Worthing: Fossil Foolery at RBS, Natwest and Thomson travel agents

Five activists including one refugee polar bear descended on the streets of Worthing town centre to tell the public about the climate crimes of RBS, Natwest and Thomson travel agents.

Percy the polar bear told of his ecosystem’s plight, and specified how the targetted corporations were contributing to climate change. 300 leaflets were handed out to members of the public, telling them about Fossil Fools Day and explaining how local corporations are damaging the planet. Later on, Percy went into the Natwest branch and closed down his account in protest, and encouraged others to do the same and write to their bank manager concerning Natwest’s bankrolling of oil corporations.

 Roundup from risingtide.org.uk: http://risingtide.org.uk/node/273

 More details & photos for may of these actions can be found on  http://www.fossilfoolsday.org and UK Indymedia:  http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/04/395361.html

  Fantastic Fossil Foolery! UK Action Round-up

Check out Fossil Fools Day page for all the amazing actions in other countries, including the US, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, South Africa and Australia; as well as media coverage from around the world. And read on for the scoop on all the UK actions.

Email us with any action reports or photos that we’ve missed out. A massive congratulations to everyone who took part in foolery large and small… and don’t stop now, build on contacts you’ve made with these actions, get involved wherever you live, plan for May 1st(False Capitalist Solutions), June 3rd (Food and Climate Change), the Camp for Climate Action and beyond… see you next time!

Aberthaw, Wales: Coal-fired power station blockaded

Activists, including people from Bristol Rising Tide and Oxford, chained themselves together and blockaded both roads into Aberthaw power station – the biggest polluter in Wales. The actionstopped normal operations, and the staff were sent home for the day. The power station, also condemned by workers for its poor safety record, last year pumped out more than 7.4million tonnes of CO2 (carbon dioxide), the major contributor to climate change. It also emitted 28,000 tonnes of nitrogen dioxide and 31,000 tonnes of sulphur dioxide –

two chemicals that contribute to acid rain. This action comes after the successful closure by activists of Ffos-y-Fran open cast mine in Merthyr Tydfil, on Tuesday 1st April. Ffos-y-Fran is the biggest mine in Europe and has been forced upon the people of Merthyr Tydfil in-order to fuel the dirtiest of all power stations and big business’s greed for profit.

IndymediaBBC

Bacton, Norfolk: Major gas terminal blockaded

Earth First! UK activists today blockaded the UK’s largest off shore gas terminal at Bacton in Norfolk. The Bacton complex handles 40% of the UK’s gas supply. Activists blockaded the main access road to the site for four hours, preventing workers from going on shift and construction materials from arriving. At either end of the access road, teams of three people locked on across the road, and unfurled banners reading ‘Shrink or Sink’ and ‘Keep Fossil Fuels in the Ground’. 19 people were arrested, including most of the support teams.IndymediaBBC TVBBC onlineEastern Daily PressEvening NewsEvening Star

Cambridge: RBS banner hang and roof occupationThe Royal Bank of Scotland is one of the main financiers of climate crime, in the form of oil and gas exploration. After targeting the Trinity Street branch last year, this time protesters paid a visit to the Hills Road Branch to mark the occasion of Fossil Fools Day. Protesters climbed onto the canopy of the building and unfurled a banner reading “RBS – The Oil and Gas Bank: Climate Criminal”

.Indymedia

Edinburgh34 4×4s and sports cars disarmed

Loads of gas guzzling 4×4’s and around 10 swanky sports cars were disarmed last night as part of the ‘Fossil Fools’ day of action. We targeted one of Edinburghs’ more affluent areas for our April fools action. We chose only rich peoples vehicles to symbolise how the wealthy and powerful are mainly responsible for the destruction of our planet. We did the mung bean trick. It was very easy.Indymedia

