UK Indymedia

Protest over multi million pound redevelopment of Edinburgh

19-04-2007 23:00

Demonstrations have taken place throughout the city on redevelopment plans which may mean the demolition of some of Edinburgh's most historic and listed buildings. Protesters from 'Save Our Old Town' (SOOT) demonstrated on the Royal Mile outside the City Chambers as the Council discussed the £300 million development plans of both the Canongate and Market Street. With these, and many more 'redevelopment' plans for around the city, Edinburgh is changing quickly, and the Old Town is being destroyed quicker than you can say 'Listed Buildings'.

Links: Canongate Community Forum (SOOT) | Save Glenogle Baths Campaign | Save Meadowbanks Campaign | 600 protest against Meadowbank Stadium destruction

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Ready to remove a blight on our landscape?

16-04-2007 09:01

UPDATED

This month a controversial experimental genetically modified potato crop is due to be planted in the UK by the German chemical giant BASF (offshoot of the infamous AG Farben). DEFRA initially gave approval in December for BASF to undertake trials at two sites, one in Cambridgeshire (at the National Institute of Agriculture and Botany) and the other initially in Derbyshire - until the farmer pulled out.

The trials are the first GM crops to enter British soil in nearly 3 years, after public opposition forced a u-turn in government and corporate plans for patented crops. Although presented as an R&D trial into the effectiveness of an anti blight gene, they are widely considered to be trial of public opinion.

On 14th April in Cambridge a protest walk took place [photos 1, 2]. This was followed on the 21st by a rally in Hull. This event ended with the proposed trial being effectively sabotaged even before it had began when over a hundred people entered the site and planted several varieties of seed potatoes in the field making it impossible for a scientifically valid trial to take place there.

LINKS:
Cambridge 1 | 2 | 3 | grid reference
Hull 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | pics

Background GM - Back on the agenda? | Sabotage promised | New GM crop trials | London info night (Tues 17th)

Campaign sites mutatoes.org | hedonagainstgm.org.uk | Cambridge GM concern | myspace.com/gmfreepotatoes

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GM Potatoes - Blessing or Blight?

11-04-2007 22:03

On Monday 2 April, Cambridge GM Concern organized a public meeting regarding the forthcoming NIAB/BASF trial of GM potatoes in the Cambridge area. Some fifty people turned up for the event, which featured three speakers, who had travelled up from London for the occasion: Michael Antoniou is a Reader in Molecular Genetics at Guy's Hospital Medical School, Helena Paul is the chair of GM Freeze, and Clare Oxborrow is from the Real Food Campaign organized by Friends of the Earth.

Meanwhile campaigners concerned about similar trials in Yorkshire are having a demo on the 21st of April and have set up the mutatoes website and a myspace page.

Mass for Critical Mass!

11-04-2007 21:25

Birmingham's Critical Mass has been steadily growing to reclaim the city's roads, where people are often forced by petroleum guzzling road users to ride dangerously in the gutter. This month's ride saw over 30 people, joined by a few skaters and BMXers, joyfully cycling along the City Centre's main roads and streets, accompanied by a trailer sound system pumping out cycling-related grooves, without any intervention from cops or psychotic car drivers. Last month's ride saw a cap driver attempting to undercut the mass and colliding with a cyclist. It also saw attempts by the police to intervene in the Mass.

Birmingham Critical Mass takes place on the first Friday of every month. Poeple usually meet up at 5:30pm in Pigeon Park (St Philip’s Cathedral) and set off at about 6pm for a spontaneous ride around the city centre.

Recent Rides reports: April | March | February | January: cyclist wins re-trial

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Illegal Tree Felling By Developers at Garden Festival Site

21-03-2007 13:13

Langtree McLean, the developers who want to build on the old garden festival site, have cut down more than 1000 trees already. But they don't have planning permission yet! If they get their way, the site will be almost completely clear-felled.

