Int'l Outrage Mounts over Brent Spar

[The.Greenbase@gb.greenpeace.org]

INTERNATIONAL OUTRAGE MOUNTS OVER UK DECISION TO DUMP BRENT

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                   GREENPEACE PRESS RELEASE
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INTERNATIONAL OUTRAGE MOUNTS OVER UK DECISION TO DUMP BRENT
SPAR       Greenpeace protestors begin Day 18 of occupation

LONDON, Tuesday 17 May 1995 (GP)--Belgium has joined Denmark
to
protest the UK Government's decision to allow Shell to dump
the Brent Spar North Sea oil platform.

About 15 Greenpeace protestors are occupying the Brent Spar to
prevent the oil giant from blowing away the toxic-laden
platform's anchor chains before towing it away to the North
East Atlantic for dumping.

Belgian Ministers for Foreign Affairs, Environment and for
Trade last night issued a statement saying:

"The British decision to dump the oil platform "Brent Spar"
into the sea is against the common sense of what is considered
to be adequate protection of the marine environment."

Belgium wants the oil and gas platform dumping issue put on
the agenda for the North Sea Conference (June 8-9, Denmark)
and asked the UK Government to suspend plans to dump the Brent
Spar until then.

The UK Government also faces increasing pressure from
opposition parties within the country: yesterday, the Labour
Party condemned the dumping of the Brent Spar, saying:  "This
decision shows that, for all their fine words about the
environment, the
Government put the short term interests of the oil companies
before the long term future of the North Sea".

"The UK faces condemnation at home and abroad for its out-
dated policy of using the North Sea as its private garbage
dump," said Greenpeace spokesperson Mary Morrison.  "The Brent
Spar will become a symbol of the UK attitude to our seas - to
allow
pollution whether by dumping or discharges. The UK must
reverse the decision to dump the Brent Spar immediately."

For more information, please contact:
Mary Morrison, Shetlands 01595 694099
Desley Mather 0171 833 0600, or
Martin Besieux  Greenpeace Belgium ++ 32 2 201 1944


EDITOR'S NOTE

*  INTERNATIONAL OBLIGATIONS - broken promises

The dumping of the Brent Spar would be against the spirit of
several international conventions that the UK is party to,
including:

-    The Geneva Convention on the Continental Shelf 1958: "any
     installations ...must be entirely  removed"

-    London Convention 1972: "take all practical steps to
prevent the pollution of the sea by the dumping of wastes"
-    OSPAR Convention 1992: "to prevent and eliminate
pollution      resulting from abandonment of offshore
installations".