Clowns take on Food Mile Freaks

The Edinburgh battalion of the Clandestine Insurgent Rebel Clown Army (CIRCA) marched into Sainsbury’s and Tesco to point out the absurdity of squandering limited fossil fuel resources on flying strawberries to Scotland so we can eat them in the middle of winter. In Sainsbury’s, the red-nosed army acted out the carbon intensive process of transporting food from farmer to plate. The clowns then dispersed throughout the store in search of an elusive ‘Scottish banana’, encouraging fellow shoppers to find (if they could) any produce in the store which was actually from Scotland.Indymedia

Glasgow Glasgow Fossil Fools present awards to local Climate Criminals

*After some deliberation as to who was more worthy of the prize, they have decided to present three awards to…*The Flight Centre – aviation is the fastest growing source of fossil fueled carbon emissions.*The Royal Bank of Scotland – who through investments in oil currently boasts a yearly output of emissions equal to that of the whole of Scotland.*Shell Oil – emblem of our fossil fuel thirstyIndymedia

Climate change doesn’t exist. (APRIL FOOLS YOU FOSSIL FOOL!)”“Banner hung on Charing Cross motorway intersection in central Glasgow with the following note attached…“Dear Car-Driving Commuters.Who stack yourselves up one by one.Grid-locking our city Glasgow in high carbon, low health, grrr- noise / eurgh-air and catastrophic climate chaos.GET OUT OF YOUR CARS YOU FOSSIL FOOLS!From Cyclists, Pedestrians, Health Workers, City-Dwellers,Low-Carbon Lifestylers Wanting Radical Change Now,Grounded Non-flyers Who Want to Grow Vegetables on Your Land.”Indymedia

Fossil Foolery on the streets of Glasgow A bunch of Fossil Fools took to the Streets of Glasgow today, trying to persuade people to up their carbon emissions by putting more petrol in their cars, applauding SUV’s and urging pedestrians to Stop Walking – Start Driving! Next they applauded more 4×4s at traffic lights, before inadvertently stumbling into a branch of Starbucks to play – and Starbucks are a well known model employer and sell Green Coffee! The Fools, having realised their mistake, then took to the Street again, and lit upon a branch of the Royal Bank of Scotland, where they unfurled their large Award banner, applauding the RBS’

s contribution to climate change. The Fools then socked toward, then into, a Flight Centre. Here they enquired about getting a holiday with the biggest, guaranteed CO2 emission, and learned that many BIG SUVs were to be seen at a local private school, so they scrambled up there to drool over all those beoooootiful gas guzzlers.

Hastings: Jesters vs. Ronald McDonaldThe Jesters of Hastings challenged Ronald McDonald in a Showdown! Jesters v’s Ronald McDonald outside Hastings Mcdonalds in Wellington Square. Custard pies vs your big macs!

Hull: Climate Crisis Prevention Unit

Dressed in high visability jackets reading “Climate Crisis Prevention”, hard hats and boiler suits, we hung a banner in the town centre, below the large TV screen, reading:MONEY WELL SPENT?2007 = 17,000 HOMES FLOODEDCLIMATE CHANGE = MORE FLOODSWe then proceeded to hand out flyers to local residents, of whom the VAST majority were very supportive. Our experience of successfully making the transition for ‘talking’ to ‘doing’ was very positive for everybody involved, and having now completed our first ever action, we’

re looking forward to planning the next on the 1st May.Indymedia

Leamington Spa: 50-strong anti-shopping demoAt Leamington Spa today we had a demonstration against the proposed Clarendon Shopping Arcade which if built will be huge and will have a large new parking area attached. There were 50 adults and children, many dressed up. There were fairy outfits, a polar bear, 3 jesters, 2 people dressed as death with oil drips, and more face painting. We had 4 banners, several placards and we handed out 4 different kinds of leaflets. There were two musicians playing a fossil fool’s song written specially for the event. There were 4 people on bikes, and one bike and trailer with kids in. There were decorated umbrellas, and helium balloons with Fossil Fool’s day written on. Nothing like this ever happens in Leamington. We passed a flower stall and the owner was so supportive he gave us 5 or 6 free bunches of flowers.

