12
February 2009 - International — Choking
children, destroyed crops and a devastated
fishing industry. That's the price the local
community at Cilacap in Indonesia have had
to pay since a coal-fired power plant was
constructed in their town. Today 40 Greenpeace
activists and local community representatives
chained themselves to the gates of the coal
plant to block the transport of coal on
Central Java's south coast.
The action is in response
to the Indonesian Minister of Energy's decision
to build or expand 35 more coal-fired plants
in the next 2 years - including doubling
the size of the Cilacap plant. The activists
are determined that, rather than devastate
more communities and fuel global warming
with coal power, Indonesia should embrace
its potential in geothermal, solar and wind
energy, and choose for an energy revolution.
That's what has just
happened in Greece where, following a six-month
long Quit Coal campaign by Greenpeace, the
Greek Minister of Development has stated
that the government is not considering hard
coal or nuclear power as part of Greece's
energy future. Instead the Greek government
will be rewriting its Long-Term Energy Plan
to exclude coal and promote renewable energy
and energy efficiency.
That's the kind of future
Indonesia needs to choose. Along with allies
including KAM Cilacap, JATAM, Walhi and
Sekolah Demokrasi Ekonomi we have launched
a campaign against building new, and expanding
existing, coal-fired power plants in Indonesia.
The first step is the launch of an Indonesian
version of our True Cost of Coal Report,
which spells out the real costs of coal
power - over 350 billion euro a year in
environmental and health costs; costs that
are borne by communities like Cilacap rather
than utilities like PT Segara Sumber Prima
who operate the planet in Cilacap.
Decisions like those
being taken in Greece and Indonesia will
have a global impact. In December this year,
world leaders have their best chance to
avoid run-away climate change at the UN
talks in Copenhagen. As countries like Greece
choose for an energy revolution the chance
of a good deal rises, but if nations like
Indonesia lock themselves into a future
of pollution the challenge becomes greater.
The Quit Coal Tour-
Greece, October 2008
In 2008, the Rainbow Warrior and the Arctic
Sunrise took the clear message to Quit Coal
to 11 Mediterranean and European countries,
including Greece.
When the campaign began,
four new coal-fired power plants were planned
in Greece. Following a campaign against
the first, we met with the prospective owner
and convinced him to drop the plan. We also
hosted the two main opposition parties in
Greek politics on board the Rainbow Warrior,
where both agreed to quit coal if they came
to office. Now that determination has reached
the government and Greece can look forward
to a cleaner future.
+ More
Cattle ranching biggest
driver of Amazon deforestation
January 29, 2009Print
Tell a friend Belém, Brazil — At
the World Social Forum in Belém,
in the heart of the Amazon, we’ve released
evidence confirming cattle ranching to be
the biggest driver of Amazon deforestation.
Greenpeace Brazil has produced a series
of maps that show in greater detail than
ever before the direct links between cattle
ranching and forest destruction in the Amazon
state of Mato Grosso.
The maps have been released
as part of our "Save the Planet - Now!"
Brazilian ship tour.
Brazil is the world’s
fourth biggest climate polluter, and 75
percent of its greenhouse gas emissions
are the result of deforestation. The Brazilian
government has made promises to tackle destruction
of the Amazon as part of its commitment
to combat global warming, but its plans
to expand the cattle industry are at odds
with this commitment.
Our Amazon team used
specialized techniques to analyze and compare
satellite images of vegetation (or lack
thereof) on the ground, and data showing
the growth of infrastructure, such as roads
and agribusiness. It is the first time that
these two types of data have been put together
in this way. Our maps in the report Amazon
cattle footprint, clearly show how much
former rainforest is now used for cattle
pastures in Mato Grosso.
We focused on Mato Grosso
because it is area of the Amazon with the
highest rates of deforestation. It is also
where the cattle industry is largest – there
are well over 25 million cows in the region,
and 7 of the 10 biggest cities in the Amazon
producing cattle and cattle products are
found there.
Forests are carbon sinks.
When they are logged the stored carbon is
released into the atmosphere. Tropical forest
destruction is responsible for a fifth of
global greenhouse gas emissions – more than
the entire international transport sector.
Deforestation in Brazil makes the country
the world’s fourth biggest climate polluter.
Billions urgently needed
to protect rainforests and save the climate
The European Commission
estimates that halving deforestation will
cost anywhere from €15-25 billion annually.
It is not just the Brazilian government’s
responsibility to protect our climate by
protecting our rainforests. As world leaders
prepare for the most important climate negotiations
ever, taking place in Copenhagen, Denmark
at the end of the year, we need to see commitments
from industrialized countries that pay as
much attention to saving the world’s rainforests
as they have done to bailing out fat cat
bankers.
Brazil has promised
to tackle deforestation as part of its climate
commitments. But, as our maps clearly show,
unless it stops expansion of the cattle
industry in the Amazon, there is no chance
that it can live up to this promise.
Zero deforestation by
2015: we’ve got the solution
If we are to have a
fighting chance against climate change,
global greenhouse gas emissions have to
peak by 2015, and then start to fall dramatically.
That means halting deforestation completely
by 2015 in the Amazon. But, even without
its plans to expand the cattle industry,
the Brazilian government’s promises to tackle
Amazon deforestation are not strong enough.
The plan aims to reduce deforestation by
72 percent by 2017. This is a good start
but it’s not enough. It misses the 2015
deadline, and will not halt deforestation.
Luckily we’ve got the solution – working
together with Brazilian NGOs we produced
a “zero-deforestation” plan that shows how
it can be done.
