Press release - 29 November, 2002
Greenpeace activists stop the single-hulled oil tanker 'Byzantio' in the port of Tallinn, Estonia, preventing it from leaving with its cargo of 50,000 tonnes of oil.
Greenpeace activists today stopped the oil tanker Byzantio in
the port of Tallinn, Estonia, preventing it from leaving with its
cargo of 50,000 tonnes of oil. The Byzantio is chartered by the
same company that contracted the ill-fated oil tanker Prestige that
sank off the north-western coast of Spain earlier this month.
Greenpeace activists are chained to the mooring lines of the ship
and inflatable boats are displaying banners with the word "Hazard!"
stamped across them.
"The world has been able to see the unimaginable amount of
damage to the environment that oil tankers such as this cause to
the environment. It would be direct governmental negligence to
allow one more hazardous ship to leave port," said Pernilla
Svenberg of Greenpeace. "The Prestige catastrophe is clear proof of
the threat ships like the Byzantio are for the environment. With
the experience of the Prestige behind us, European governments must
ban these ships from our seas. We can t afford to wait 13 more
years."
According to UN shipping regulations, single hulled oil tankers
are still allowed to sail on all of the world s oceans until 2015
when a total ban on these ships goes into effect.
The Maltese flagged Byzantio was set to sail across the Baltic
and the North Seas following the same route as the Prestige on its
way to Singapore. Recently, the Paris Memorandum of Understanding,
one of the world s leading port inspection authorities, placed
Malta on safety black list for its failure to fulfil basic safety
measures.
European ministers responsible for transportation, energy and
tele-
communications are scheduled to meet in Brussels on December 6
and maritime safety and environmental issues are expected to be
high on the agenda. Denmark, the current seat of the EU Presidency,
is expected to present several initiatives to tackle the issue of
dangerous shipments.
"This is a chance for European governments to stop these
hazardous
shipments," concluded Svenberg. "They shouldn't waste it."
VVPR info: Photos available from John Novis at ++31 6 53819121Video Available from Martin Atkin at ++ 31 6 270 00 057