From our friends over at The Coal Hole:

Media – Interviews are available with protestors: call 07944 367755

Photos from the protest at http://www.flickr.com/photos/sitefeed/

Protestors who halted a coal train carrying fuel for Drax power station in Yorkshire, the single biggest source of CO2 in the UK, are settling in to make sure supplies of coal to the power station remain cut off. The protest comes six weeks before the 2008 Camp for Climate Action at Kingsnorth power station – which will also highlight how using coal to supply energy will be a disaster for the planet.

Dressed in white overalls and canary outfits, they used safety signals to stop the train on a bridge overlooking the power station, before climbing on board and dumping coal off onto the tracks.

The train has been stopped on a branch line used exclusively for delivering coal to Drax. Protestors have used a network of climbing ropes to suspend themselves under the bridge from the train – meaning any movement while the protest continues is impossible.

Drax power station is the largest emitter in the UK – producing up to 36,000 tonnes of CO2 a day. That also makes it the third largest polluter in Europe – we are talking global scale climate disaster on this one folks.

Every year Drax burns between 7 and 11 million tonnes of coal – that’s about 23 million tonnes of CO2 released into the atmosphere a year… that’s more CO2 than the 103 countries in the world which emit less. Let’s just run that one past again – Drax emits more CO2 each year than 103 countries put together. Phew.

We Are Serious

“…it demonstrates that the Climate Camp bunch have got nerve and daring, and that their planning is absolutely meticulous. Secondly, it says very loudly We Are Serious.”

From The Guardian

The UK Government is considering giving the go-ahead to a new generation of coal-fired power plants, the first of which would be at Kingsnorth in Kent – an act which would directly contradict all of their fine words on cutting emissions, bringing in climate bills, and being a world leader on the climate issue. Meanwhile, the ice caps are melting, we’re at 387 ppmv carbon dioxide in the atmosphere (that’s very high – higher than we can sustainably stay at) and rising, and people are dying – now.

There is a problem, and there is a solution. Serious commitments to renewables, energy efficiency and a bit of global leadership from our Government could go a long way.

Yes, you’re quite right. As a movement, we are serious. Although we conduct ourselves cheerfully, we don’t think this is a game. Although we can joke, we know why we act. Although we feel anxious and nervous about the consequences, we do it anyway, because it’s important. We are serious – serious about the problem, and serious about solving it.

The protestors have told The Guardian they are intending to stay “until Gordon Brown decides to reverse his policy to expand coal-fired production in Britain.” For more information on the protest as it continues, check out The Coal Hole’s blog.