Lancaster banner hang

Building up to Fossil Fools Day, some people hung a banner at the side of Lancaster’s busiest roundabout for the “rush” hour gridlocked car drivers to enjoy. The banner read: “Worried about Climate Change? Stuck in Traffic? Get a Bike!”Indymedia

LondonFossil Fools Day “kicks off early” in London

Fossil Fools Day 2008 got an early start with London Rising Tide “kicking”

things off. In front of the Football Association headquarters in London, Rising Tide protesters issued the FA a Red Card for accepting sponsorship from E.ON – a utility company proposing to build new coal-fired power plants in the UK. At closing time, LRT played a spoof game of football outside the FA with a coal ball, scoring own-goals and with the slogans ‘Climate FU Cup’ and ‘E-ON: No new coal’ emblazoned on their football shirts. On the backs of their shirts were the names of the proposed new coal-fired power stations.Indymedia

Polar bears take on Porsche

Protesting polar bears and Londoners delivered an apology on behalf of Porsche outside its London HQ for:* Going against the will of 85% of Londoners by trying to overturn the planned extension of the congestion charge* Lobbying to stop the introduction of European initiatives to cap harmful vehicle emissions* Continuing to produce true gas guzzlers, with 44 of its 46 models falling into the most polluting category of car (band G)The apology was delivered by an activist pretending to be from the company.Indymedia

Land Rover Ad Agency occupied by London Rising Tide

Activists from climate justice direct action group London Rising Tide (LRT) occupied the offices of Y&R, the ad agency behind the current Land Rover campaign, and a new campaign for arms giant BAe Systems. The LRT activists were posing as executives from a newly-privatised wing of the MoD called HarrionProjects, a spoof company whose centrepiece is the Harrion®, a civilian version of the Harrier Jump-Jet. LRT also issued a spoof press release saying that Y&R has agreed to launch the Harrion® marketing campaign, and also that ClimateCare, the CO2 offsets company which is working to ‘offset’ Land Rover emissions, has agreed to do the same for the Harrion®, even though the Harrion® only manages 0.3mpg. The two occupiers were arrested.IndymediaPrecision Marketing

New Coal Fool found at the Department for BusinessWestminster awoke to cries of “Roll up! Roll up! Come see the Fossil Fool” at 8am this morning as 15 jesters and 30 protestors arrived at the department for business and regulatory reform to laugh at John Hutton, the minister responsible for the government’s push to build a string of new coal-fired power stations in the UK. Carrying banners which read: “New Coal? You must be choking!” the campaigners were juggling coal and planet Earths and wearing John Hutton ‘jester’ masks and hats. They called on Gordon Brown to take charge of John Hutton’

s rogue coal plans and launch a coal power strategy review to consider the climate impact of going back to dirty coal.Stop Kingsnorth

EV-EON Carbon Capture launched on Southbank!

EV-EON Unnaturally Carbonated Water was launched today on the streets of London. Using all new climate-saving technology we can save the day and keep burning coal for ever more. Well done Carbon Capture and Storage! This innovative new technology will be used at E.ON’

s Kingsnorth Power Station and used to capture the carbon dioxide given off by the burning of coal.The carbon di-oxide is then bubbled through fresh spring water from nearby Kingsnorth Hills to create carbonated drinking water which is bottled and sold in Italian restaurants. Every time you drink a bottle of EV-EON you are helping to store all that climate changing gas – the more you drink, the more you store the more coal we can burn. Although consumers are reminded to drink responsibly and refrain from burping or breathing other wise they may be responsible for climate change.Spoof websiteIndymedia

