NEWS UPDATE: The Greenpeace vessel MV Greenpeace has been arrested by the Dutch Port Authority after the owners of the Saga Tide, a Norwegian flagged vessel, made this request to the Dutch courts. Sunday evening Greenpeace activists attempted to prevent the Saga Tide from docking.

Saga Forest Carrier International, the Norwegian holding company for the Saga Tide asked the Dutch authorities to arrest the Greenpeace ship as a security for the damages suffered by them after not being able to unload their cargo for one day. According to the holding company, they have suffered damages in the amount of 55,000 Dutch Guilders, about 25,000 Euros. Greenpeace is currently challenging the basis for the arrest of the vessel.

26 February 2001
Holland rejects timber from Canadian rainforest destruction

Vlissingen, The Netherlands - Greenpeace is continuing to block a shipment of timber from the destruction of Canada's Great Bear Rainforest in the Dutch port of Vlissingen. A Greenpeace activist has now been locked to the anchor chain of the Norwegian flagged ship, Saga Tide since early this morning.

After the activist had climbed onto the anchor chain, a harbour pilot's ship crashed against a Greenpeace inflatable knocking down a cameraman filming the activities. The cameraman, Adam Campbell, was taken to a hospital in Vlissingen with shoulder injuries and was later released. Yesterday, Greenpeace succeed in preventing the Saga Tide from docking.

The Netherlands imports around 20,000 cubic meters a year of rainforest timber from British Columbia, Canada. Western red cedar and hemlock are the main timbers imported to Holland for use in the construction industry. Greenpeace is campaigning to ensure the Dutch government and construction companies switch to certified Forest Stewardship Coucil (FSC) timber.

“The Canadian government and the timber industry need to know that Greenpeace is not going to stand idle while the Great Bear Rainforest continues to be destroyed,” said Just van den Broek, from Greenpeace Netherlands.

The protest in Holland is part of a series of Greenpeace actions that have taken place this year in Italy, the US and Hong Kong to bring about a moratorium on logging in the Great Bear Rainforest.

The Great Bear Rainforest is home to many threatened species. It is a unique habitat for black tailed deer, grey wolves, grizzly bears and a rare snow-white variation of the black bear called the Kermode or "Spirit Bear".

"At present, when construction companies buy timber from Canadian logging companies such as Interfor, they are buying rainforest destruction. Their Guilders are fuelling the devastation of some of the world's most endangered forests,” warned van den Broek. Interfor has recently gone back to logging areas of pristine rainforest, including the Surf Inlet region on Princess Royal Island. This region, which is the home of the rare white spirit bear, was assessed by scientists as a core area requiring full protection.

This spring, the Upper House of Dutch Parliament is meeting to talk about a proposition that would make the labeling of wood compulsory in the Netherlands. If the proposition goes through, timber obtained from properly managed forests would carry a green label, while timber from destructive logging would be required to display a red label.

Recent clearcut from Surf Inlet, into a pristine area on the northeast of Princess Royal Island in the Great Bear Rainforest. The island is home to the rare spirit bear, a white bear found nowhere else on earth. © Greenpeace 2001 For more recent clearcut images, visit the BC photo library.

READ MORE: Greenpeace Briefing - International Forest Products [An ADOBE document.]

For more information about Greenpeace's ancient forests campaign, email: guestforest@ams.greenpeace.org