Greenpeace activists, including an ex-miner from the Hunter Valley, blockaded Australia's most polluting coal-fired power station to call for an Energy [R]evolution. Entering the plant in the early hours of the morning, 16 activists were able to lock themselves to the conveyors that distribute the coal.
Activist inside Eraring Power Station.
By the time the last activists had been removed from the site,
coal supply had been halted for about five hours - for every hour
supply was stopped, we prevented 2000 tonnes of CO2 from being released.
Now it's Australian prime minister Kevin Rudd's turn to act on
climate change and energy. Greenpeace's Australian supporters are
being asked to sign a petition urging Rudd to commit to phasing out
dirty coal and building a clean, safe and reliable energy future
for Australia.
Why Eraring power station?
Greenpeace Australia-Pacific's climate and energy campaigner,
Simon Roz, explains.
We have to stop fuelling climate change when creating
electricity. Eraring is old and inefficient - it's Australia's
dirtiest coal-fired power plant, sending nearly 20 million tonnes
of greenhouse pollution into the atmosphere every year. It's one of
the eight coal-fired power stations in New South Wales responsible
for half the state's and 13% of Australia's greenhouse
pollution."
Among the activists blockading the coal conveyor was Graham
Brown, a retired Hunter Valley coal miner. He said, "I feel very
strongly that we must start making the transition from coal-power
to renewable energy. Coal communities have been taken advantage of
by coal companies and governments. Renewable energy is the future,
and it's bright. Workers must be retrained and re-skilled so that
they don't miss out."
"Renewable technology is already there, we don't have to wait 20
years for it - but we need a transition mechanism in place."
The action came in advance of Australian government's climate
change advisor, Professor Ross Garnaut, delivering his draft review
on climate change. Any urgent action to be taken on climate change
must include policies that support renewables to replace dirty
coal-fired power.
As Simon Roz says, "Renewable energy can replace coal-fired
power and would be a huge step forward in reducing emissions in
line with Professor Garnaut's recommendations."
The Energy [R]evolution
Australia is just the latest of many countries in which
Greenpeace has released national Energy [R]evolution reports
showing how renewables combined with energy efficiency, can provide
all of that country's energy needs.
Greenpeace released its global Energy [R]evolution scenario in 2007. The
scenario shows how renewables can replace coal by 2030.
Become an Energy [R]evolutionary!
Send a message to world leaders who are meeting at the G8 Summit in Tokyo. Ask the leaders of Germany, Japan, the US, Canada, France, Italy, Russia and the UK to join YOU and become energy [r]evolutionaries!
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