World Ecology Feature Archive

After three days of obstructing the whale hunt by placing inflatable zodiacs between whales and the harpoon, the Nisshin Maru rammed the Greenpeace ship, Arctic Sunrise. The whalers are counter claiming their ship was rammed by Greenpeace. The collision ocurred in the Australian Antarctic Territory in the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary. The Nisshin Maru has continued north at full speed, with three conservationists ships in pursuit, including the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society vessel, the Farley Mowat.

Article with more photos: Japanese Whaling Ship rams Greenpeace vessel in Southern Whale Sanctuary

Links: Previous feature article on Global Indymedia | Melbourne Indymedia | Sea Shepherd website | Greenpeace website | Video of Greenpeace statement | Sea Shepherd News Release

A coalition of eco-activists, climate change campaigners and local airport residents demonstrated in London outside the gala dinner of the the world's largest aviation industry conference on Tuesday 29th November. The area was heavily policed with mounted officers and dogs and pedestrian access to Tower Bridge bridge restricted. Aviation delegates arriving at London's Tower Bridge Walkways were greeted with a noisy protest and a brief attempt to block the route of delegate coaches was made.

Reports, pictures and video: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | video | Cambridge | Edinburgh | Australia

Earlier in the day it was reported that Earth First activists distrupted the aviation conference [report]. The campaigners were opposing plans to expand runways and drawing attention to the fact that aviation is one of the fastest growing cause of climate change. The actions also coincided with the begining of the UN Kyoto "COP 11 / MOP 1" Climate Conference in Montreal, Canada, which runs until 9th December [Official website | Climate Justice Convergence Centre | Climate Justice Blog]

On the same day Tony Blair's 'pro-nuclear' energy review speech was also disrupted by Greenpeace activists at the annual CBI conference [GP report | earlier Downing St. 'coal' blockade report]. Campaigners are now preparing for the International Day of Climate Protest this Saturday, 3rd December, with climate demonstrations planned in over 30 countries - see UK Details | International Info. A late summer Climate Action Camp for 2006 has also been recently announced.

Also see: Climate Change IMC | IMC SouthCoast Runway to Ruin Feature (Nov 05)
Indymedia Pre-G8 2005 Climate Change Resources + Reports |
SchNEWS on Nuclear Power Craze | PlanetStupid | Stop Climate Chaos Coalition | Pledge To Take Action Against Airport Expansion | Raised Voices: Climate Testimonies | Heathrow's Third Runway challenged by villagers

Since November 19, yet another transport with twelve containers of radioactive waste (called 'Castor') from the plutonium plant La Hague (France) is on its way to the so called interim storage in Gorleben in the Wendland region, an area ( Map ) well known for 20 years of resistance to nuclear power. The transport is scheduled to arrive in Gorleben monday evening. The police announced that they will send at least 11,000 local and federal cops into the region.

After the death of the French activist Sébastien Briat during the protests in 2004, both police and activists expect a more heated atmosphere for this transport.

Update Tuesday November 22, 06.30: Between 4:00 and 5:00 in the morning, thousands of police have finally managed to clear a small corridor for the transport ("north route"). At 6:00 the transport reaches the interim storage at Gorleben, moving not faster than 15km/h on the last 20km. See the timeline for updated infos and pictures of the protest.

Monday November 21: at 8.15am the transport reaches Lüneburg while thousands of protestors in the area are on the roads to welcome it on the last 70km. All over the day, blockades and other actions prevented the transport from reaching its destination. See the timeline for details.

Sunday November 20: Hundreds of people spread into the woods along the railway tracks, setting up barricades [pictures 1 | 2] on roads to sabotage police logistics for tonight when the transport is expected in the region. Tractors are being used to block the special police forces. Farmers blocked the tranport route close to Gorleben with 120 tractors ( picture ), later in the night they were cleared by police forces. On its way through Southern Germany, the train was stopped several times by blockades. An unknown number of people are arrested.

Saturday, November 19: 4000 people demonstrate in Hitzacker, where the transport will pass on Monday. [Pictures 1 | 2 ] Meanwhile, at 17.30, the transport has left the plutonium plant in France. [video] In the evening, 350 people blockaded the main road from Lüneburg to Dannenberg at the village Metzingen, setting barricades on fire [ pictures].