Parliament Square protest against Kingsnorth

Around a hundred students with People and Planet came to Westminster to protest about the plans to build a new coal-fired power station at Kingsnorth in Kent, the first of eight such major carbon-emitters being planned. Students brought with them three large white cooling towers, each with a large message ‘NO NEW COAL’ and one with rather nice grime dripping from its upper lip, and erected them on Parliament Square in front of the Houses of Parliament. Many of the students also held cutouts of Gordon Brown’s face as they shouted advice to him that this programme makes a nonsense of the government’s policy on carbon emissions, and several held posters showing the Draft Climate Change Bill, one of which, held by a jester, was set alight with the help of some lighter fuel.Indymedia

Evening Standard Promotes Fossil Fools Day

The Evening Standard’s recent run-in with the press complaints commission which regarded last years Climate Action Camp near Heathrow Airport, seems to have resulted in a remarkable volte-face with regards to climate activism. These photographs where taken of billboards around London on Fossil Fools day.Indymedia

Ffos-y-Fran operators Argent PLC targeted

Argent form half of Miller-Argent who run the UK’s largest opencast coal mine, Ffos-y-Fran in Merthyr Tydfil, South Wales. Around a dozen demonstrators from Campaign Against Climate Change turned up at 4pm in in Albany Courtyard, a private street off Piccadilly where Argent have their London office and set up behind barriers watched by rather more police from three vans and a police car, with a police photographer taking extensive video and photographs. A manager from the Albany came and talked to the demonstrators, taking a document about the mine and promising to deliver it to his tenants at Argent Group PLC.Indymedia

Manchester Fossil Fools Parade

Some clowns got stuck in the revolving doors at RBS and a human pipeline was escorted from the city centre building by security. Some members of the parade got confused and chalked messages on the pavements, and people trying to escape the beating of drums ran to hide in the flight centre while the samba band, who really had no idea, blocked the entrance! Some policemen came along looking for Spartacus but couldn’t find him anywhere. On a positive note banners reading ‘OIL,GAS and COAL the jokes on US! Happy Fossil Fools Day! were hung on the walls of RBS, out of respect for their hard work contributing to climate chaos. Placards saying ‘Mr.T says “I pity the fuel” were waved. The parade ended triumphantly outside Manchester Town Hall to recognise the vital role Manchester City Council play in the area, damaging the climate every day.Indymedia

Merthyr Tydfil, Wales: Ffos-y-fran open cast coal mine shut down

Activists shut down operations at one of the biggest open cast coal mines in Europe to highlight a ‘black hole’ in Britain’

s climate change policy. This includes a team that has climbed a rig in the mine and have hung a banner while another team is blockading the mine gates, locking themselves down with with bicycle d-locks.IndymediaVideoBBCIC WalesThe Coal Hole

Newcastle: Hummer dealership run-inActivists in Newcastle blocked the gates of a Hummer dealership with a ‘Car Culture Kills the Climate’ banner. When workers tried to get through, they were allowed to pass, but then one worker rammed the paople stood across the gates and 2 people ended up on the bonnet of the car after being hit. The police turned up and arrested protesters for criminal damage ‘to the car’ and took all their cameras & video as ‘evidence’ of ‘their crime’. The police then proceeded to raid both the houses for the arrestees and take computers and rip up floorboards.

Norwich: Norwich Union unexpectedly withdraws its 6.1 billion investment in fossil fuels

Communications Director Sarah Jones (who looked suspiciously like a Rising Tider) gave a beautiful speech explaining the change in Norwich Union investment policy: “The company has realised that investing £6.1 billion worth of insurance premiums in BP, Shell and other major oil, coal and car companies is unsustainable in the current climate. I’m sure our shareholders will agree with me that protecting our common future is certainly more important than protecting our bottom line.” The speech thoroughly confused the press, and activists then helped Sarah distribute 50 Norwich Union ‘Apology Sandbags’ as tokens of the company’

s regret over its past investment decisions.Indymedia

Nottingham: E.ON Office Blockade

30 people blockaded the entrances to E-on’s offices on Mount St, Nottingham City Centre. People covered in green paint to represent E-on’s greenwash, locked onto the front entrance to E-on’s office and stood in front of other entrances preventing E-on workers from getting to work. At E-on’s offices today, Bob Castle said “

We are here today because despite E-on publicly claiming green credentials, it is trying to build a new generation of coal fired power stations. It is trying to build the first new coal fired power station in the UK in 50 years, at Kingsnorth in Kent, and wishes to continue its expansion with a new power staion at High Marnham in Nottinghamshire. Two activists were arrested and have now been released on bail.

