Formed out of and inspired by the first Climate Camp in August 2006, Bristol Rising Tide has gone from strength to strength. We are motivated by the growing evidence that climate change is well underway and and that those in power are not going to do much more about it than rearrange the deckchairs on the Titanic.
We are an open, autonomous, grassroots direct action group: everyone is welcome except the police and their mates. We have adopted the
People's Global Action Hallmarks, a statement which affirms our rejection of all systems of domination - you name it - capitalism, patriarchy, racism, and any other -isms or -ologies that divide and oppress us. We don’t believe governments or businesses are going to solve our problems: We are going to have to do it ourselves, learning as we go.
The Oil Industry
Petrol stations are the public face of oil corporations. They are found all over our city. Disrupting their smooth operations and exposing the oily exploitative reality behind their slick greenwashed exteriors is a favourite pastime of ours. They can't be allowed to fool people into believing that they are part of a sustainable or socially just future. They are not genuinely working towards reducing oil dependency, they have played a crucial and deeply cynical role in holding up the climate change debate. We also encourage drivers to think about the links between climate change and their personal carbon usage
Camp for Climate Action
The Climate Camp. The Big One. August 14th-21st.
Bristol Rising Tide took part in making this year's camp. Over 1000 people came together to take action on the root causes of climate change, while taking part in an experiment in collective sustainable living. There was a strong and vibrant contingent of people from Bristol and the Southwest, who camped together and bonded over the week...
a href="http://risingtide.org.uk/node/220">Read the full article
For loads of coverage, stories, pictures and debate, check out the indymedia coverage.
Welsh Gas Pipeline
National Grid are currently building a high-pressure gas pipeline through the South of Wales. Bristol Rising Tide has been, and will continue to be, really active in resisting this new carbon intensive energy project while working in solidarity with local communities whose safety fears have been steamrollered over. We have been supporting the protest camps set up along the route of the pipeline and regularly taking part in actions to stop work and keep the issue high on the news agenda.(Read More)
Upcoming Events
See full details here on the Events Page
Past Events
See full details here on the Past Events Page
BP Portrait Gallery Protest. May 5th and May 20th.
April 19th-21st Bath Climate Camp
25th - 31st March: Bike the Pipe
24th March: Carnival against the Pipe @ Trebanos,
Contact us
Tel.no: 07917 383517
E-mail: bristol@risingtide.org.uk
Postal Address: PO BOX 99, 82 Colston Street, Bristol BS1 5BB.Fed Up Polar Bear Disrupts National BBC Wildlife Magazine HQ
This morning, Tuesday December 11th, at 10am, two members of “Arctic Associates” (aka Bristol Rising Tide), and one grumpy refugee polar bear paid a visit to the national offices of the BBC Wildlife Magazine at the top of Tower House in Broadmead, Bristol. More than a hundred employees looked on aghast (some winking in support) as “J. Smith” from Arctic Associates, flanked by Mr. Pole R. Bear, made a long and passionate speech about the sad and dangerous irony of allowing the world’s second largest oil company- responsible for endangering thousands of species through oil spills, toxic pollution, and climate change- to sponsor their Wildlife Photographer of the Year Award Contest, which is coming to Bristol Museum this Saturday December 15th.
The visit evidently created quite a stir, as employees of BBC Wildlife gathered around to hear what the commotion was all about, and the press team, directors, and building security simultaneously converged on the protesters, who were finally asked to leave, after circulating through both the 9th and 14th floors of the building, and speaking to the entire national staff of the BBC Wildlife Magazine, who are now more aware than ever of the historic blunder than was made when Shell’s £1,500,000 two year sponsorship deal was accepted.
Ironically, the poster child of this year’s Photography Award is a polar bear stuck on a melting iceberg, the most visible symbol of the climate-damaging nature of Shell’s core business.
If you’d like to get involved, come to the sHELL Wildlife Photography Exhibit PROTEST this Saturday Dec. 15th starting at Noon, in front of the Bristol Museum at the top of Park St. Please come dressed as any wildlife that sHELL is endangering, and invite all your friends- putting a stop to greenwashing is a key battle in the war against climate change, and we want to stop our public museums being used for this purpose**
The exhibit will remain at the Museum until the 13th of January.