They are destroying semi-mature trees, including oaks, from the original plantings for the Garden Festival in the early 1980s. The tree-felling is also devastating for the birdlife established on the site, as birds commence their breeding activities at this time of year.

Indymedia articles:

15/5/2007 - save festival site: lobby of council
14/5/2007 - May Update on Liverpool Garden Festival Campaign
24/4/2007 - Liverpool Festival Site Plan 'Will Ruin Prom Landscape'
12/4/2007 - Garden Festival Fayre This Sunday!'
6/4/2007 - Help Save The Liverpool Garden Festival Site!
22/3/2007 - Take Action Against Illegal Tree Felling in Liverpool!
15/3/2007 - Large-Scale Tree Felling at the Old Garden Festival Site
12/10/2005 - Developers present their plans for festival site

Two Days of Action Target Climate Criminals

06-02-2007 03:37

Over the weekend of 3-4 Feb 2007, actions up and down the country and beyond targeted dangerous 'greenwash' being desperately pushed by corporations and politicians. The actions came in the wake of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report released on Friday, which warned of world temperature rises of over 6C by the end of the century. The report indicated that a 4 degree rise would mean a 10% loss in global food production due to draught, flooding, water shortages. While the world slowly wakes up to the magnitude of climate chaos, Shell and Exxon Mobil last week announced record breaking profits. With the figures laid out so clearly, the nauseating hypocrisy spouted by corporations and politicians has spurred action from Paris to Aberdeen.

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Radley Lakes Resistance

27-01-2007 12:06

Update (15/02/07): Tree felling and preparation work has started, and sporadic actions are taking places to try to block this work. More help is needed.

Update (06/02/07): The eviction took place on Tuesday 6th February. Bailiffs wearing balaclavas smashed their way in through a set of downstairs windows early in the morning, but it still took them several hours to clear the house after one of the squatters locked on. "We may have lost round one but we will re-group and consider our next course of action. We are not finished yet[...]" - quote attributed to one of the squatters by the Oxford Mail.

URGENT CALL to defend the occupation of Sandles, Thrupp Lake.

On Wednesday 24th January, energy company RWE Npower was granted an order to evict this lakeside property with immediate effect. Meanwhile, at the property extremely robust defences are being built with a view to delaying the destruction of this area of outstanding natural beauty. This is an URGENT CALL for people to join them in resisting the coming eviction. Please phone the site mobile 07772 055 384 straight away.

Npower, who run the notoriously polluting Didcot Power Station, want to fill the lakes with toxic fly ash, a by-product of coal-burning.

A massive campaign by local people has been ignored by both company and the authorities. Oxfordshire County Council has so far facilitated npower's dumping. The habitat is home to many protected species, including water voles and rare orchids. There have been reported sightings of otters. Further expertise is requested to gather further evidence of the ecology of the lakes. Boats are also very welcome at the site.

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Work Starts On M1 Widening As Protests Continue

23-01-2007 19:20

The work to widen the M1 has started today near Sheffield. The M1 is due to be widened from Luton along Nottingham and Sheffield to Leeds, costing a total of £3.74 billion. Many people believe the widening will allow traffic to grow and cause more CO2 emissions. Road transport currently accounts for 21% of emissions in the UK and rises every year. The work started today is to widen a 2km stretch to four lanes between junction 31-32 near Sheffield. The contractors, Jacksons Civil Engineering, expect that the work will last for a year. Work on a stretch around Nottingham is due to start this summer.

The No Widening M1 Alliance has been rallying local residents and local groups currently exist in Nottingham, Derby, Leicester and Sheffield. Ever since the campaign launch and the first bannerdrop on motorway bridges around Sheffield it has been busy. Various promotional exhibitions by the Highways Agency have been picketed and distrupted by activists in Long Eaton (reports: 1 | 2 ), Kegworth, Selston and Sheffield (reports: 1 | 2 ) Various public meetings and benefit gigs have been organised and at the end of October a mass bannerdrop from Luton to Sheffield coincided with the publication of the Government's 'Stern Report' on Climate Change.