IndymediaAudioBBCThis is NottinghamThis is Nottingham

Plymouth: Esso garage occupied

Climate activists, a proud penguin, king rat, yellow clowns and critical massers joined forces to shut down the Esso petrol station on Exeter Street, Plymouth. The climbing clowns scaled the roof while others blocked access to the forecourt. The atmosphere was celebratory in a doomed planet kinda way! – music and dancing, lots of leaflets given out and a surprising number of positive hoots from passing cars. There were seven arrests, both the roof team and those blocking the forecourt. The demonstrators, from Rising Tide, were calling for ExxonMobil to acknowledge the urgency of climate change, to cease funding think-tanks and lobbyists that are committed to blocking internationally agreed policies on global warming, and to start investing in renewable energy.IndymediaBBCThis is Plymouth

Sheffield: Bike ballet at petrol stations

Motorists in Sheffield were reminded of an alternative to their fuel-consuming, carbon producing transport. Petrol stations belonging to Waitrose and Shell were targeted with drivers being offered leaflets and bike route maps while being entertained by a cycle ballet performance.Indymedia

Southampton: Shell petrol station occupied

A group of eight activists have taken over the forecourt and three activists have scaled and occupied the roof with a banner to highlight the damage and destruction the oil giant is causing to our planet. “We are here because we feel we have a duty to ourselves, others and generations to come, to not let multi national companies like Shell rape and destroy the earth. As companies and governments across the world are slow in taking direct and effective action to prevent the total destruction of the plant we feel it is up to us as individuals to take DIRECT ACTION and not let corporate giants destroy our futures.”

Worthing: Fossil Foolery at RBS, Natwest and Thomson travel agents

Five activists including one refugee polar bear descended on the streets of Worthing town centre to tell the public about the climate crimes of RBS, Natwest and Thomson travel agents. Percy the polar bear told of his ecosystem’s plight, and specified how the targetted corporations were contributing to climate change. 300 leaflets were handed out to members of the public, telling them about Fossil Fools Day and explaining how local corporations are damaging the planet. Later on, Percy went into the Natwest branch and closed down his account in protest, and encouraged others to do the same and write to their bank manager concerning Natwest’s bankrolling of oil corporations.Indymedia

Wrexham: Banner hung on on Plas Coch roundaboutIndymedia 

Thursday 3rd April: Today members of Bristol Rising Tide, a group of climate activists [1], are participating in an action that has stopped normal work at Wale’s biggest polluter, Aberthaw Power Station in the Vale of Glamorgan. The power station, also condemned by workers for its poor safety record, last year pumped out more than 7.4million tonnes of CO2 (carbon dioxide), the major contributor to climate change.

It also emitted 28,000 tonnes of nitrogen dioxide and 31,000 tonnes of sulphur dioxide – two chemicals that contribute to acid rain. This action comes after the successful closure by activists of Ffos-y-Fran open cast mine in Merthyr Tydfil, on Tuesday 1st April. Ffos-y-Fran is the biggest mine in Europe and has been forced upon the people of Merthyr Tydfil in-order to fuel the dirtiest of all power stations and big business’s greed for profit.

As the world acknowledges the need for a substantial reduction in carbon emissions the government and the Welsh Assembly have given their backing for the mining company Miller-Argent to spend upwards of 17 years extracting 11 million tons of coal from the nearby Ffos-y-Fran open cast mine in Merthyr Tydfil to continue feeding this power station.

