Greenpeace activists halt movement, by climbing up the mooring ropes of the single-hulled oil tanker Byzantioin the port of Rotterdam, the Netherlands.
Yet activists attempting to stop a similar ageing oil tanker in
Rotterdam have been removed by court order.
The activists chained themselves to the mooring lines of the oil
tanker Byzantio for 28 hours in Rotterdam harbour. But a
Netherlands judge ordered the activists to cease for face a penalty
of 250,000 Euros per day. According to the judge hearing the case,
the Byzantio complies with all maritime regulations and in his
opinion, it is "highly unlikely the ship will sink."
There is definitely something wrong with a system that allows
substandard ships to sail, the same system that allowed the
Prestige to sail. It is one clear example of why the system needs
to change and new, stricter regulations need to be adopted. These
types of vessels should not be sailing the world's oceans.
In the afternoon, the Greenpeace activists painted the message
"EU Act Now" on the hull of the Byzantio to communicate to the EU
Transportation, Telecommunication and Energy Ministers meeting in
Brussels Friday who will be discussing maritime safety, among other
issues.
We want full and unlimited liability throughout the chain of
responsibilities, including the owners, managers and operators of a
vessel and of any charterers or owners of the cargo. Additionally,
we believe that the EU must immediately ban the use of single
hulled tankers and exclude ecologically sensitive areas from
shipping routes.
Our oceans must not endure another Prestige.
The 26 year-old Byzantio, like the Prestige, is a single hulled
vessel sailing under the Maltese flag. It has been chartered by
Crown Resources - the same Russian company that chartered the
Prestige.
At one point during the day's events, Greenpeace representatives
held talks with Aegean Shipping Company - the operator of the
Byzantio - asking them to make a blueprint for an unlimited
liability formula for the Byzantio, but the proposal was turned
down when the company went to court.
Help us by taking action now to
support this action. Demand that the European Union tighten up the
loopholes and flag of convenience laws that allow deadly cargoes to
sail past our fragile coasts legally. Demand an end to the tragedy
of oil spills.
Join
the discussion of the spill in Spain.
Take action online!
Send a protest message to Crown Oil and demand that the EU
tighten up regulations on old, dangerous oil tankers. Click here to keep other ships in
port.
Help us by making an
urgent donation to our efforts to stop oil spills and move the
world toward clean, renewable energy.