May, 27 2014, 08:32am EDT
Activists Block Two Major Drilling Rigs in 24 hours as 'Save the Arctic' Campaign Escalates
Greenpeace activists from 12 countries blocked two separate oil rigs destined to drill in the Arctic ocean in the early hours of Tuesday morning. The environmental group said that the threat to the rapidly melting Arctic from a group of international oil companies requires 'a truly global response'. A group of 30 activists in the Dutch port of IJmuiden occupied the GSP Saturn, a rig contracted by Russia's state owned energy company Gazprom on its way to the remote Pechora sea. They were removed after five hours and six activists remain under arrest.
LONDON
Greenpeace activists from 12 countries blocked two separate oil rigs destined to drill in the Arctic ocean in the early hours of Tuesday morning. The environmental group said that the threat to the rapidly melting Arctic from a group of international oil companies requires 'a truly global response'. A group of 30 activists in the Dutch port of IJmuiden occupied the GSP Saturn, a rig contracted by Russia's state owned energy company Gazprom on its way to the remote Pechora sea. They were removed after five hours and six activists remain under arrest.
Another group of 15 is currently occupying the Transocean Spitsbergen, under contract to Norway's state owned company Statoil as it prepares to drill the world's northernmost well in the Barents Sea. Both Gazprom and Statoil's projects are taking place deep inside the Arctic circle.
Commenting on the two protests, Greenpeace International Arctic campaigner Ben Ayliffe said:
"The Arctic matters to us all, and protecting it demands a truly global response. We cannot let a reckless club of international oil companies hunt for the last drops as the ice melts away. The websites of Shell, Gazprom or Statoil might look different but their willingness to ignore the reality of oil spills and the human cost of climate change is exactly the same.
"Shell has already shown just how difficult it is to work in the US Arctic, where extreme cold and remote conditions led to a series of embarrassing failures . Over five million people are now telling these companies that Arctic drilling isn't worth the risk, either to the environment or their own reputation."
Greenpeace is calling for a ban on offshore oil drilling and unsustainable industrial fishing in icy Arctic waters, as well as a protected sanctuary around the North Pole. In September last year, the arrest and imprisonment of the 'Arctic 30' - a group of peaceful activists and freelance journalists - led to an international outcry and a renewed focus on Arctic oil development.
Since the campaign began the French oil company Total has ruled out drilling for oil in the offshore Arctic, its CEO recognising that 'a spill would do too much damage to the image of the company'. Russian oil giant Lukoil has also suggested it 'wouldn't give a kopeck' to offshore development in the Arctic. The government of Finland last year adopted the concept of an Arctic sanctuary as official policy.
A worldwide petition at www.SaveTheArctic.org has attracted the support of over five million people, including 11 Nobel peace prize winners, Sir Paul McCartney and Archbishop Desmond Tutu.
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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"The announcement of the fourth global bleaching event is an urgent call to do two things: reduce greenhouse gas emissions and work together to prioritize resilient coral reefs for conservation."
Apr 16, 2024
Scientists said Monday that the world's coral reefs are facing a fourth global bleaching event as the fossil fuel-driven climate emergency pushes ocean temperatures to record highs, imperiling the critical underwater ecosystems that sustain thousands of species.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the International Coral Reef Initiative (ICRI)—which NOAA co-chairs—said they documented coral bleaching in the northern and southern hemispheres of every major ocean basin on Earth between February 2023 and April of this year. It could be the worst global bleaching event on record.
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Derek Manzello, coordinator of NOAA's Coral Reef Watch, said that "as the world's oceans continue to warm, coral bleaching is becoming more frequent."
Excessively warm water causes corals to expel algae from their tissues, causing the organisms to turn white. While they can recover, such bleaching is evidence that corals are under significant stress and at risk of death.
The latest global bleaching event is the second in the last 10 years and "should be a global wake-up call," Manzello toldThe Washington Post.
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Apr 15, 2024
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The Clean Air Act requires the EPA to set primary, or health-based, and secondary, or welfare-based, "national ambient air quality standards" for pollutants including sulfur oxides, nitrogen oxides, and particulate matter—better known as soot. However, the EPA has failed to update the secondary standards for nitrogen and sulfur air pollution for more than half a century. Key portions of the EPA's secondary soot standards also haven't been updated in decades.
According to the CBD:
The agency published today's proposal under an agreement that resulted from a 2022 lawsuit brought by the Center for Biological Diversity and the Center for Environmental Health. That agreement requires the agency to finalize its decision on the air quality standards no later than December 10, 2024.
The agency will hold a virtual public hearing on the proposed rule on May 8.
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Separately, green groups including Earthjustice, Sierra Club, California Communities Against Toxins, and Southwestern Environmental Law Center on Monday welcomed the EPA's decision to deny an industry petition to delist energy turbines as a major source of air pollution.
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Harris and President Joe Biden–Democrats who are seeking reelection in November—campaigned as climate champions in the 2020 cycle but have had a mixed record on the topic since entering office.
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Biden
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