As fossil fuels go coal is a serious contender for the dirtiest known. But despite the fact that coal-burning generators produce twice the carbon emissions of gas burners [2], the government intends to build £20 billion worth of new coal-burning generators by 2020. Gordon James, director of Friends of the Earth Cymru, described the power station as a “dirty dinosaur” that should not be allowed to stay open in its present form. But RWENPower, the generating company that runs Aberthaw, said, “It is true Aberthaw Power Station is a large emitter of CO2 and that there are other emissions involved in power generation.”

Bristol Rising Tide believes that it is crucial to highlight the concerns and issues surrounding the development of Aberthaw and the proposed new investments into Coal powered generators such as Kingsnorth power station in Kent. The site of the next Camp for Climate Action. Ciara, a member of Bristol Rising Tide states: “The burning of coal at Aberthaw and the new power stations across the UK such as Kingsnorth will only exacerbate the problems of climate chaos. People need to know that the government is hell bent on returning us to the dark age of fossil fuel.”

bristol@risingtide.org.uk

http://risingtide.org.uk/bristol

Earth First! UK activists today blockaded the UK’s largest off shore gas terminal at Bacton in Norfolk. 40% of the UK’s domestic gas comes ashore here, is processed and distributed by pipeline. Activists blockaded the main road outside the site at 6.30 am this morning, preventing construction workers and shift workers from arriving.

Environmental activists have today disrupted work at a major North Sea gas installation as part of the Fossil Fools Day international day of action on climate change.

At 6.30am, around 25 activists from Earth First! UK peacefully blockaded the North Sea gas installation at Bacton on the North Norfolk Coast. The Bacton installation, operated primarily by petroleum giants Royal Dutch Shell & ExxonMobil, includes a gas-fired power station, processing plant and distribution point for domestic gas. Shell estimates that over one third of domestic UK gas comes ashore at Bacton. The protest is also in solidarity with protestors at Rossport in Ireland, who have been trying to prevent a similar installation being built in their community.

Catherine Lewis, one of the activists at the Bacton blockade, said: “The fossil fuel industry is the single biggest driver of climate change, and gas is no exception. Switching from one fossil fuel to another is not a solution to climate change – the only real solution is to keep fossil fuels in the ground.” Banners proclaiming “Shrink of Sink” were stretched across the road, giving the message that we need to shrink our economy and consumption to cut carbon emmissions.

norfolk@earthfirst.org.uk

Several groups of protesters have chained themselves to large excavation machinery, while another group has blockaded one of the main entrances to the site. The protest at the Ffos-y-Fran site highlights the hypocrisy of a government that claims to be taking climate change seriously, while approving new coal mines and coal-fired power stations.

Coal has the biggest impact on climate change of any fuel – despite opposition from the world’s leading scientists, the Government is supporting an outdated and dangerous technology that has no future.

Merthyr residents have opposed the scheme for many years. The mine comes within 36 metres of local homes – in England and Scotland, the scheme would have been rejected due to legislation requiring a 500 metre buffer zone between opencast mines and residential areas.

The action coincides with Fossil Fools Day, an international day of climate change protest.

More details and live updates from the site are available on http://www.thecoalhole.org Email: media@thecoalhole.org Tel: 07876753254 or 07775654500

http://www.thecoalhole.org EDITOR’S NOTES Ffos-y-Fran Ffos-y-Fran (pronounced forss-uh-vran) will be one of the largest coal mines in the history of Wales. Objections by local residents to the project have meant a delay of almost two decades from project proposal to the granting of planning permission. Local residents live as close as 36 metres from the mine.No compensation or re-location has been offered to those affected by the scheme.