**We are having a costume making party/ planning session this Wednesday the 12th at Kebele- 14 Robertson Rd. in Easton from 1700 to 2200 or so, with an open discussion happening at 1930. There will be at least one sewing machine there, so bring material, (fake) fur of the Shell- damaged wildlife of your choice- available at all fine fabric shops, newspaper, black felt, banner and sign making materials, and your favourite beverage to share.**
More information about the campaign:
Despite dozens of people contacting the Bristol City Council and the museum and asking them to reject the exhibition, these requests have been met with excuses, buck passing, or simply silence. It’s clear that our leaders would rather not face up to the fact that our public museum is in fact advertising and greenwashing one of the worst multinational oil companies which is wreaking havoc on people, wildlife, and habitat the world over (all in the name of wildlife protection?)
Apparently the Bristol Museum, Bristol City Council, the Natural History Museum, and BBC Wildlife Magazine see no problem with exhibiting photographs of endangered polar bears on melting ice as part of a photography exhibition sponsored by Shell. Do they think we’re stupid?
Our goal is to put pressure on the latter two organisations to reject Shell as a sponsor, and for Shell to decide that the negative publicity involved with sponsoring the competition simply isn’t worth it anymore.
More information about Shell:
http://onthelevelblog.wordpress.com/2007/10/04/shells-wild-lie/
Shell operates in 145 countries worldwide- one of the worst impacts is in Nigeria, where Shell was complicit in the 1995 murder of Ken Saro-Wiwa, an environmental activist, as well as eight others by the Nigerian military junta.
Shell has been working in the Niger Delta since 1956, causing problems to:
• local communities - gas flares burn day and night, roaring like jet engines and polluting the air with thick sooty particles that stick to almost everything and have serious health impacts
• livelihoods - oil is a root of conflict and suffering in Nigeria. Over 1000 law suits have been filed against Shell, yet it still refuses to pay compensation costs.
• the environment - polluting oil spills and fires have occurred for decades due to Shell's rusting pipes seriously affecting local villages, biodiversity, and contributing towards climate change.
Come to the protest at noon on Saturday, and let ‘em know that Bristolians won’t stand idly by while our planet is ravaged, and our museum is complicit in covering up oil company lies.
The time for blind obedience has passed- it's time to start disobeying.....
“Where oil reigns, life is hell”
-Oronto Douglas, Environmental Lawer, Niger Delta
Bike the Pipe
I made it, 122 miles of pipe, quite a lot of hills and lots of leaflets distributed. In the next few days I will write something about the trip but for now, I';m safely back, rested and thank you to all those who supported me on this adventure - hope to return the favour one day soon - I have a good pair on paniers going!
Written before i set off....
When two guys turned up at the Brecon tree camp having cycled from Edinburgh I knew that I had to put my vague idea of cycling along the pipeline route in to action.
And so on Sunday 25th March myself and friends will set out from Felindre, near Swansea and peddle on our rusty bikes winding up and down hills, and hopefully turn up in Corse, near Gloucester, a week later.
Along the way, I’ll be stopping at every opportunity to chat with people about the dangers of this pipeline, to share the knowledge that has been built up during this campaign, to share experiences of other communities who are resisting the imposition of a mega fossil fuel infrastructure project (eg Shell in Rossport, Ireland and BP in Casanare, Colombia) and to connect people who want to fight it together
One Brecon woman said to me recently "people just don't realise the implications that this pipe will have on their life". There is a real lack of information about the pipeline amongst the people who are going to have it tearing up their backyards over the coming year. We hope to change that in whatever way we can.
Biking the Pipe at first seemed like a crazy idea. A couple of years ago I discovered the joy of biking as a cheap, fun and quick means to get around the city, but biking as a means to cover long distances on is an all together different scenario. But I am excited about this journey precisely because I want to kick away the barriers I have in my head to cycling long distances. And reaching the top of a big hill after a long hard climb gives me the most amazing feeling of aliveness.
Shifting our perspectives of travel are really important if we are to reduce our dependency on fossil fuels and part of this journey for me is about challenging my own mindset of opting for the simplest option of travel. I’ll let you know how I get on...
If you want to get involved in Bike the Pipe, or future Bike the Pipes, there is plenty of different skills and help needed:
·join us for all, some or one day of the bike ride
·place for us to put our tent up each night
·sort out press in your town;
·invite us in to a school/community centre to talk about BikethePipe;
·organise a workshop for the future;
·donate to the campaign against the pipe
·massage our weary bodies
·put up posters and give out leaflets
please email bristol@risingtide.org.uk or phone the BRT phone
The schedule
Day one – Sunday 25th March
Neath train station to Felindre 10 miles
Felindre to Ammanford 7 miles
Day two – Monday 26th March
Ammanford to Llandeilo 8 miles
Llandeilo to Llangadog 7 miles
Day three – Tuesday 27th March
Llangadog to Brecon 28 miles
Day Four – Wednesday 28th March
Brecon to Hay on Wye 15 miles
Day Five – Thursday 29th March
Hay to Peterstow (Ross on Wye) 30 miles
Day Six – Friday 30th March
Peterstow to Corse 15 mile
Total = 115ish miles
Additional Distances
Corse to Bristol 50 miles
Research ongoing into Biofuels in Bristol. Coming soon .