Friday November 18: 600 pupils demonstrated (en) in Lüchow throwing a "rain of eggs" at the police. Police forces tried to clear the demonstration later and injured several pupils.

Indymedia (en): one | two | three | Videos at KanalB | French News Ticker | Chronology of the Resistance(en)1977-1999 | Village of Resistance Metzingen (de)

In possibly the biggest natural disaster of US history, hurricane Katrina has left devastation in New Orleans and surrounding areas. Things have gone from bad to worse. Martial law is declared in New Orleans City. The National Guard is deployed, with the order to 'Shoot To Kill' in an attempt to 'stop looting'.

Updates on the hurricane disaster on New Orleans Indymedia | Coverage of the refugee situation on Houston Indymedia

Houston Indymedia Coverage: Video: 1 | 2 | 3 | Reports from New Orleans: 1 | 2 | 3
How to help: Donate: Red Cross | Second Harvest | Katrina Help Wiki

More Links: Weather Warning (28th August) | Democracy Now! reports (Aug. 30) (Aug. 31) (Sept. 1) (Sept. 2) | Explanation about Hurricanes (MP3) | Further analysis: 1 , 2 , 3 | Insane looting? - Not at all! | An analysis of the 'anarchy' in New Orleans' streets Commentary from the Newswire: Katrina open letter to radical/progressive community (From Houston) | In Praise of Looting | American Genocide in New Orleans | Michael Moore's open letter to Bush

Reports from New Orleans state that "things were so crazy: it was all poor black people and old white people - the people who couldn't afford to get out." William Quigley, a Law Professor at Loyola University has said that " They are estimating that it may take several days to evacuate these people - water, electricity, food, security all will be gone by then." Indeed, enforced evacuations began yesterday - following a mass exodux from the city in advance of the hurricane - but initial estimates that expected them to be complete by the evening of August 30th were overly optimistic. And, while outside agencies struggle to help, thousands remain stuck - including inside hospitals [ 1 | 2 ].

[New Orleans Weather Warning (28th August) | Democracy Now! reports (Aug. 30th) | Explanation about Hurricanes (MP3) | Further analysis: 1 , 2 , 3 | Insane looting? - Not at all! ]

A train carrying "Castors" of nuclear waste from France to Germany ran over a protestor who had chained himself to the tracks, severing one of his legs. Paramedics offered him emergency treatment and tried to get him to surgery, but he died before reaching hospital. The 23-year-old lay down and chained himself to the track as the train passed near the town of Avricourt, eastern France [Timeline of Events]. The train was carrying nuclear waste being sent back to Germany after reprocessing in northern France, and had already been delayed for two hours while police cut free two other protesters who had chained themselves to a section of track.

Thousands of demonstrators have been gathering since the train set off on Saturday from the La Hague reprocessing plant in Valognes, north-western France, on its journey to the German town of Dannenberg. From Dannenberg the trains' 12 containers - holding 175 metric tons of atomic waste - are due to be shipped to a nearby dump at Gorleben, 12km away. The French protests followed a protest by 10,000 people at the Gorleben site in Saturday.

Background to Castor protests | Rage and mourning across Germany
IMC-Germany | Radio Free Wendland (live stream)

A broad umbrella group of 26 people from various environmental, academic and economical organisations and members from four Native American tribes, travelled to Scotland from Southern Oregon and Northern California to lobby, protest at and negotiate with Scottish Power, the parent company of PacifiCorp, which is responsible for the negative impacts of several dams on the Klamath River, its water quality, salmon population, surrounding environment and neighbouring communities.

Previous reports:
[ pictures of protest at Scottish Power's annual shareholders meeting | call to write protest letters | reply to consumer boycott | Klamath river support delegation in Scotland | U.S. Court Rules in Favor Of Hoopa Valley, Yurok Tribes! | Native Americans, Enviros, and Fishermen Battle Scottish Power | Myth and facts about the Klamath River dams ]

Audio reports:
[ interview with scientist | interview with Klamath Tribe | interview with sociologist | Interview with commercial fisherman | interview with Yurok tribe | Environmental Racism Conference 1 | Environmental Racism Conference, Eugene, January 2004 ]

The central focus of the current Climate Conference in Milan is Russia and their position on the Kyoto Climate Protocol. If Russia would join Kyoto, it creates cheap ways for the EU to meet its reduction targets. Those actions taking place outside of the Conference focus instead on the root cause of climate change, the fossil fuel economy. The lack of action by the United Nations, should make people around the world aware not to depend on states and corporations, but instead to create social-ecological alternatives in our daily lives.

