Then we’ll start taking action. Join me on the most important voyage of my life. I say that because we look to Europe to lead the way and to stop using COAL as a weapon against humanity.
The Rainbow warrior started this year in New Zealand, campaigning for the planet to Quit Coal. She took that single message to Philippines and then on to Thailand, blockading coal-fired power stations, branding the sides of ships carrying coal, rallying people to take the path of warriors against coal. The Esperanza picked up the same call in Australia as did the Arctic Sunrise in Spain and Italy. The history of the environmental activism has been a dress rehearsal for Climate Change. Coal is the greatest threat to the climate and must be stopped.
From South East Asia Rainbow Warrior sailed to the Mediterranean Sea with the same message ‘QUIT COAL’. She protested in Israel, Turkey and Greece. I took her command in Greece, and sailed her out of the Mediterranean in a terrible storm.
Time for Greece to give up its dirty habit
Greenpeace activists used 200 floating crosses to symbolise the threat of the a new coal fired power plant to the already endangered Gulf of Korinth. The protest around the Antikyra Bay village is part of the Quit Coal tour.
Learn more about the Quit Coal tour.
Amrit's vlog from the Rainbow Warrior
Amrit, an activist from India, on board the Rainbow Warrior talks about what they've been up to lately and why it's so important that we Quit Coal - to save the climate.
Sounding the alarm on the Rainbow Warrior
Here's another blog from Dr. Uygar Ozesmi -Executive Director of Greenpeace Mediterranean
After the day of action the Rainbow Warrior woke up from the night stretching her limbs to get ready for the new journey to Turkey. A hearty breakfast to ones liking and a freshly brewed coffee was all we needed to get our brooms and mops to clean out the place and pick up every bit of dust and dirt. Clean and tidy we lifted the anchor and got out of the harbor.
A small navy gun boat made a circle around us for five minutes as we took course. Then it made a sharp turn and disappeared back into the harbour. It looked like a curious crow which lost interest quickly.
I began talking to the photographer on board, a french fellow, Pierre is the name and I discovered he had more than two decades under his arm following Greenpeace actions around the world. The ship is full of able and dedicated souls, all an ocean in themselves.
Looking out the horizon the alarms suddenly rang in a shrill sound for a fire drill... crew rushed to the muster stations - some rubbing their eyes from last night's watch. We got a full briefing on the fire teams and procedure together with man over board rules. Luckily the drill was announced on the notice board so we knew that it was training. Already the first day of the journey the campaign team had a series of important meetings to get ready for Turkey. The growl in my stomach announced that it was time for lunch...
First time for everything
Here's a blog from Joanna, who is an Israeli volunteer on the Rainbow Warrior.
This was my first time sailing, my first time big scale action, and the first time getting arrested.
I boarded the Rainbow Warrior three days ago and before long found myself equipped with a roller, paint, overalls and on a zodiac charging out towards a huge mean coal boat. On the night before the action I got to know I was going to be the one painting the English message and after yelping with happiness I started to realise what it actually meant.
Next morning, after preparing all the equipment till way too late at night, me and my butterflies committed to getting properly prepared. Just as they were starting to really flap around in my belly all hope was lost - the police and navy had different plans for us. So I took off my overalls and tried not to be too resentful. But then stand-by mode was announced again and overalls came flying back on. In ten minutes we were already bouncing around in the zodiac. I couldn't stop smiling...
Then we saw our destination - a massive coal ship - and I couldn't help thinking about the likeness of the situation to David and Goliath, although I don't have the red hair...
A day in the life of an on board press officer
This is from Jo onboard the Rainbow Warrior in the Mediterranean - currently in the region as part of the Quit Coal tour
There we were sailing along towards the Ashkelon plant, trying to work out the best spot to meet the media boat that’s coming to film our protest, but a rather less welcome boat got there first. It was a navy boat, closely followed by a police boat. The police boarded, the media boat joined us and boarded too. Our quiet sailing ship became quite the buzzing hub for a while with 30 odd journalists capturing everything.
Then it started to get uglier – the hired media boat had to leave because the police were threatening to arrest him and take away his license. They were serious. We wanted to keep some journalists on board, but Israeli immigration policies are something else and it just wasn’t possible.
So then, as a press officer having lost our journalists, the stress became whether we would be able to make media deadlines and get the footage of the planned activities out in time? No internet here yet – though we’re working on it, so getting stuff out of the ship can be slow.
The team set off. Painted a coal ship...
Excited in Israel
Here are two lovely blogs from Dr. Uygar Ozesmi the Executive Director of Greenpeace Mediterranean
September 6th
Just two months ago we were part of the Arctic Sunrise Tour for the protection of Blue Fin Tuna and the creation of Marine Reserves in Greenpeace Med. Now we are part of the Rainbow Warrior Tour for the Quit Coal campaign. When we get to host a Greenpeace ship there is always great excitement. It is also a lot of work for the team, but they don't feel it because of their enthusiasm. The same enthusiasm is also shared by our supporters. The Rainbow Warrior is such a strong Greenpeace icon that I must say I was very excited.
During my trip form Istanbul to Tel Aviv, my mind was with the team and how the preparations were going. When I met them I was sure that everything was in order. They had prepared an exhibition to talk about the impacts of climate change. The music was playing, children were dancing with their mothers and some were jumping rope.
Along the pathway was the bridge up to the Rainbow Warrior. There was a crowd of visitors waiting for their turn to get on the ship. We were counting on a couple of hundred visitors, but this was beyond our expectations. That day we had more than 1200 visitors come to the ship! People got off with a big smile, having experienced a ship that symbolizes the struggle for a society in harmony with the planet. The ship had witnessed many environmental crimes and stood in resistance to those who do not care for the planet, blinded enough to commit crimes against nature and humanity. People on board gave the hope that there will be a future for all.
Israeli marine forces board Rainbow Warrior
More news on this shortly from our team on board the ship - but I just wanted to put this image up. 14 of our acitivsts were arrested and taken into custody in Ashkelon after protesting against the Rotenberg coal power plant construction.
Our photographer was arrested along with his equipment but hopefully we'll get some more pictures tomorrow along with a blog from Jo - who is currently on board as communications coordinator.
Image © Greenpeace/ David Bar Sela
Search
Burn our feed!
Get Making Waves via email
Bookmark Us!
Latest Comments
Wind generator plans on China builds a wind turbine every two hours
Juliette on Dead humpback found on bow of Exxon tanker
Paula on Making the Ministry of Rice
Twyla on Dead humpback found on bow of Exxon tanker
Lauren on Dead humpback found on bow of Exxon tanker
Florian on Dead humpback found on bow of Exxon tanker
urfan on Happy World Environment Day G8 leaders!
LGV on Dead humpback found on bow of Exxon tanker
Jamie on Watch the Nick Broomfield film about climate change and direct action
Blogroll
Nuclear Reaction
Solar Generation
Greenpeace AusPac
Greenpeace Canada
Real Climate
Adbusters
Medecins Sans Frontieres Podcasts
openDemocracy
Boing Boing
Earth Blog
Eco-Geekery
Total Tactics
Chez Rémi
Gristmill
Treehugger
WorldChanging
Greenfoot
Greg Palast
Hugg
IFAW's Animal Rescue Blog
Understory
Technorati & Stuff
 |  |