On Tuesday 4th August, protesters (including Bristol Rising Tide) descended on the Bristol Headquarters of the Environment Agency in Aztec West carrying windmills and banners to support the action of Vestas workers who have occupied the St Cross wind turbine factory on the Isle of Wight for the last two weeks because of plans to close the site with the immediate loss of 600 jobs. A further two solidarity demos took place on Friday 7th August. A couple of Bristol RT'ers also visted the Isle of Wight."
Bristol September 12th – 20th, 2009
Social Change not Climate Change
In Bristol and surrounds, a diverse group of people will converge between
the 12th and 20th September; drawn together by the common threads of our
indignation at how a combination of corporate greed, social injustice and
environmental degradation is leading us all towards climate choas and
financial collapse. Collectively we will share skills and knowledge, and
collaborate in autonomous actions to find a way out of the mess.
Themes for workshops and actions may include:
-Freedom of Movement (surveillance, migration)
-Anti-Militarism (Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, Palestine, Filton)
-Climate Justice (just transition, financing of climate chaos, coal,
airports)
-Financial Collapse/Community Growth (role of banks, creating a new economy)
-Work (workers solidarity, co-operative working, workplace occupations)
-Food (animal rights, sustainable food production, permaculture)
-Autonomous Spaces (gentrification, housing, squatting)
We are particularly on the look out for anyone who's interested in doing workshops with a practical slant.
Co-Mutiny cannot happen without the collective efforts of all those who
help to organise it. If you want to get involved in running a workshop
during Co-Mutiny, either on your own, or with a collective, contact:
bristolcomutinyworkshops@riseup.net
The deadline for workshop applications is 28th August.
Capitalism and its puppet de‘mock’cracy are spiralling out of control: a self-created recession, rocketing unemployment, soaring national debt, the illegal and unjust occupation of Iraq and Afghanistan, apathy towards massacres in Palestine and Sri Lanka, the criminalisation of free movement, the police assaults and murders of people on the streets, the construction of larger airports and coal-fired power stations in the face of devastating environmental degradation, the privatisation of social housing, the list goes on.
But there is hope. There are anti-governmental protests from Greece to Paris, China to London and factory and school occupations across the UK. World-wide the active, and increasingly angry, radical movements are standing up and resisting oppression, poverty, insecurity, state control and climate chaos.
Hand-in-hand with these protests are grassroots actions to build a new society and take control of our own lives. Ordinary people are finding ways to help each other in the face of the credit crisis created by the banks and corporations. We are relearning old skills and learning new ones for the transition to a just society; enabling us to create community gardens, establish housing, food and worker’s co-ops, and use new economics in the neighbourhoods where we live
In Bristol and surrounds, a diverse bunch of enraged creatives, dreamers and schemers, builders and gardeners, workers and students have been drawn together by the common threads of our indignation at how a combination of corporate greed, social injustice and environmental degradation is leading us all towards climate chaos and financial collapse. We invite you to converge on Bristol for an uprising of autonomous actions and events from 12th - 20th of September 2009. The themes for those events and days of action are:
- Climate justice (Just transition, financing of climate chaos, coal, airports)
- Freedom of movement (surveillance, migration)
- Anti-militarism (Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, Palestine, Filton)
- Financial collapse / community growth (role of banks, creating a new economy)
- Work (Workers’ solidarity, co-operative working, workplace occupations)
- Food (animal rights, sustainable food production, permaculture)
- Autonomous spaces (gentrification, housing, squatting)
The Co-Mutineers will be organising actions and events but we need you to get involved, wherever you are from and whatever your experience. We encourage autonomous actions. Come on down, join the mutiny.
Brought to you by a coalition of people including the following local groups: Bristol Rising Tide, Bristol No Borders, Bristol Animal Rights Collective, Stroud Transition, Bristol Space Invaders, Bath Activist Network, Kebele Social Centre....
Dates for your diary:
Sat 13th June 12.00 noon Open Invitation Planning Meeting, The Island, Silver Street, Bristol
Sat 12th September – Bristol Anarchist Book Fare
Sun 13th - Sun 20th September - CoMutiny Action Convergence - insert your revolution here!
