Saving Iceland

Attilah Springer is a journalist and an activist. She is a part of the Rights Action Group in Trinidad and Tobago, which has fought a long battle against Alcoa over aluminium smelters in Trinidad and Tobago. She recently spoke at a conference for Saving Iceland where she documented the progress of the struggle against the aluminium industry in her country. She is currently staying at the International Summer of Dissent protest camp, organised by Saving Iceland. A Grapevine journalist sat down to speak with Atillah at their beautiful campsite in Mosfellsdalur, joined by Lerato Maria Maregele, an activist from South Africa who has been organising protests against Alcan in her own country. Read More

The Icelandic media reports today that Icelandic Alloys (Elkem) “accidentally” released a huge cloud of pollution from their plant at Grundartangi in Hvalfjordur. Apparently the accident was due to human error. The media quote Thordur Magnusson, an Elkem spokesman, saying that this human error “…recurs several times a week.”

Sigurbjorn Hjaltason, Chairman of the local Kjosarhreppur parish, confirms that Elkem usually produce the emissions during nights, when suitable, throughout the year. This is so that people will be less likely to become aware of the pollution they have to breath.

Similar nocturnal habits of ALCAN – Rio Tinto and Century – Rusal have been reported for years by the people of Hafnarfjordur and Hvalfjordur.

ALCAN – Rio Tinto, Century and Elkem seem to share the same conveniently systematic “human errors.”

Are we perhaps to expect that soon the PR departments of these three companies will be offering the population of South-West Iceland free sleeping pills to help them through their dark nights of heavy industry?

‘Iceland is bleeding’

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Athygli, the public relations company of the National Power Company (Landsvirkjun) woke up this morning to find that during the night a splash of paint had been directed at their offices. A spokesman of the company said the words ‘Iceland Bleeds’ had been written on the house and that he suspected that Saving Iceland was behind this because his company was on a certain “deathlist” on www.savingiceland.org. We can only assume that he means ‘The Nature Killers’ section on this website.

Why would Athygli be on the list of companies responsible for the murder of Icelandic nature? Read More

The farmers-labourers, fishworkers on the Satyagraha blocked the road when the district Minister Vijay Shah tried to pass the Satyagraha centre in Taloon, to protest against the callous attitude and corrupt ways of the Government of M.P. The people affected and to be affected by Sardar Sarovar were upset that the Minister did not agree to enter the Satyagraha and have a dialogue on the issue of life and death. But they also felt jubilant; realizing that the Minister was indeed scared to step on his own government land, now occupied by the people of the valley. Police misbehaving and pushing the women, cleared the way after about half-an-hour for the minister.
Before the incident, farmers, whose motor-pumps are drowned in the reservoir waters due to release of water from Omkareshwar dam, without any warning, took out a motor cycle rally and giving a memorandum to the Minister, demanded that the water levels should be brought down by 22 meters to open up the motor-pumps, or the losses should be fully compensated. The Minister could only say that he would consult the Chief Minister, ordering the MPEB officials orally that they should write off the electricity bills of those who have lost their pumps.
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Press Release – July 20th, 2007 – Icelandic below – Follows from earlier release today – Photo Report – Photo / Video footage available from 8578625.

Today 25 protestors from Saving Iceland went into Orkuveitu Reykjavíkur (Reykjavik Energy, O.R.) and hung up a banner inside stating: ‘Vopnaveita Reykjavíkur?’ (‘Reykjavik Arms-dealers?’). The banner was not hung outside as planned earlier because of weather conditions. Protestors stayed in the building from 15.15 until 16.00 hrs.

Páll Erland speaking on behalf of O.R. states that they offered strawberries to protestors and welcomed Saving Iceland to put up the banner. While Erland might be happy to discuss strawberries with their visitors, they certainly did not give permission to hang up a banner indicating that they sell energy to companies known to be involved in arms production and serious human rights violations (as documented in our earlier press release)
Saving Iceland has now contacted O.R., requesting they put up the banner and discuss publicly with us the ethics of selling energy to corporate criminals such as Century-RUSAL and Alcan-RioTinto.
Read More

“STOP PRODUCING ENERGY FOR WAR”

REYKJAVIK – Saving Iceland’s clown army has this afternoon entered the head office of Orkuveita Reykjavíkur (OR, Reykjavik Energy) on Baejarhals 1. Simultaneously, protestors climbed onto the roof of the building unfolding a banner stating ‘Vopnaveita Reykjavíkur’ (Reykjavik arms-dealers). Saving Iceland demands that O.R. stop selling energy to the aluminium corporations Century and ALCAN-RioTinto. 30% of aluminium produced goes to the military and arms-industry (1).

Currently, O.R. are expanding the Hellisheidi geothermal plant at Hengill. “The goal of enlarging Hellisheidarvrikjun is to meet industries demands of energy,” states the Environmental Impact Assessment, particularly the Century expansion at Grundartangi and possible new ALCAN and Century plants at Straumsvik and Helguvik (2, 3).
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Press Release – 20 July 2007

On the morning of 20th July, the Icelandic embassy on Queen St, Edinburgh was targeted by members of Saving Iceland . Paint was thrown on the building, the lock was glued and a message was affixed to the exterior reading “The Whole World is Watching”. “Iceland Bleeds” was also painted on the steps. The action served as response to recent acts of police brutality against Saving Iceland activists in Reykjavik who continue to oppose the assault on the Icelandic wilderness by heavy industry.

Icelandic Police attacked a non-violent Reclaim the Streets protest in the centre of Reykjavik, on July 14th. Video evidence shows Icelandic police violently throwing protesters to the ground while others were punched and kicked. Five peaceful protesters were held in police cells, one with a broken rib after the police attack. The Reclaim the Streets demonstration was part of a continuing action camp held near Reykjavik this summer, involving activists from across the globe, including Scotland.