The mine is operated by Miller Argent Ltd – a joint venture between house builder Miller Group, property developer Argent and landowner Bernard Llewellyn. Over the life of the project, Miller Argent estimates it will mine 10.8 million tonnes of coal at between 750,000 tonnes and 1 million tonnes per year, which when burnt will release over 30 million tonnes of CO2 into the atmosphere. Much of this will be burnt in Aberthaw Power Station, near Swansea.

Coal is the most carbon-intensive of all fossil fuels – burning it has the biggest impact on climate change of any fuel.Ffos-y-Fran and mines like it in the UK will help supply a new generation of coal fired power plants. Kingsnorth in Kent is the first of these proposed new plants, and is planned to start production by 2012. It will be followed by at least seven others. Despite much interest in ‘carbon capture and storage’

(CCS) technology, it is at least 20 years from being commercially viable on the scale suggested by the Government. The use of coal in power stations has risen by 10 per cent over the past 10 years, and consequently CO2 emissions in the UK are higher than ever before. Experience shows us that if we dig up coal, we burn it.

By supporting new coal mines like Ffos-y-Fran the Government is sending a clear signal that they are not committed to substantially addressing climate change. UK Government and Welsh Assembly Government Policy The UK Government’

s flagship Climate Change Bill commits the government to reduce UK emissions by 60% by 2050. The newly appointed Climate Change Committee that the bill establishes, chaired by Lord Turner, will report in November on whether this target should be 80%, and are likely to approve the more ambitious target.

The UK Government has committed to keeping global temperature rises below 2 degrees centigrade.The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change – the most authoritative scientific body ever assembled – stated in its Fourth Assessment Report in 2007 that for warming to be between 2 – 2.4C will require a 85% cut in global emissions by 2050. Relying on coal-fired power stations to generate electricity for the UK means we are almost certain to miss these targets –

there is a clear gap between governmental rhetoric and action.

The Welsh Assembly Government will not agree to a buffer zone of any sort around the mine, despite legislation in England and Scotland which imposes 500 metre buffer zones on opencast mines which would have prevented Ffos-y-Fran from being approves, if implementation of the legislation had not been delayed in Wales. No compensation or re-location has been offered to local residents. The Welsh Assembly Government describe climate change as “the greatest threat facing humanity.” They also state: “The local environment matters… communities are blighted by littering, fly-tipping and pollution.”

Their approval of Ffos-y-Fran shows that, again, there is a gap between rhetoric and behaviour.

Who are we? This protest has brought people together from across Wales and the UK, in solidarity with local residents opposed to Ffos-y-Fran. We come from many different backgrounds, including business, academia and environmental organisations. For many of us, this is the first time we have taken part in direct action of this kind. We don’t do so lightly, but in this case, given the level of opposition to the mine which has already been ignored, we see peaceful protest as one of the few options left to highlight the urgent and growing threat of unstoppable climate change. Residents Against Ffos-y-Fran As a group, and under various names, Residents Against Ffos-y-Fran (RAFF) have been fighting against opencast mining at Ffos-y-Fran for 4-5 years now, with several members of the group opposing opencast mining in Merthyr Tydfil for decades before.

A 10,000 signature petition against the scheme was collected by the group in a relatively short period of time. With the recent start of mining at Ffos-y-Fran, the group re-formed with a new structure and identity to better meet the challenge presented.

At 7:30 this morning 30 people blockaded the entrances to E-on’s offices on Mount St, Nottingham City Centre. People covered in green paint to represent E-on’s greenwash, locked onto the front entrance to E-on’s office and stood in front of other entrances preventing E-on workers from getting to work.

At E-on’s offices today, Bob Castle said “We are here today because despite E-on publicly claiming green credentials, it is trying to build a new generation of coal fired power stations. It is trying to build the first new coal fired power station in the UK in 50 years, at Kingsnorth in Kent, and wishes to continue its expansion with a new power staion at High Marnham in Nottinghamshire.

We are here to tell E-on that they will not suceed and the only real solution to climate change is to keep fossil fuels in the ground. Coal is the dirtiest Fossil Fool and to build new coal power stations in the face of climate change is collective suicide.”