Fri 18th - Sun 20th September - Days of action in defence of squats and autonomous spaces.
At the end of May, Bristol Rising Tiders joined others from around the UK and the Republic of Ireland for a weekend gathering at the Rossport Solidarity Camp at Glengad in County Mayo. The gathering had been called to support the local community in their fight to stop Shell and Statoil from wrecking their environment and destroying their livelihoods of farming and fishing. Shell and Statoil (the Norwegian State oil and gas company) are extracting gas off the coast of Co. Mayo and are now planning to lay a gas pipeline to connect the drilling rig to the gas refinery they are building on seized land at nearby Ballanaboy. The 150 people who came to the gathering took part in direct action workshops led by the Tripod collective from Scotland and learnt from local activists about the massive oil and gas developments planned for the Atlantic seaboard of Ireland. A workshop run by an activist from Platform also showed that the struggle at Rossport was just one of many being waged by small communities around the world against Shell - the multinational oil company. The hallmarks of Shell’s operations are disregard for the environment, destruction of livelihoods, coercion and violence against local activists and gaining favourable terms by giving backhanders to politicians.
On Sunday the whole gathering and a large group of locals went to Shell’s enclosure where they intend to bring the pipeline ashore. Unsuccessful attempts were made to pull down a section of fencing this being thwarted by the large numbers of private security and police. Several people scaled the fence. The confrontation ended in seven activists being arrested – one on trumped up charges of assault. A further small-scale action on Monday afternoon saw activists start to dismantle the causeway that would carry the pipeline up the beach.
The numbers at the camp fell to about 30 on Monday evening as people headed home after the weekend. It was at this point that the ‘fleet’ arrived filling the previously tranquil bay. Two large dredging platforms were towed in by tugs accompanied by freighters to carry away the spoil, survey ships and a flotilla of 9 security vessels (rigid inflatable boats and motor launches) including one police RIB. The dredgers were there to dig a trench in the seabed to take the pipeline. They started work immediately and continued through the night. Tuesday saw the protest camp take to the water. 12 activists went out in an assortment of craft – most in inflatable kayaks. The initial aim was to test out the capabilities of Shell’s security vessels. A game of cat and mouse went on for over an hour as the kayakers danced around the larger security vessels – then the police RIB moved in and by using police divers grabbed one kayaker (from Bristol). Following this arrest the protest fleet retreated only to come out a few hours later. Now intent on disrupting the dredging, the kayakers spread out and successfully drew the security boats off as two of their number made it through to the larger dredger. Meeting no opposition on the dredger they quickly climbed up onto the arm of the giant digger and halted work. They continued their occupation for the next ten hours and only gave themselves up at 4.00 a.m. when hunger and cold prevented them from remaining longer.
Two days later the kayakers of the ‘Irish Flotilla’ struck again and this time succeeded in getting several people onto a dredger. This time they met violent resistance from Shell’s private security guards resulting in several injuries to activists. One protestor again occupied the digger arm and prevented work (see a full account at http://www.indymedia.ie/article/92596). Following this direct action, Van Oord, the subcontractor running the dredgers said they were unwilling to work with ongoing protest activity and the excessive use of force by the private security. This resulted in the entire dredging operation being halted and the fleet returning to harbour.
This experience shows that private security in expensive boats cannot stop dedicated activists in flimsy inflatable kayaks - direct action can and has stopped work for now. While this is a great victory, the campaign has already been a long one and the people of Rossport need our active and continuing support. Several local activists are now facing jail terms following repeated arrests and refusal to pay fines. Later this summer the specialist pipe-laying ship ‘Solitaire’ is expected to arrive. If you have got the time get out there – it’s a beautiful place and great people.
See http://www.rossportsolidaritycamp.110mb.com for info on transport and how to support the local campaign.
...and then go with friends to protest again against RBS.
Four homeless polar bears appeared before Bristol Magistrates Court today 14th November. We were arrested after blockading the Royal Bank of Scotland corporate offices on Avon St. as part of the National Day of local action on 15th October called by Rising Tide. The day of action was to highlight the role of the Royal Bank of Scotland in financing the oil and gas industry resulting in climate chaos throughout the world.
We blockaded the Royal Bank of Scotland's offices by dressing up as polar bears and laying on the ground across the vehicle entrance connected by concrete filled suitcases. (Polar bears and millions of people are being displaced from their homes by climate related degradation of the environment). After six and half hours of blockading we were cut out of suit cases and arrested.
