February, 17 2011, 02:57pm EDT
For Immediate Release
Contact:
On site: Keiller MacDuff 202 640 3471, Robert Gardner 540 421 7558
Molly Dorozenski (office) 917 864 3724
Greenpeace Activists Climb Coal Elevator at Bridgeport Coal Plant
Banner reads: “Shut it down – Quit Coal”
BRIDGEPORT, Conn.
This morning Greenpeace activists scaled the Bridgeport Harbor Generating Station coal elevator to demand the aging and dirty coal-fired power plant be shut down. A 40 ft x 20 ft banner reading "Shut it Down - Quit Coal," is hanging from the top of the coal elevator, confronting owners Public Service Enterprise Group for allowing the toxic plant to continue operating.
The Bridgeport Harbor Generating Station is an aging, inefficient plant that endangers the health of Bridgeport residents, including the children attending the six schools located within a one mile radius. Nationwide, smokestack pollution from coal-fired power plants kills more than 13,000 people per year according to the Clean Air Task Force- a rate of one person every forty minutes.
"Bridgeport residents have lived in the shadow of this coal plant for far too long. Clean energy, efficiency and common sense policies will let the citizens of Fairfield County breathe free as well as create sustainable green jobs for generations to come," said Greenpeace coal campaigner Robert Gardner.
Coal pollution is responsible for 20,000 heart attacks, 217,600 asthma attacks, and 1,627,800 lost work days in the United States annually. It is also the largest single source of global warming pollution in America. The Bridgeport plant alone emits over 1.1 million tons of CO2 despite the availability of clean, renewable energy options.
In addition to contributing to global warming, the plant emits 1274 tons of toxic sulfur dioxide and 950 tons of nitrous oxide. Much of the coal burned at the plant is imported from notorious human rights violating coal operations in Indonesia.
"It's clear the poorest people in Connecticut are suffering disproportionately in order for PSEG to profit," Mr Gardner said.
"Breathing clean air and living in a safe environment should be a basic human right, not a privilege reserved for those who don't live near a coal plant. The time has come to take action to expose this injustice, shut down this plant, and demand better for the people of Bridgeport ," said activist Lauren Thorpe, one of the climbers currently hanging from the structure.
The protest comes as the Greenpeace ship Arctic Sunrise undertakes the East Coast leg of the Coal Free Future Tour. The Arctic Sunrise is currently on its final stop of the tour in Boston, MA.
Greenpeace is working alongside communities that see firsthand the damage coal causes to the earth, to their health, and to the health of their children.
Visit https://www.greenpeace.org/usa/coalfreebridgeport for more information
Follow the action on Twitter at Twitter.com/greenpeaceusa
Greenpeace is a global, independent campaigning organization that uses peaceful protest and creative communication to expose global environmental problems and promote solutions that are essential to a green and peaceful future.
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Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont is escalating his fight against the U.S. oligarchy with a new campaign directed at the nation's wealthiest individuals—including Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, and Mark Zuckerberg—who he says are key culprits in a global race to the bottom that is stripping people worldwide of political agency while impoverishing billions so that the rich can amass increasingly obscene levels of wealth.
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Bernie Sanders talks about the oligarchy
While rarely discussed in the corporate press or by most elected officials, argues Sanders, the reality is that a "small number of incredibly wealthy billionaires own and control much of the global economy. Period. End of discussion. And increasingly they own and control our government through a corrupt campaign finance system."
Since the the victory of President-elect Donald Trump in November, Sanders has been increasingly outspoken about his frustrations over the failure of the Democratic Party to adequately confront the contradictions presented by a party that purports to represent the interests of the working class yet remains so beholden to corporate interests and the wealthy that lavish it with campaign contributions.
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According to the newspaper:
Mr. Siri is also representing ICAN in petitioning the FDA to "pause distribution" of 13 other vaccines, including combination products that cover tetanus, diphtheria, polio, and hepatitis A, until their makers disclose details about aluminum, an ingredient researchers have associated with a small increase in asthma cases.
Mr. Siri declined to be interviewed, but said all of his petitions were filed on behalf of clients. Katie Miller, a spokeswoman for Mr. Kennedy, said Mr. Siri has been advising Mr. Kennedy but has not discussed his petitions with any of the health nominees. She added, "Mr. Kennedy has long said that he wants transparency in vaccines and to give people choice."
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Ayman Chit, head of vaccines for North America at Sanofi, told the newspaper that development of the vaccine began in 1977, over 280 million people worldwide have received it, and there have been more than 300 studies, some with up to six months of follow-up.
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Asked about RFK Jr.'s anti-vaccine record during a Time "Person of the Year" interview published Thursday, the president-elect said that "we're going to be able to do very serious testing" and certain vaccines could be made unavailable "if I think it's dangerous."
Trump toldNBC News last weekend: "Hey, look, I'm not against vaccines. The polio vaccine is the greatest thing. If somebody told me to get rid of the polio vaccine, they're going to have to work real hard to convince me. I think vaccines are—certain vaccines—are incredible. But maybe some aren't. And if they aren't, we have to find out."
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She was far from alone. HuffPost senior front page editor Philip Lewis said that "this is just so dangerous and ridiculous" while Zeteo founder Mehdi Hasan declared, "We are so—and I use this word advisedly—fucked."
Ryan Cooper, managing editor at The American Prospect, warned that "they want your kids dead."
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Multiple critics altered Trump's campaign slogan to "Make Polio Great Again."
U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) responded with a video on social media:
Without naming anyone, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), a polio survivor, put out a lengthy statement on Friday.
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"It's a big slap in the face for us once again," Amanda Lorah—who was sentenced by Conahan to five years of juvenile detention over a high school fight—toldWBRE.
Sandy Fonzo, whose son killed himself after being sentenced to juvenile detention, said in a statement: "I am shocked and I am hurt. Conahan's actions destroyed families, including mine, and my son's death is a tragic reminder of the consequences of his abuse of power."
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Many of Conahan's victims were first-time or low-level offenders. The Pennsylvania Supreme Court would later throw out thousands of cases adjudicated by the Conahan and Ciaverella, the latter of whom is serving a 28-year sentence for his role in the scheme.
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