press releases

Greenpeace to go to court to stop shipment of nuclear bomb materials

Last edited 2 July 2002 at 8:00am
2 July, 2002

Greenpeace is to go to the High Court in an attempt to prevent British Nuclear Fuels (BNFL) shipping weapons-useable plutonium half-way round the world from Japan to the UK later this week.

The faulty fuel, a mixture of plutonium and uranium oxides, contains 255kg of plutonium, enough to make 50 nuclear weapons. Nuclear scientists have confirmed that it would be relatively easy to separate out the plutonium in the discarded fuel to create a nuclear weapon.

Greenpeace launches renewable energy global tour

Last edited 26 June 2002 at 8:00am
26 June, 2002

North Sea countries could generate a third of their electricity needs from offshore wind within a generation

Esso seeks to gag campaign

Last edited 24 June 2002 at 8:00am
24 June, 2002

The Esso oil corporation has backed down from claims that a campaign against its products has had no effect, and now admits that environmentalists are hitting its business.

The world's largest company is taking Greenpeace - a leading member of the StopEsso campaign - to court in France, claiming that the organisation has inflicted reputational damage on the Esso brand name. The Texas-based corporation is demanding 80,000 Euros a day in compensation.

Government urged to replace Chapelcross and Calder Hall nuclear reactors with local offshore wind farms

Last edited 21 June 2002 at 8:00am
21 June, 2002

Responding to British Nuclear Fuels Ltd's (BNFL) announcement today that they plan to shut two of Britain's oldest nuclear power stations Greenpeace called on the government to back proposals for local offshore wind farms to replace them.

The closure of Chapelcross in Dumfries has been brought forward to no later than March 2005 and a similar nuclear plant, Calder Hall, at BNFL's Sellafield complex in Cumbria is to close three years early in 2003.

Eleventh hour BNFL assurance halts Greenpeace court action

Last edited 20 June 2002 at 8:00am
20 June, 2002

Greenpeace received eleventh hour assurances last night from British Nuclear Fuels Ltd that made it unnecessary for the group to seek an injunction in the English High Court. Greenpeace wants to prevent BNFL from taking irreversible steps that might prevent important safeguards, designed to protect the public, applying to the loading of faulty plutonium - MOX fuel onto a ship bound for the UK from Japan.

Basingstoke incinerator occupation ends

Last edited 19 June 2002 at 8:00am
19 June, 2002

The occupation of the Basingstoke incinerator ended this morning at 10.15am when aerial bailiffs removed the last of the five remaining activists from a cargo net suspended from the roof of the building. The 100 strong invasion by Greenpeace and other anti-incinerator groups from across Britain began on Monday morning and stopped building work at the plant for three days.

Activists defy arrests at incinerator occupation

Last edited 18 June 2002 at 8:00am
18 June, 2002

Thirteen activists who yesterday halted the construction of the new Basingstoke incinerator have vowed to maintain their occupation, despite the arrest of seven of their colleagues. Today bailiffs climbed onto the roof of the building and used bolt-cutters to remove protesters from the structure and ropes to lower them the hundred feet to the ground. Greenpeace climbers meanwhile are securing themselves inside the plant and others are now chained to the cranes. One hundred volunteers from anti-incineration groups across the country invaded the plant yesterday at dawn.

Activists continue to stop construction of new incinerator, as government misleads the public...

Last edited 17 June 2002 at 8:00am
17 June, 2002

The occupation of the Basingstoke incinerator ended this morning at 10.15 am, as aerial bailiffs removed the last of the five remaining activists from a cargo net suspended from the roof of the building.

100 activists from anti-incineration groups the country had joined forces with Greenpeace and invaded the plant at 6.30 am on Monday morning, stopping construction for three days.

Labour MPs urged to fight Blair on new nukes

Last edited 16 June 2002 at 8:00am
16 June, 2002

Campaigners today urged Labour MP's to 'say enough is enough and call time on Blair's terrifying new nuclear weapons policy.' The call came after Greenpeace discovered that the government is building a massive new nuclear weapons construction facility in the Berkshire countryside. Military analysts have warned that the project could be part of the government's new first-use policy on non-nuclear states. The new establishment could be used to build low-yield nuclear bombs known as 'bunker busters.'

Greenpeace activists jailed indefinitely in Sweden

Last edited 13 June 2002 at 8:00am
13 June, 2002

A fifty year old British doctor has been imprisoned indefinitely in Sweden after she took part in a peaceful protest against an oil dumping vessel in the Baltic Sea. Her plight has outraged British environmentalists, who will hold a demonstration outside the Swedish embassy in London later this afternoon (Thursday).

Liz Rickman has been told she will be kept in jail until trial, a date for which has not been set. She is being held with Kristina Petersen, a 27 year old student from Germany. Neither has been charged with a crime, but they are being detained on suspicion of aggravated trespass (1). Both women took part in a peaceful protest against a vessel which had previously been caught dumping oil into the Baltic Sea, which is illegal under Swedish law (2). Yet while the owners and operators of the vessel walked free from court, both Liz and Kristina have spent the last week in police cells and have been told they would remain there until a trial, though no date would be given for the court case.

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