Greenpeace stops more fossil fuel emissions in four days than climate conference does since birth
Amsterdam, The Netherlands, November 16th 2000 : Greenpeace activists today stopped coal being loaded into Hemweg power
station in Amsterdam, in an escalation of the campaign to phase out fossil fuels to protect the climate from global
warming. Greenpeace activists locked themselves to the conveyor belt stopping the feeding of coal into the power
station.
The protest, which follows four days of stopping the unloading of coal in Rotterdam harbour, comes as national
governments continue two weeks of negotiations at the international climate change summit, which started Monday in The
Hague. Governments must decide on how to implement the 1997 Kyoto protocol to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions
from industrialised countries by 5.2% from1990 levels.
"Greenpeace has done more to stop fossil fuel emissions in the past four days than the climate negotiations has ever
done,” said Paul Horsman, Greenpeace Climate campaigner.
Greenpeace has been working for the past four days sending coal away at the request of the public who are voting for
clean energy to replace electricity produced from fossil fuels such as coal.
Since Saturday, when Greenpeace boarded a coal shipment from Australia, the 150,000 tonne bulk carrier La Paloma, people
have been asking Greenpeace, via the web, to send their annual per person share of coal to the ship. The website,
carrying live footage of the action, has a breakdown of coal consumption per person per country. As of noon today the
total had reached six million kilograms of coal.
"Governments currently meeting in the Hague at the climate summit should listen to what the people want - they want
clean energy," said Horsman. “Industrialised countries must stop trying to avoid their commitments to cut greenhouse
emissions by trying to include loopholes in the Kyoto protocol. They must ensure the protocol produces real reductions
as a first step to protect the climate, and agree to begin phasing out fossil fuels and the rapid expansion of renewable
energy such as solar and wind."
For information contact: Paul Horsman, Greenpeace International, Climate Campaigner Tel.+44 7801 212 990; or +31
621296912 Femke Bartels, Greenpeace Netherlands, Climate Campaigner on site +31 653504729 Susan Cavanagh,Greenpeace
International, Media Officer +31 621296910 in The Hague