Fossil Fools Day, called by the international Rising Tide network and its allies, has seen over one hundred actions take place around the world. Protests have focused on the companies responsible for runaway carbon dioxide emissions, as well as complicit governments and those promoting false solutions.

Groups who have taken action today in the UK include Eastside Climate Action, Rising Tide, the Camp for Climate Action, World Development Movement, People and Planet, the Network for Climate Action and Earth First!

While Eastside Climate Action were visiting E-On in Nottingham, other groups around the UK were in Parliament Square (where People and Planet built a coal power station complete with 12ft cooling towers), Porsche HQ in London (where a public apology was issued on behalf of Porsche), the Department for Enterprise, Business and Regulatory Reform (where WDM held the world’s first laugh-in over plans for new coal at Kingsnorth) and Manchester City Centre (where a parade toured the city’s biggest fossil fools).

“We are taking action to prevent the fossil fuel industry from destroying our future,” said Bob Castle from Eastside Climate Action. “Vested interests in business and government are bent on pursuing economic growth at all costs. We need to shrink, not protect, the fossil fuel economy if we are to survive climate change.”

For interviews and more information about today’s action at E-on contact 07880 937511

** Updates will be available throughout the day at www.fossilfoolsday.org ** Notes to Editors:

1)E-on own Ratcliffe on Soar Power Station the site of protests by 11 people who locked themselves to machinery to prevent coal entering the power station. The judge in the trial agreed that the 11 defendants had acted to prevent death and serious injury from the release of CO2 from Ratcliffe into the atmosphere.

2)Ratcliffe is the largest CO2 emmitter in the East Midlands and 2nd largest in the UK

3)Despite E-on’s green claims they only produce 9% of their energy from renewable sources. http://www.eon.com/en/unternehmen/8559.jsp

4)E-on’s infrastructure investment fund is 95% for non-renewable energy projects. http://www.energyrisk.com/public/showPage.html?page=449443

5)E-on plan to build the UK’s first new coal fired power station, plans that are opposed by groups from Greenpeace to World Devolpment Movement.

6)The Climate camp, (which previously held camps and did actions at Drax and Heathrow) plan to target Kingsnorth this year. www.climatecamp.org.uk 7)E-on also plan to build a new Coal Fired Power Station at High Marnham near Retford in Nottinghamshire. http://www.thisisnottingham.co.uk/displayNode.jsp?nodeId=133965&command=displayContent&sourceNode=133948&contentPK=20117809&moduleName=InternalSearch&formname=sidebarsearch

Pics from http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/04/395382.htmlALAN LODGE 

Photographer – Media: One Eye on the Road. Nottingham. UK tash@indymedia.org Member of the National Union of Journalists [No: 014345]  

Some clowns got stuck in the revolving doors at RBS and a human pipeline was escorted from the city centre building by security. Some members of the parade got confused and chalked messages on the pavements, and people trying to escape the beating of drums ran to hide in the flight centre while the samba band, who really had no idea, blocked the entrance! Some policemen came along looking for Spartacus but couldn’t find him anywhere.

This was a wonderful day where fossil fools in all their many guises could come together, from old men (we think?!!), to young dinosaurs, in shades, masks, facepaints and suits to worship at the alter of commercial climate denial. To encourage people to consider whether or not they too may be fossil fools there were free vegan cakes, and leaflets with guidance about making Manchester a cleaner city (another little slip up).

On a positive note banners reading ‘OIL,GAS and COAL the jokes on US!

Happy Fossil Fools Day! were hung on the walls of RBS, out of respect for their hard work contributing to climate chaos. Placards saying ‘Mr.T says “I pity the fuel” were waved. The parade ended triumphantly outside Manchester Town Hall to recognise the vital role Manchester City Council play in the area, damaging the climate every day. Just before the end a charming man did a short but inspiring solo on the spoons.