Links: No Widening M1 Alliance | The Highway Agency | Jackson Civils Engineering

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Trolleybus to return to Nottingham?

22-01-2007 10:08

Nottingham used to run a vast network of trolleybusses. The first trolley was introduced in 1927 and in 1930 it had the largest fleet in the country. The last trolley bus operated in Nottingham until June 1966. Recently a new book was launched on the history of Nottingham’s Trolleybusses, and it does raise the question if bringing them back might become the way forward in making our public transport system ready in the face of climate catastrophy.

Some cities in Europe are upgrading their trolley bus networks and some are even planning the construction of new ones. With Britain having such as vast history on the ‘old trolley’, wouldn’t it be worth looking into the possibility of returning to this potential zero-emission way of transport?

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Resistance Builds up Against Welsh Gas Pipeline

20-01-2007 23:28

National Grid is attempting to construct a high pressure, high volume gas pipeline right across South Wales to connect two new liquid natural gas (LNG) terminals at Milford Haven with the existing national gas distribution network at Tirley, Gloucestershire. Local people have campaigned against the project on environmental, ecological and safety grounds, as well as complaining about the lack of proper consultation. The 'official' routes for their many objections having been exhausted, protesters launched a campaign of direct action against the pipeline at the end of last year, with several protest camps set up along the proposed route [Reports: 1 | 2].

January has seen new camps and more direct action, which have successfully held up construction work at various points along the pipeline route. Activists from across the country are supporting local efforts to protect the beautiful Welsh countryside from this impending environmental disaster.

Reports: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | Photos: 1 | Video: 1.

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Now Look Here, Sonae!

11-01-2007 06:05

Only two players have been produced by the Liverpool FC youth academy since they moved to Kirkby in 1998. That's a shocking record! It can't just be a coincidence that the academy is near to a chipboard factory that pumps out tonnes of cancer-causing chemicals every year. A school, public playing fields and houses are also easily within range of Sonae's pollution. The company have been in and out of Huyton Magistrates Court, but tiny fines and official indifference have left them free to cause all the disease and death they like.

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Court rejects ASBOS for airport activists

18-12-2006 10:13

On Friday, Loughborough Magistrates Court rejected calls from the Crown Prosecution Service to slap ASBOs on the 24 Plane Stupid activists who they described as “highly organised extremists” that were arrested in connection with the shut down of Nottingham East Midlands short haul airport in September. In an apparent move aimed to avoid having the case heard by a jury, the charge of public nuisance was dropped, as was the charge relating to an alleged breach of the aviation and security act.

Plane Stupid lawyer, Mike Schwarz, described the action to the court as a “classic piece of civil disobedience” and reminded the court that “Tony Blair himself has described climate change as the greatest threat facing mankind.” Campaigner for Plane Stupid, Ellen Rickford, said, “The same day that we learn the government is pushing ahead with its airport expansion proposals, they try to use ASBOs to stamp out peaceful protest. Well, it seems their plans for that were as doomed as the aviation industry.”

Feature articles: Protesters occupy runway at East Midlands Airport | Plane Stupid's Day of Action

On the newswire: Court rejects ASBOS for airport activists | Climate activists shut airport in taxiway occupation

Links: Plane Stupid website | East Midlands Airport (EMA) website | Climate Chaos topic page | Indymedia Climate | Wikipedia on Climate Change

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Wendland, Germany: Resisting Castor Nuclear Transport

09-11-2006 23:22

From Friday 10th of November, around 20,000 German police were mobilised to guard the transportation of highly radioactive nuclear waste from France to Germany [Map] in containers called "Castor". The destination was Gorleben a village in northern Germany in a region called the Wendland. Protest actions took place throughout France and Germany, especially on Sunday along the last 50 kilometres of the route on rail, and on the early hours of Monday during the final 20 kilometres by road. For many activists this year's Castor transport was a prelude to the protests against the next G8 summit in Germany in June 2007, where many groups call for blockades motivated by past experiences in the Wendland.

