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14 June, 2001
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Greenpeace action against export of Norwegian oil to the US. "Kyoto
with or without the US"
| Listen to Truls Gulowsen at the scene of the action. | |
| MP3 version | Real Audio stream. |
Mongstad/Norway
- While US President George W. Bush meets European Union leaders in Gothenburg
to discuss the Kyoto protocol, 15 Greenpeace activists protested the arrival
of the super tanker "Patris", which is loading Norwegian oil for export
to the United States. Greenpeace demands that both Norway and the EU make
it clear to Bush that they will ratify the Kyoto Protocol with or without
him, and that no other alternatives will be accepted.
"Norway must support the Kyoto Protocol, together with the rest of Europe. Oil exports to the US, which is trying to wreck Kyoto, only undermines Norwegian policy. Kyoto must be ratified and enter into force before 2002, with or without Bush", said Truls Gulowsen, Greenpeace campaigner.
The Greek tanker "Patris" is on its way to the Norwegian oil company Statoil's oil terminal at Mongstad, Norway, and will take on 300,000 tonnes of oil bound for the USA. The tanker was met by five Greenpeace inflatables with banners saying "Stop Bush - Ratify Kyoto".
Norway is currently the eighth largest oil exporter to the US. Norwegian exports in February amounted to more than 355 thousand barrels a day, or one tanker the size of the "Patris" per week. The Norwegian state-owned Statoil, soon to be privatised, supplies ten percent of the oil consumed on the US east coast.
"Though it is a first small step towards safeguarding the Earth's climate, the Kyoto Protocol, is the ONLY global legal instrument available to start tackling the problem. Oil exports to the US will only lead to continued unregulated CO2 emissions by the US, a country which is trying to destroy the Kyoto Protocol", said Gulowsen.
On Tuesday, twenty activists occupied oil tanker "Cosmic" for ten hours, preventing it from leaving the Mongstad oil terminal. The tanker was loaded with 150,000 tonnes of crude oil was also bound for the US. This followed Sunday's action where Greenpeace activists occupied a tanker carrying US oil into Le Havre, France.
This action is part of Greenpeace's global campaign to pressure corporate America and George W Bush to work with the rest of the world to save the climate.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION
PLEASE CONTACT:
In Norway: Truls Gulowsen: +47 90107904
In Stockholm: Ulrike Tenlid: +46 70 668 70 70
In Amsterdam: Steve Sawyer: +31 653504715
Photos available: + 31 653819121
Video available: +46 70 668 70 70