A reclaim the streets, critical mass bicycle action took place in Milan this Saturday, blocking car-traffic at various spots around the city. Reports indicate over two thousand people participated in this action directed towards the Climate Conference in Milan. The police was very unable in blocking the protestors, who were fastly cycling around. The central focus of the protest was the car-economy. Earlier this week there was also a student action. A banner was hung in a public square, saying "Stop Global Warming".

[ photo's 1 | 2 | Videos | Indymedia Italy COP9 special ]

One year on, the complete failure of the Johannesburg Earth Summit is obvious. But should activists therefore give up on UN Summits altogether? Daniel Mittler of Friends of the Earth Germany doesn´t think so.

When I got on a plane one year ago to attend the biggest ever UN Summit, the World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg, I was under no illusion that this Summit would have any chance of being a giant step for mankind. It had become all too obvious in the long and ardeous preperatory process - involving some 8 weeks of day and night meetings of bureaucrats from all over the world - that there was no desire by those who call themselves our leaders, to address the root causes of global inequality and unsustainable development.

The Sardar Sarovar Dam on the lower Narmada River is just one of 30 projected large dams of India`s Narmada mega-dam project, an area prone to earthquakes. In May 2003, three Indian federal states had given clearance to increase the height of the dam to 100 meters, which caused the submergence of several villages and devastation of standing crops, after monsoon rains started at the end of July. The clearance was given inspite of a legally binding Supreme Court Order and the Narmada Water Dispute Tribunal Award, which had stipulated the previous resettlement of all project-affected persons. But at least 13 500 families suffering from the present monsoon floods are still waiting to be resettled. So far they haven’t been granted any compensation for the destruction of their property. The inhabitants of Chimalkhedi village in Maharashtra resisted Police Forces, who attacked and forcefully evicted them, arresting 74 plus 40 temporarily. 20 houses of this hamlet were also demolished.

Recent actions by the Ecuadorian Government appear to confirm fears that new oil concessions will be made in the near future, affecting millions of acres of pristine Amazonian rainforest and their indigenous inhabitants.

The Ecuadorian Government threatens to use public force in order to initiate petrol activities in oil concession block 23 and block 24 in the Amazonian region. This is a clear threat against the indigenous peoples that since ancient times inhabit the Ecuadorian Amazon, and specifically the territories of Pastaza and Morona Santiago provinces. Fierce opposition to oil development in the region by the indigenous communities forced the American-based energy company Burlington Resources to declare force majeure in its contract with the host government.

The oil company is required to consult with local population as a condition for its concession contract, but so far, the indigenous communities have refused to participate in such consultations, and prevented the company from moving ahead with exploration plans. A court injunction filed by FIPSE (Independent Federation of the Shuar People of Ecuador) requires the company to engage with the organisation as the authorized representative of Shuar and communities.

Now, the Ecuadorian Government threatens to use military force in order to initiate petrol activities in ancestral Shuar land, in a clear threat against the indigenous peoples and nationalities that inhabit the Ecuadorian Amazon. The governor of Pastaza, Mr. Fernando OrdoÒez, stated to the daily newspaper El Universo that "the decision of the regime is to initiate the petrol activity in the blocks number 23 and 24 even it has to use the public force" (El Universo, page 16, section El PaÌs, May 29 2003). In the same manner, insisted in that "the Government will not take one step back in the petrol policy".
Read entire feature
Click here to send letters of protest to the Ecuadorian Government.