Today we pleaded guilty to charges of 'wilfully obstructing the public highway with a non motor vehicle' (i.e. a suit case) and were given a conditional discharge and each told to pay £15 costs. In court, we wore T-shirts carrying the slogan 'RBS Guilty of Climate Crimes' and did have the opportunity to say why we had taken the action. After the court hearing, we and friends went to picket the RBS branch on Baldwin Street. We took the opportunity to chalk on the pavement 'RBS financing climate chaos', to hand out leaflets to customers and to have a bear's picnic. There is a rumour that there was a police van sitting outside the RBS offices half a mile away - possibly waiting for us to make an appearance. 'Sorry guys you were in the wrong place!'
RBS are the climate criminals and are guilty of:
1.Wilfully financing the continued extraction of fossil fuels while knowing that this will result in carbon emissions that are causing climate change.
2.As a result, causing the degradation of the world’s environment to the point where:
•millions of people can no longer sustain their lives in their homelands and so making them environmental refugees
•habitats are being destroyed so that species (such as polar bears) are being pushed towards extinction
3.Conspiring with others, including oil and gas companies (such as Shell and Exxon) and national governments (such as Nigeria, Russia, Georgia, Canada, and UK) in devising projects for the extraction, transportation and refinement of fossil fuels with little regard to the environmental damage and social injustice these projects will cause.
BATH CLIMATE CAMP 19th - 21st April
Although the camp part of the Bath Climate Camp was evicted, demonstrations have still continued...
Friday 20th April, at 8 am, a group of 8 activists approached the Land and Marine office, to leaflet and banner drop, as part of the advertised blockade. As expected, they met a huge police presence: at least 42 coppers, more in reserve, 10 police vans. They quickly imposed their conditions, no more than 6 activists [their maths skills were lacking...], to demonstrate from 8.45 am until 10.45 am, which later extended to 12.30. They tried to move us also, up 30 meters and round the corner, which we refused. Eventually, after frequently checking the site of yesterday's attempted camp opposite, the majority of the police moved on. However, with the combination of the double walls of metal fences encircling the office block, combined with the siege like atmosphere of rows of Avon & Somerset's finest [and the Met...], the vast majority of workers wouldn't have been able to get their work done anyway, so all but about 3 members of staff had been given the day off. The place was empty. Conclusion - Land & Marine were shut down! Not how we planned it, but it worked. Our congratulations to Inspector Adam Jenners.
Also, the activists were all searched under a proposed mpodification to Section 1 of the PACE 1984 Act, for items to be used in connection with criminal damage. It may well be that this proposed modification to the law hasn't yet came in to power by the time they tried to use it, so there may well be a lawsuit in the works...
Police also confirmed their use of phone tapping to one activist: "Acording to your phone calls, you only expected 10 people at your meeting, but when we there you had 100." It seems that the police had confused our camp with that of the coming national Climate Camp, this summer - and wasted 100,000s of pounds in the process. The head of this over-zealous policing operation is probably sweating round about now.
Saturday 21st April. The Party Against Petrol crowd gathered in Bath Abbey at midday to begin what would have been a colourful and noisy protest against car culture and fossil fuels, intending to occupy Lower Bristol Road and the Esso station forecourt there. Around 25-30 activists turned up, and the police, themselves numbering 30 or more, with mounted police again, imposed conditions on the procession: march round the Abbey for 30 mins, then disperse.
Well, we did as were told, marched round the Abbey, drumming and dancing and playing football, returned and dispersed... only to form up again and continue the parade, flowing through the police lines easily. Handed out leaflets, spoke to passersby, meanwhile, the highly trained police were overheard arguing with each other, throwing out blame for their lack of control, right in front of the shoppers and tourists. The street party parade came to a close at Victoria Park, amidst picnic and sunbathing, under the police's watchful eye.
24th March 2007: Trebanos Carnival
Music and laughter filled the streets of Trebanos as people who had met though the protests against the pipeline took a day off to enjoy the spring sunshine together. 5 dogs, 1 goat, 1 pony , 31 children and 79 adults took to the streets in a variety of costumes. An eight piece Samba Band led the procession which covered the length of the village and took in back streets to make sure no-one was left out. Those unable to join in cheered from their gardens and passing drivers beeped their horns.
Some footage from the Trebanos anti-pipeline carnival
BP Portrait Gallery Vigil
BP were sponsoring the BP National Portrait Competition. The winning entries were made into an exhibition, which toured the country. When it got to Bristol we decided to throw a spanner in the works of the PR machine.