Click here for daily Updates, further Reports and more Photos.

Reports in IMC-UK: Police endanger demonstration of high school students | Nuclear opponents delay waste transport | Attack on anti-castor camp thrown back | More nuclear waste reached Gorleben amid protests.
Photos in IMC Germany: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | Photos at Umbruch Bildarchiv
Photo Galleries: "Village of Resistance Metzingen" (de)
Videos in IMC-Germany: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | Castor video gallery in kanalB.

Links: IMC-Germany | IMC Chiapas | IMC-UK Feature Castor Transport 2005

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Plane Stupid's Day of Action

05-11-2006 15:38

Co-ordinated actions under the banner of Plane Stupid - including the occupation of Easyjet's London headquarters - took place today as part of a national campaign against short haul flights. Conceived at this summer's highly successful Climate Camp and enabled by the formation of affinity groups in Sheffield, Cambridge, Manchester, Southampton and London, it follows on from the occupation of East Midlands Airport, dubbed Climate Camp 2 in September.

Full article

What Lies Beneath Shell's Wild Lie?

20-10-2006 17:21

Shell is the third largest oil company in the world. It is also the new sponsor of the Natural History Museum’s Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition. On wednesday 18th of October, as guests began to queue up outside the museum's main gates for the awards opening ceremony, London Rising Tide activists turned up armed with banners, boiler suits, animal costumes and a Shell Wildlie counter-exhibition, all bent on ending Shell’s sponsorship deal with the Natural History Museum [Report and Photos]

The action was received with wide support by the assembled crowd. Many agreed to register their disgust once inside the museum, and to sign up to London Rising Tide's statement opposing the sponsorship deal.

Past London Risisng Tide Shell Actions: Carnival shuts Shell station on County Mayo Day of Action | Ogoni & Bogoni Solidarity vs. Shell | Greenwash Guerrillas Target Shell Chairman's Lecture.

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Nottingham City Council - Climate Change Conference

15-10-2006 12:03

On 9 October I was hopeful and optimistic as I set off to the Nottingham City Council's climate change debate held in the council house. Unfortunately my optimisum faded rapidly.

My day started late as the bus didn't turn up as usual. I could have cycled but there's nowhere in the city to safely leave my bike. I eventually got in by bus which cost me considerably more than the using the more polluting option of driving by car. I then walked over the refurbished area in front of the council house covered in slabs imported from Spain and China. I passed two gas-guzzling chauffeur driven Bentley's for the Lord Mayor and his deputy.

Audio of the Climate Change debate at Broadway Cinema 4.6Mb [16kbps] - mp3 4.5M

Links: Economist claims Nottingham City’s climate protection strategy is too little, too late | Nottingham city council climate protection strategy | An Inconvenient Truth: Film & regional decision makers response at the Broadway

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Community under siege in Mayo

14-10-2006 16:13

Since late 2000 there has been an on-going attempt by multinationals and the Irish state to devastate a remote coastal area of county Mayo with a toxic refinery and a high pressure production gas pipeline. Since the summer of 2005 mass pickets shut down the refinery construction site after five residents were imprisoned for refusing to allow Shell’s sub-contractors access to their and their neighbours' small farms which the pipeline is to go through.

In August Shell announced that they intended to re-take the site in September, however during that month over a hundred people would gather at the gates when ever there was indications that such an attempt was to be made. Shell failed in September, but on the third of October a massive two hundred strong police unit forced a path for Shell. This week there have been sporadic sit down blockades of construction traffic and solidarity protests have taken place in locations across Britain and Ireland.

