Today, Greenpeace UK held a peaceful protest against the proposed expansion of Heathrow Airport in London (the addition of a third runway). The activists managed to walk out onto the tarmac and up onto the tailfin of a plane, where they hung a huge banner:
This effortless breach of security at one of the world's biggest and busiest airports was a huge embarrassment for its administrators, obviously -- a "major investigation" has been launched. But it also did a brilliant job of attracting attention to the protest, and to the fact that aviation is a major culprit in climate change, aided and abetted by subsidies from the same governments that are publicly proclaiming concern over climate.
Watch people in London speak out against the expansion here. And watch this:
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Comments
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inel Posted 11:46 pm
25 Feb 2008
The video of children captures just how we feel, living here in the Heathrow area.
A wider audience might like to bear these points in mind:
The Public Consultation on Department for Transport (DfT) proposals for `Adding capacity at Heathrow airport` ends tomorrow, Wednesday February 27, 2008, in London.
Heathrow is on the front line in the battle against climate change. We have to draw a line in the sand now. Unsustainable expansion with rapidly increasing emissions will continue relentlessly if we do not put a stop to this now!
The deadline for responses to the Public Consultation is tomorrow, but this is not the end. Rather, it marks the beginning of a long struggle, and local groups with all-party support from local MPs, borough councils, all four candidates for Mayor of London, and MEPs are committed to working with residents to challenge these proposals every step of the way, taking this issue of expansion to the highest levels necessary to prevent it coming to fruition.
The consultation has been designed to prevent objections on issues of global concern, such as climate change. Heathrow expansion will enable an estimated additional 3 million tonnes of CO2 emissions. The British Government intends to address the extra climate change impacts of these extra aviation emissions through international trading schemes, such as the EU ETS.
To respond to the Public Consultation, email your concerns to: (JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
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inel Posted 11:57 pm
25 Feb 2008
While I'm here, there's another annual figure to bear in mind ...
The UK aviation industry currently benefits from Government subsidies in the form of tax breaks on fuel and VAT to the tune of around 9 billion GBP per annum.
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sindark Posted 12:37 am
26 Feb 2008
As it stands, it is very difficult under international law to add carbon taxes to fuel or oblige airlines to purchase credits through a cap-and-trade scheme.
a sibilant intake of breath
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Charles Barton Posted 2:43 am
26 Feb 2008
Having said this, I might also add that I most short and middle range air transportation to go away during the next 40 years. This will happen despite Greenpeace's exhabitionism, not because of it.
Charles Barton
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inel Posted 4:20 am
26 Feb 2008
Search on Grist for Heathrow and you will find the airport has not been mentioned since August 2007, when the Climate Camp was in progress. The current consultation on expansion was initiated in November 2007, yet not a peep was heard here, nor many peeps elsewhere outside Britain. Airport expansion is a major story, especially when the government sanctioning it purports to be the world leader on action to combat climate change, with the world's first Climate Change Bill.
Greenpeace are effective in bringing stories to a wider public, such as here at Gristmill, and for that, I thank them.
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Charles Barton Posted 4:43 am
26 Feb 2008
Charles Barton
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Delay And Deny Posted 11:13 am
26 Feb 2008
But wait...Richard Branson makes his money from airplanes that pollute the earth.
Wait...but he creates space planes.
But wait...he savages island paradises for his exclusive use.
Wait...he propounds biofuels.
But wait...biofuels are declared harmful.
But wait...Branson is the first to use biofuels in airplanes (which still pollute the earth)...but the fuels are coconut oil..which we don't know the effect of!
But wait...he says he will move Virgin world headquarters from London if they don't build a third runway.
But wait...Greenpeace protests the third runway.
But wait, maybe they won't build the runway just to get rid of him...so he's actually helping Greenpeace and the earth by making them not build the third runway but he'll continue to fly his planes that pollute, but on coconut oil which will fly him and his 20 year old wide eyed eco-enraptured coeds to island virgin paradises that he'll ravage (the islands...or the coeds...or both).
Wait...
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tico89 Posted 12:48 pm
26 Feb 2008
I actually found myself agreeing with both Charles Barton and inel. I completely agree that a lot of Greenpeace's self-righteous posturing and obsession with getting into the news can be irritating and in many cases has little effect. In fact, ideally, Greenpeace would be an irrelevance.
On the other hand, if Greenpeace's actions are the only way of getting controversial topics like Heathrow's new runway into the news, I'm all for them. Yes, they're publicity stunts, but some of these cases could do with some publicity. And in some instances, like with the recent Japanese whaling incident, at least Greenpeace eschews the violence option.
If I share initials with 'Global Warming', is that a sign?
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Tasermons Partner Posted 12:54 pm
26 Feb 2008
Plus, this way they get alot more than just local publicity. I've been followin' the story of the possible third runway for some time now, but I doubt most other people outside of the London area even knew of the proposed project until Greenpeace was put in all the international headlines.
Let's face it, if ya want to save the environment, ya need publicity. All of the big energy and transportation and mining and agricultural (etc.) interests are gonna have huge coffers and huge lobbyists and huge PR departments behind the causes, so we need some attention-grabbers of our own if we really want to draw attention to our POV and help educate people as to our cause.
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