There are good reasons why companies like BP choose to throw cash at cultural, arty events. Altruism and love of art and 'high' culture don't feature highly on the list. Oil companies have had a bit of an image problem over recent years, as one scandal after another has hit the front pages. Sponsoring events like this is part of their PR counterattack. Its a way of convincing the public that they are caring, responsible companies who support culture and the arts. And its very cheap too.
Bristol Rising Tide activists linked up with Bristol Espacio Colombia, a group dedicated to solidarity with oppressed people in Colombia. We shared information and ideas about the role of BP in creating climate change and attacking communities that got in the way of their lucrative oil prospecting.
On May 5th and May 20th we went to the exhibition with a counter-exhibition of our own.
SILENT PROTEST AT NATIONAL PORTRAIT AWARD EXHIBITION OPENING, BRISTOL - 15/4/07
People from Espacio Bristol-Colombia and Bristol Rising Tide picketed the Royal West of England Academy with a visual memorial of some of the people killed by the army and right-wing paramilitaries in the BP-controlled area of Colombia. The gallery is currently exhibiting the National Portrait Award exhibition which is sponsored by BP. The protestors stood silently in front of the gallery for two hours, holding copies of portraits from the exhibition with the faces removed, to signify the fact that the faces of the murdered and disappeared are rarely seen. Public support and understanding was overwhelming, with people being visibly moved or angered to learn of BP’s activities.
www.bristol.indymedia.org
“A Real Portrait of BP”.
Some Background:
In Colombia BP have been linked with paramilitaries who have tortured, killed and “disappeared” many people for getting in the way of their oil prospecting.
In Recetor, a rural village with 1171 inhabitants, in early 2002 the army arrived. Disappearances began: 2 or 3 per day (uniformed men called peasants by name and forced them into vehicle). After 63 had been “disappeared”, the community abandoned the village - those with no money had to suffer fear in silence.
6 months later, after 65 disappearances, BP began oil exploration - no luck finding either oil or bodies.
BP spends a few % of its vast budget on renewables. They spend a whole lot more on PR and advertising to convince us that they are a responsible, sustainable company.
Why are they looking for new oil reserves, when just burning the reserves we have would send the global climate berserk?
The answer, as I’m sure you have probably guessed is money. Big money. Lord Browne, the boss, recently had a pay rise to £5.6 million a year.
The Shell Wildlife Photographer of the Year Award, which has been touring the UK, comes to Bristol on Saturday December 15th, and running through the 13th of January. Rising Tide is one of the groups organizing a protest against Shell's sponsorship of the exhibit, which will be starting at Noon.
Details to follow
WHAT'S IN THE PIPELINE?
National Grid are building a huge new gas pipeline across South Wales. The project is dangerous and undemocratic. Come and join the growing wave of protests against it.
The gas won’t be coming from the North Sea fields. It is coming all the way from Qatar in massive supertankers to Milford Haven Harbour. Then it will be pumped through the 120-mile long pipeline to Gloucestershire.
National Grid are building it. They used to be a public utility, but have become a private company. This £6 billion project is the single largest energy-project financing ever(1) and the terminal at Milford Haven will be the biggest LNG receiving terminal in the world (2).
In the USA it is illegal to put an LNG harbour within 5 km of a human settlement.
If there was an accident it is estimated that 20,000 lives could be at risk from "a highly inflammable cloud several miles long" (3). - Milford Haven’s most experienced shipping pilots have described the risk of a fatal collision at one of the terminals as a ‘real everyday possibility’ (4). Each supertanker contains over 50 Hiroshima’s worth of explosive power (5). The pipeline itself is also huge - 4ft in diameter. It will run at 94bar pressure – that is 96kg per cm2, which is higher than any other pipe in Europe or the US. The Health & Safety Executive said in their risk assessment that there will be a hole during the 30-year lifespan of the pipe.
They wouldn’t put a pipeline like this through Surrey! Welsh lives and countryside have often been collateral damage in the hunt for power and profit. The British Empire used Welsh coal to power a global empire. Many men died in pit disasters or a longer lingering death from miner’s lung (pneumoconiosis) and emphysema. In Aberfan in 1966, 144 people, mostly children, died in a disaster caused by the National Coal Board’s shocking disregard for safety. The coal board wriggled out of full costs of the clean-up operation. Parents were grudgingly given £500 per child as compensation. No NCB employee was sacked, demoted or even disciplined.
What has changed?