New: Rossport Solidarity action page

Reports from Mayo: Interview with Rossport Solidarity Camper | Rossport - Shell to Sea Video Report | S2S Oct 12 - 3 arrested in Mayo, Dempsey cornered in Galway | Bellanaboy, Community Under Siege - Day 11

Full article | 6 additions | 9 comments

Protesters occupy runway at East Midlands Airport

24-09-2006 10:19

At 07:55am on 24 September, 2006, a group of protesters 'breached security' at the East Midlands Airport and occupied one of the operational taxi-runways. The 21 activists from Plane Stupid said they "wanted to see airport expansion plans scrapped, a tax on aviation fuel and plane tickets, and an end to short haul flights."

The method of the occupation was chaining themselves to each other, having set up tents saying 'Climate Camp 2'. Baptist minister Malcolm Carroll, who lead a memorial service for the victims of the effects of climate change, also took part in the action. Spokesman of the group, Joss Garman, said: "an estimated 150.000 people die of the effects of climate change each year. That's the equivelant of a 9-11 every week."

At midday, armed police, dog units, firebrigade and helicopter arrived and cleared the runway. 24 people were arrested for 'suspected offences under the Aviation Security Act'. Contrary to what the BBC reported, some flights leaving the airport were delayed.

Various sources have reported that most of the protesters' houses were raided by armed police while in custody. Officers have confiscated clothes, computers, diaries and other personal items, in some cases without giving out receipts for them. Some of the protesters are due in court on Friday 6th October at Loughborough Magistrates Court.

Update: Plane Stupid in court on Friday - solidarity support planned

Other media coverage: Earth First! | This Is London | BBC | Leicestershire police | UK Airport News

Links: Plane Stupid website | East Midlands Airport (EMA) website | Climate Camp 2006 on UK Indymedia

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Massive victory for anti-incinerator campaign in Nottingham

20-09-2006 22:04

Today the Development Control Committee of Nottingham City Council unanimous agreed on rejecting the application to expand Eastcroft Incinerator, which burns most of Nottingham's waste. At the moment 150.000 tonnes of waste goes through the incinerator owned by waste giant Waste Recycling Group (WRG) each year. The expansion would bring in waste from neighbouring counties and bring capacity up to 250.000 tonnes.

Local residents who for the last year have campaigned under the banner of NAIL (Nottingham Against Incineration and Landfill) are now celebrating this massive victory. Owner WRG could appeal the decision, but the council stands a strong case that they seem to be willing to defend. Aside from stopping the expansion, NAIL is continuing its struggle to close down the facility and campaign for better management of waste and recycling facilities in the city.

Video: The NAIL film (10 min. various formats) | NAIL Slideshow (avi 9M)

Audio: NAIL Public meeting and debate (1hr 20mins - 32kbs, 19Mb) | You can't do that here! NAIL banner drop (mp3 911K)

Photo: Photos from the incinerator protest at Council House before the vote

Previous feature articles: Planning Officer Recommends Rejections of Incinerator Expansion | Council backs off from incinerator expansion decision | Incinerator Public Meeting - Public Bodies pull out! | Nottingham Against Incineration and Landfill campaigners hand in petition | Planning Officer insists on wider public consultation for incinerator expansion | Campaigners meet Environment Agency over incinerator | Sneinton's Rubbish Day Out 1 - The Days Events | NAIL campaign 'banner drop' at Sneinton Boulevard | NAIL campaign hammers on... | The air that we breathe...

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Planning Officer Recommends Rejections of Incinerator Expansion

11-09-2006 21:59

Today the Planning Officer made public the report and recommendations on the proposed expansion of Nottingham's controversial waste incinerator.

The report recommends rejection!!

Today the Planning Officer made public his report and recommendations into the plans to expand Eastcroft incinerator. This report will go to the Development Control Committee on the 20th September, when the report will be considered and the application voted on.

The Planning Officer is recommending that the Committee REFUSE PERMISSION on several grounds, mainly in that the proposals go against the City's plans for the River Side development and concerns on the commutative effect on emissions on people living near by.

As the vote is still very crucial, we will continue with our protest outside Nottingham council House on 20th September from 12:30am. We will greet the Councillors as they arrive and hope they vote for democracy, vote for the residents of Nottingham and vote NO.