Arctic Activists Deported From Greenland

Arctic Activists Deported From Greenland

Greenpeace vows to take deepwater oil fight to new waters

Baffin Bay, Greenland, 4 September 2010 -- Four Greenpeace climbers who scaled an oil rig in the freezing seas off Greenland and stopped it drilling for two days, have been deported to their home countries. The activists were arrested at midnight Wednesday night after forcing UK based Cairn Energy to cease all Arctic drilling operations for 40 hours. After severe weather forced them to end their occupation of the Stena Don drilling rig, they where arrested and flown 150km to Aasiaat on Greenland.

The Activists were taken to the airport by Danish police and put on flights home to Poland, Germany, Finland and the USA. They were charged with trespassing and with breaching the 500m zone around the rig. They have had all their non-personal equipment confiscated and fine of 20,000 Danish Krona each (US$3,440).

Speaking from the Greenpeace ship Esperanza, which is on a tour of dangerous oil drilling sites as part of a campaign for a ban on deepwater oil drilling, Greenpeace Nordic climate change campaigner Jon Burgwald said: “Our climbers spent two days hanging from Cairn’s Stena Don drilling rig, just meters above the frigid arctic waters in freezing conditions, but every minute they were up there was another minute Cairn Energy couldn’t drill. We want to stop them sparking an arctic oil rush. At the very least we made it less likely they’ll strike oil this year before the winter weather conditions force them to leave the area.”

He continued:

"We shut down drilling by taking action on the high seas, but if dangerous deepwater oil drilling is to be stopped for good then action also needs to be taken in the world's capitals. Our leaders need to take us beyond oil, to invest in clean energy solutions for the sake of the climate and the preservation of pristine environments like the Arctic."

The Esperanza will now leave Greenlandic waters, but the ship’s Go Beyond Oil tour will continue.

Later this month, environment ministers from countries bordering the North Sea will meet in Norway, where Germany is proposing a moratorium on new deepwater drilling. Greenpeace is backing the call, amid concerns that the Deepwater Horizon disaster could repeated at new deepwater sites across the world. In a letter to Greenpeace Cairn Energy says it is basing its Arctic investment on an International Energy Agency report which suggests that, by 2030, fossil fuels will still supply about 80% of the world's energy. According to scientists this scenario – the most pessimistic of several the IEA has produced – could lead to six degrees of warming by the end of the century.

The crew of the Esperanza includes Waldemar Wichmann, the Captain from Argentina; Annkatrin Schneider, deck hand from Germany; Ben Stewart and Leila Deen from the UK; Jon Burgwald from Denmark; Victor Rask from Sweden; Mateusz Emeschajmer from Poland; Timo Puohiniemi from Finland; Danielle McCarthy, Second Mate from Australia; Mannas, Chief Engineer from Holland; and Sim McKenna from the USA.

ENDS