More info and background:
[Amazonwatch.org | Sarayacu | Amazonalliance.org | CONAIE]

On December 2nd 2002 a peaceful march of around 200 women survivors from Bhopal delivered toxic waste from the abandoned Carbide factory back to Dow's Chemical Indian headquarters in Bombay with the demand that Dow take responsibility for the disaster and clean up the site. Union Carbide's (now known as Dow) negligent gassing and poisoning of thousandsin the Indian city of Bhopal killed between 3,000 and 20,000 and left thousands more with serious diseases and injures. [Union Carbide' website documenting this has now been made private]

December 3rd was the 18th anniversary of the criminally negligent disaster in Bhopal. Dow however continues to stamp down on dissent, and shows utter contempt for its legal and moral responsibilities. Whilst CEO Michael D. Parker exploited the anniversary of the incident as an opportunity to express his "profound sadness for the accident", Dow also announced it's decision to sue the female protesters for $10,000 in compensation for the corporation's "loss of work" during the two hours that the peaceful protest lasted. To put Dow's claim in perspective it is important to point out that Dow/Carbide provided only $300-$500 compensation to those most severely affected by the Bhopal disaster. Read reports 1 and 2

Read Dow's full suit (PDFs)Paper_1 | Paper_2 | Paper_3
Read two articles about Dow Chemical's refusal to compensate the victims of Bhopal chemical explosion.

For more news and background information see: Bhopal.net | Carbide's 'poison papers' | IMC-India

After two decades of study and fervent protests from Nevada, President Bush signed a bill Tuesday making Yucca Mountain, some 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas, the US's central repository for nuclear waste. Bush signed the measure with no fanfare. Reporters were not allowed to witness the bill-signing and no one from Nevada's congressional delegation was invited. However, four lawmakers who are strong backers of the project were present. Bush has long backed Yucca Mountain as a repository site, formally recommending it in February. Nevada filed a formal protest as was its right under a 1982 nuclear waste law leaving it for Congress to make a final decision. The House approved it in May, the Senate this month. The state has five lawsuits pending against the project, and the Energy Department must still get a license from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. That process could take up to five years. Even some Yucca supporters admit that plans to open the site by 2010 may be too optimistic.

Critics complained that there were still far too many questions about the Yucca site and transportation safety issues. Environmentalists dubbed the planned waste shipments 'mobile Chernobyl', seeing a disaster in the making as the radioactive cargo moves past major cities, over bridges and through tunnels on its way to Nevada.

[ Report | Yucca Mountain Project | Nevada's Agency for Nuclear Projects ]

BIODIVERSITY SUMMIT IN THE HAGUE 8 - 19 Apr 2002

On Monday April 8 the 6th Conference of the Parties (COP6) of the Convention of Biological Diversity (CBD) opened in The Hague, the Netherlands. Until April 19 government delegates, technical experts and business lobbyists are contemplating the state of the world's biodiversity resources, as part of a global review process of the UN Rio Earth Summit in 1992 and its impacts. Concurrently, NGOs and pressure groups have joined environmental activists and farmers for a parallel gathering Resistance is Fertile! that calls for protection of farmers rights and a stop on the spread of GMOs and the plunder of natural resources for profit.

Full article | IMC Netherland | Logo

NO-MAN'S ISLAND IN TUVALU

The small island of Tuvalu in the Pacific Ocean has become the first victim of climate change. The island's 11,000 inhabitants are being forced to abandon their homes as rising sea levels have caused coastal erosion, increased storms and salination of their drinking water. New Zealand has agreed to accept all of the island's residents, although serious concerns have arisen about the cultural and social implications of displacing the entire Tuvalu nation from the land their ancestors have lived on for thousands of years. Tuvaluans are laying the blame on climate change, and especially on the US for their refusal to implement policies to prevent further global warming. Full story

Current estimates reckon that sea levels could rise up to one metre during this century. At the present rate of global warming, sea levels will rise enough to inundate not only several islands in the South Pacific, but also large parts of countries such as Bangladesh, which could create millions of climate refugees.

More info and climate campaigns:
Indymedia-Climate | Rising Tide Coalition | Photo

NUCLEAR WASTE TRANSPORT, GERMANY 10-14 Nov 2001

Thousands of farmers, local residents, environmental activists etc. blockaded roads and railtracks in the Wendland region, Northern Germany, as another shipment of nuclear waste was transported from La Hague to the repository at Gorleben. Police carried out violent attacks on protesters to force the transport through against heavy resistance. The trucks carrying the 'Castor' containers ('cask for storage and transportation of radioactive waste') finally arrived in the early hours of Wednesday morning.

