Copyright Greenpeace/Greenpeace activists on a crane of the Electricite' de France's (EDF) proposed new European Pressurized Water Reactor (EPR) on the second day of action against the construction site.
The story of the Federal States of Micronesia taking on Czech utility company, the CEZ Group has been featured in The New York Times. “Climate change is real and it is happening on our shores,” Andrew Yatilman, the director of Micronesia’s office of environment and emergency management, told Reuters. “It’s a matter of survival for us. If you look at the map of the Pacific, we’re just dots in the middle of the ocean.” The continued emissions from the power plant in Prunerov, the largest single source of carbon dioxide emissions in the Czech Republic, could threaten Micronesia’s existence in the future. The action is supported by Greenpeace that demanded last month that the Czech Republic decommission the plant by 2016. Czech paper Hospodarskie Noviny commented on the legal procedures of the case.
In Russia, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin signed a government decree that would allow the Baikal Pulp and Paper Mill (BPPM) once again to produce pulp, RIA Novosti reports. This activity used to be prohibited in the Baikal ecological territory, and an appeal is likely to come from a larger group of environmentalists to President Dimitry Medvedev. "We are shocked by this regulation. It means that waste production is resumed” said the spokesman and campaign director of Greenpeace Russia, Ivan Blokov.
In the UK, a debate will be held in Hartlepool to discuss proposals to build a new nuclear power station, The Scotsman reports. Panelists include Paul Newman, Station Director of Electricite' de France (EDF), the company which nominated Hartlepool as a site for a new power station and Ben Ayliffe, Senior Nuclear Campaigner for Greenpeace.
In Canadian news, the story of the interrupted speech by Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff at the University of British Columbia is still circulating. Greenpeace activists and several protesters stood up and began chanting loudly against his stance on Canada's tar sands.
The Greenpeace Guide to Greener Electronics was featured in the Green Living Blog in The Guardian.
In general environmental news AFP reports that some Japanese lawmakers are questioning a plan to sign a defense logistics accord with Australia while the nations are arguing over Japan's whale hunts. Japan's government is considering submitting a bill to parliament on a defense pact that would allow the two countries' militaries to share food, fuel and other supplies and services in their operations overseas. The lawmakers argued that signing a so-called Acquisition and Cross-servicing Agreement should be reconsidered in light of the recent harassment of Japan's whaling fleet.
David Cameron is making the headlines in the UK, where he is being warned that his green policies and enthusiasm will not be shared by the rest of the Tory MP’s. The poll, published by a website for Tory supporters comes as a blow to the party leader. Mr Cameron has repeatedly campaigned on the slogan “vote blue, go green” and was famously pictured with huskies in the Arctic to highlight the threat of global warming. The poll found that 144 Tory candidates in marginal seats ranked “reducing Britain’s carbon footprint” as the least important from a list of 19 priorities for the next government. Only eight candidates thought climate change was top priority for an incoming Tory candidate, compared with 112 most worried about the borrowing crisis.
The Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, responsible for the development of transgenic corn, has received national examination and approval. The Huazhong Agricultural University, responsible for the development of transgenic rice also received security clearance. This means that China with have independent intellectual property rights on genetically modified maize and rice, which should be the main focus of attention for worldwide opposition, reports Peoples Daily Online.
In a different article, The Peoples Daily Online reports that the Chinese Ministry of Agriculture released an annual report based on monitoring results of agricultural products, saying 96.4 percent of vegetables had met safety standards in 2009, up 0.1 percentage points year on year. The ministry said it would step up the control over the use of prohibited pesticides and veterinary drugs in 2010 in order to further improve the quality and safety of agricultural produce.
The Express features a story on Israel as an eco-pioneer. By the end of this year, the world’s first all-electric car network will be up and running in one of the most unlikely settings. The cars built by Renault-Nissan need a network of re-charging points and battery changing stations and these are being set up in Denmark, Hawaii, California, Canada and Australia.