The new corporate manslaughter bill is weak and toothless. No large corporation has ever been found guilty of corporate manslaughter. National Grid are a privatised utility. But even though they have become private, they still have the power of compulsory purchase! How can it be right for them to be able to use this power in the pursuit of profits? Since privatisation, NG have shed thousands of engineering jobs and cut maintenance work. This same corporation, accountable to only its shareholders and board, is now responsible for the safety of thousands of people along the route of this pipe. The area around Trebanos is prone to land-slip, and is so unstable that villagers are not allowed to have mains gas supplied.
National Grid’s Safety Record
In 1999, a family of four were killed in Scotland when a high-pressure gas pipe exploded by their home. Massive corrosion in the pipeline, and a failure on the part of National Grid/Transco to keep adequate
records on what kind of pipes were being used, led to the explosion. Corrosion has already been seen on the welds in the South Wales pipeline.
Climate Chaos:
"limiting global warming to a 2 degree increase with a relatively high certainty requires the equivalent concentration of CO2 to stay below 400 ppm “(6).
More than a 2C rise and we risk runaway climate change. Achieving this means rich countries like the UK cutting emissions by around 90% by 2030 - not 60% by 2050, as the Stern report says. A 90% cut in 25 years is going to require not just new technologies, but different cultures, different economies, different expectations - in short, a different way of life.
The terminal and the gas pipe will help open up new markets and some people will make huge amounts of money. It will delay the transition from fossil fuels by decades at a critical moment in human history. It is a bogus solution. Talking about gas as a transition fuel is a distraction from what we urgently need: an end to the fossil fuel growth economy and a switch to clean, decentralised, renewable energy. By the time this gas pipe reaches the end of its life we will be past the year we need to have 90% cuts.
Environmental Destruction:
The Pipeline leaves a swath of destruction as wide as a motorway. It runs through the Brecon Beacon National Park, through Sites of Scientific Special Interest and ancient woodlands.
Protest so far
There has been protest in many places along the length of the pipeline, and there is a whole lot more to come. Protesters have occupied building sites and stopped work at Trebanos, at Milford Haven and at Cilfrew. They have used walking and static blockades, lock-ons and occupied cranes and other machinery. There have been marches, public meetings, info-stalls and a lot of media coverage.
On Tues 13th Feb, activists blocked the road at the Milford Haven terminal for 6 hours by locking themselves together. Meanwhile others were arrested near the fence leading to the jetty.
A protest camp has been set up in woodland near Brecon. The site is set on the route of the planned pipe in beautiful woodland next to a stream in the Brecon Beacons National Park. People who can visit or stay are always welcome and donations of food, money and equipment will be needed. Come and help defend it! Site contact phone: 07903152822.
More information:
www.fightthepipe.co.uk, www.risingtide.org.uk/bristol, www.safehavenpembs.co.uk
Ongoing coverage of the protests at www.indymedia.org.uk
Bristol rising tide : Tel.no: 07917 383517, e-mail: bristol@risingtide.org.uk
Schnews newsletter #569 and #576.
Footnotes:
1 The agreement was the third-largest project financing of any kind, after the Channel Tunnel and a Taiwanese high-speed rail financing. Banks with major roles in the project financing include HSBC, Barclays, Royal Bank of Scotland and Citigroup.
2 http://education.independent.co.uk/careers_advice/engineering/article1946244.ece
3 http://pembrokeshiretv.com/content/templates/v6-article.asp?articleid=1292
4 http://pembrokeshiretv.com/content/templates/v6-article.asp?articleid=212
5 http://timrileylaw.com/LNG_TANKERS.htm
6 http://www.stabilisation2005.com/Steering_Commitee_Report.pdf
WHAT'S IN THE PIPELINE?
National Grid are building a huge new gas pipeline across South Wales. The project is dangerous and undemocratic. Come and join the growing wave of protests against it.
The gas won’t be coming from the North Sea fields. It is coming all the way from Qatar in massive supertankers to Milford Haven Harbour. Then it will be pumped through the 120-mile long pipeline to Gloucestershire.
National Grid are building it. They used to be a public utility, but have become a private company. This £6 billion project is the single largest energy-project financing ever(1) and the terminal at Milford Haven will be the biggest LNG receiving terminal in the world (2).
In the USA it is illegal to put an LNG harbour within 5 km of a human settlement.
If there was an accident it is estimated that 20,000 lives could be at risk from "a highly inflammable cloud several miles long" (3). - Milford Haven’s most experienced shipping pilots have described the risk of a fatal collision at one of the terminals as a ‘real everyday possibility’ (4). Each supertanker contains over 50 Hiroshima’s worth of explosive power (5). The pipeline itself is also huge - 4ft in diameter. It will run at 94bar pressure – that is 96kg per cm2, which is higher than any other pipe in Europe or the US. The Health & Safety Executive said in their risk assessment that there will be a hole during the 30-year lifespan of the pipe.