For several days, the whole region saw a multitude of actions, including tractor blockades on railtracks and roads leading to the deposit, sit-down protests, vigils, spontaneous demonstrations, tree climbing actions etc.
Read more | Photo

Reports: Sunday night
To find out more about the previous Castor transport check our archives
The whole story is (in German) on IMC Germany.

WORLD LEADERS AND CORPORATIONS CREATE A NEW COMMODITY: AIR Oct 29-Nov 9 2001


World leaders, multinational business companies and some NGO's, are currently meeting to make a series of important decisions about the World's climate. Crucial agreements on the privatisation of the atmosphere, and the establishment of a global marketplace for the speculation in carbon dioxide emission rights are at stake. This market is to be based on unequal and unfair principles, in which the big lobbies (northern countries, oil and car industries, banks and consultancy firms), are preparing themselves to generate enormous financial revenues Full story | Conference official updates.

Meanwhile, the climate is continuing to change at increasing rates with extreme weather events taking place: global warming, desertification, rising sea levels and flooding. Greenhouse gas emissions - specially CO2 - are causing the temperature of the Earth to rise at an unsustainable levels, making millions of people refugees and leading to the disappearance of animal and plant species.

A call for an international Day of Action for November 6th has been announced by the climate justice grassroots coalition Rising Tide, Earth Crimes and the Mediterranean environmental network MARE.

More info:
- Climate Indymedia
- Rising Tide coalition
Background:
- Bonn agreement

CASTOR PROTESTS IN GERMANY Mar 26-29 2001


Thousands of anti-nuclear waste protesters have severely delayed a train transporting nuclear waste from the French reprocessing plant La Hague to the repository at Gorleben, Germany. A variety of actions, from sit-ins on the tracks, to tractor blockades by local farmers, to direct confrontations by black bloc 'Autonome' succeeded in stopping the train for one day and raising the costs of the transport to unprecedented levels. The train finally reached its Gorleben destination on Thursday morning.

The Castor train had arrived in the Wendland region on Wednesday with only a few hours delay, but then the plans to proceed the remaining 50 kilometres went into total disarray. Thousands of people had blocked the tracks and could only be moved by police using extreme force. At Sueschendorf, five Robin Wood activists had chained and cemented themselves inbetween the railtrack, forcing the train to stop and even retreat for the first time in the history of Castor transports. It took police 20 hours to remove the activists.

Earlier on Tuesday, the train had to wait for several hours in Lueneburg until police had removed a 1600 strong x-1000 blockade - later a train carrying the arrested activists was blocked by more protesters. Blockades near Goettingen had already forced the Castor train to change route. On Tuesday morning, Greenpeace activists abseiled with chains connected to the track from Seerau bridge and succeeded in holding their position for six hours. In the evening, 12,000 people had demonstrated in nearby Dannenberg. Read more in Tuesday's short summary.

As early as Sunday, protesters had blockaded and barricaded the railtrack, surrounded the storage site and demonstrated in Dannenberg. See as well the video of the opening demonstration in Lueneburg on Saturday.

With a deployment of 20,000 police in the small region around Gorleben alone, the transport was secured by the biggest police operation post-war Germany has ever seen. Despite their impressive presence in the region, police could only complete the transport by using extreme force. This included baton-charging peaceful sitting-blockaders on a regular basis and violent raids on resistance infrastructure. Read more on police strategies here. On Tuesday alone, there were 1410 arrests.

[ Indymedia Germany | Pictures at randbild.de | wendland-net | Photo ]

CLIMATE CONFERENCE IN THE HAGUE Nov 18 2000


More than five thousand protestors laid siege to climate change talks in The Hague. Calling for curbs on greenhouse gas emissions, activists built a sandbag wall at the venue to warn of the risk of flooding posed by global warming. Security officers forcibly removed some activists who gained entry to a room where an energy seminar was taking place. Check out the video.

Several demonstrations were held during the two weeks protests and the police responded with mass-arrests. Over 100 people were arrested at the Nuclear Walk of Shame on 22 November. Because of the extensive police presence, Greenpeace had decided not to take part in this particular protest.

[climate.indymedia.org | Analysis of the climate talks | Photo ]

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