They wouldn’t put a pipeline like this through Surrey! Welsh lives and countryside have often been collateral damage in the hunt for power and profit. The British Empire used Welsh coal to power a global empire. Many men died in pit disasters or a longer lingering death from miner’s lung (pneumoconiosis) and emphysema. In Aberfan in 1966, 144 people, mostly children, died in a disaster caused by the National Coal Board’s shocking disregard for safety. The coal board wriggled out of full costs of the clean-up operation. Parents were grudgingly given £500 per child as compensation. No NCB employee was sacked, demoted or even disciplined.
What has changed?
The new corporate manslaughter bill is weak and toothless. No large corporation has ever been found guilty of corporate manslaughter. National Grid are a privatised utility. But even though they have become private, they still have the power of compulsory purchase! How can it be right for them to be able to use this power in the pursuit of profits? Since privatisation, NG have shed thousands of engineering jobs and cut maintenance work. This same corporation, accountable to only its shareholders and board, is now responsible for the safety of thousands of people along the route of this pipe. The area around Trebanos is prone to land-slip, and is so unstable that villagers are not allowed to have mains gas supplied.
National Grid’s Safety Record
In 1999, a family of four were killed in Scotland when a high-pressure gas pipe exploded by their home. Massive corrosion in the pipeline, and a failure on the part of National Grid/Transco to keep adequate
records on what kind of pipes were being used, led to the explosion. Corrosion has already been seen on the welds in the South Wales pipeline.
Climate Chaos:
"limiting global warming to a 2 degree increase with a relatively high certainty requires the equivalent concentration of CO2 to stay below 400 ppm “(6).
More than a 2C rise and we risk runaway climate change. Achieving this means rich countries like the UK cutting emissions by around 90% by 2030 - not 60% by 2050, as the Stern report says. A 90% cut in 25 years is going to require not just new technologies, but different cultures, different economies, different expectations - in short, a different way of life.
The terminal and the gas pipe will help open up new markets and some people will make huge amounts of money. It will delay the transition from fossil fuels by decades at a critical moment in human history. It is a bogus solution. Talking about gas as a transition fuel is a distraction from what we urgently need: an end to the fossil fuel growth economy and a switch to clean, decentralised, renewable energy. By the time this gas pipe reaches the end of its life we will be past the year we need to have 90% cuts.
Environmental Destruction:
The Pipeline leaves a swath of destruction as wide as a motorway. It runs through the Brecon Beacon National Park, through Sites of Scientific Special Interest and ancient woodlands.
Protest so far
There has been protest in many places along the length of the pipeline, and there is a whole lot more to come. Protesters have occupied building sites and stopped work at Trebanos, at Milford Haven and at Cilfrew. They have used walking and static blockades, lock-ons and occupied cranes and other machinery. There have been marches, public meetings, info-stalls and a lot of media coverage.
On Tues 13th Feb, activists blocked the road at the Milford Haven terminal for 6 hours by locking themselves together. Meanwhile others were arrested near the fence leading to the jetty.
A protest camp has been set up in woodland near Brecon. The site is set on the route of the planned pipe in beautiful woodland next to a stream in the Brecon Beacons National Park. People who can visit or stay are always welcome and donations of food, money and equipment will be needed. Come and help defend it! Site contact phone: 07903152822.
More information:
www.fightthepipe.co.uk, www.risingtide.org.uk/bristol, www.safehavenpembs.co.uk
Ongoing coverage of the protests at www.indymedia.org.uk
Bristol rising tide : Tel.no: 07917 383517, e-mail: bristol@risingtide.org.uk
Schnews newsletter #569 and #576.
Footnotes:
1 The agreement was the third-largest project financing of any kind, after the Channel Tunnel and a Taiwanese high-speed rail financing. Banks with major roles in the project financing include HSBC, Barclays, Royal Bank of Scotland and Citigroup.
2 http://education.independent.co.uk/careers_advice/engineering/article1946244.ece
3 http://pembrokeshiretv.com/content/templates/v6-article.asp?articleid=1292
4 http://pembrokeshiretv.com/content/templates/v6-article.asp?articleid=212
5 http://timrileylaw.com/LNG_TANKERS.htm
6 http://www.stabilisation2005.com/Steering_Commitee_Report.pdf