The recent expansion of large-scale aluminium production in Iceland has involved a barely democratic process and a comprehensive devastation of vast natural areas on a scale unprecedented in Europe today.

The Saving Iceland activists responsible for the action against the Icelandic Embassy state:
“We are sending a clear message to the Icelandic government that the destruction of unique ecosystems has environmental implications for us all. The repression of those who are opposing these destructive mega–projects is unacceptable. In the context of the current climate crisis we must all take responsibility for the destruction of our planet by criminal corporations such as Alcoa. The whole world is watching”.

The action in Edinburgh was an expression of solidarity with the activists and Icelandic people who are attempting to stand up to the unjust rule of the aluminium industry over democracy. Saving Iceland activists state: “We will not stop until the corporate invasion of the Icelandic wilderness has ceased. The world is not dying, it is being murdered. And those who are doing it need to be held accountable.”

Corporate Media Coverage
Scotsman.com

Finally, Saving Iceland comes clean on which shady eco-terrorist organizations fund us!

19 July 2007 – Some media, particularly Blaðið, insist on calling us ‘professional protestors’, suggesting we have jobs and get payed to do actions, to create a bias that we are foreigners who have come to tell Icelanders what and what not to do. To dispel the myth we will give insight into our individual and collective funding.

“We are not professional protestors. Unlike the well-paid corporate lobbyists and spindoctors that try to sell you heavy industry, none of us gets payed to be here. We are ordinary people, we are teachers, nurses, youth workers, students, shopworkers, fathers, mothers. We are here because we care. The Icelandic wilderness is unique. It is the largest in Europe and one of the few wild places left on this continent. It’s beauty and uniqueness and fire and ice are a heritage we must preserve and must defend. It is the heritage and responsibility and privilege of all Icelanders, and all Europeans, and all humans.
(From our conference declaration)

Individuals come here at their own cost, paying their own ferry or plane ticket. So instead of being payed, Saving Iceland protestors put in sizeable amounts of their own savings to come here. They do this because they feel that protecting the wilderness is a fundamental necessity in creating a livable future on earth.

For the Saving Iceland conference, we did not have any paid speakers attend the conference. We have only payed the flights of guests that we invited to speak.

Now we will summarize how we pay for such things as our camp kitchen, materials, our newspaper ‘Voice of the Wilderness’, speaker’s flights and the conference hotel.

The main bulk of our income comes from a Swiss foundation called Terre Humaine. They fund actions for conservation of nature.

Our kitchen is sponsored by the Dutch mobile kitchen Rampenplan. They have helped setup kitchens in England and Belgium before as well, who are now self sustaining (from donations).

We receive large amounts of donations from Icelandic visitors to the camp, both in money, food and materials.

The remainder is made up of private individual donations from people involved in or sympathetic with the campaign. These are often people who work and can not attend the protests but want to support them anyway.

See also: ‘Bréf til Blaðsins frá Saving Iceland aktífista

Press Release

GRUNDARTANGI – Saving Iceland has this afternoon closed the single supply road from Highway 1 to the Century/Nordural smelter in Hvalfjordur and the steel factory Elkem – Icelandic Alloys. Saving Iceland opposes the planned new Century smelter at Helguvik and the expansion of the Icelandic Alloys factory. Activists have used lock-ons (metal arm tubes) to form a human blockade on the road and have occupied a construction site crane.

Century Aluminum, a part of the recently formed Russian-Swiss RUSAL/ Glencore/SUAL conglomorate, want to build a second smelter in Iceland in Helguvik with a projected capacity of at least 250.000 metric tons per annum. The planned site is designed to accommodate further expansion. Grundartangi has this year been extended to 260.000 mtpa.

Currently, an environmental impact assessment (1) is under review for the Helguvik smelter, produced by the construction consultants HRV (Honnun/Rafhonnun/VST).

“It is absurd that an engineering company with a vested interest in the smelter construction could be considered to produce an objective impact assessment. The document makes absurd claims, such as that pollution is really not a problem because Helguvik is such a windy place that the pollution will just blow away,” says Saving Iceland’s Snorri Páll Jónsson Úlfhildarson.”

“This smelter will demand new geothermal power plants at Seltún, Sandfell, Austurengjar and Trölladyngju. In addition to the Hengill area which has already been seriously damaged by Reykjavik Energy. The impact assessment does not take these into account, nor the impact of the huge amount of power lines and pylons required. The plants will ruin the natural and scenic value of the whole peninsula. Also, the recquired capacity, 400 MW, exceeds the natural capactity of the geothermal spots, and they will cool down in three to four decades (2). And Century admits it wants the site to expand further in the next decades. So it is obvious that this smelter will not just ruin Reykjanes but also need additional hydropower.”

The impact procedure seems to be completely irrelevant anyway, since the company has completed an equity offering worth $360 million to be deployed for partly financing the construction of the Helguvik smelter project (3). This indicates that Century already has high level assurances that the project is to continue no matter what.

This completely contradicts the claims the new government of Iceland, and particularly it’s environment minister Þórunn Sveinbjarnardóttir, is opposed to new smelter projects.

Icelandic Alloys wants to expand its facility for producing ferrosilicon for the steel industry. It is in fact one of Iceland’s largest contributors to greenhouse gases and other pollutants (4).

“Expansion of Icelandic Alloys and Century considerably contribute to Iceland’s greenhouse emissions. If there are no further expansions of heavy industry beyond Grundartangi and ALCOA Fjardaal, Iceland will emit 38% more greenhouse gases than in 1990. If other expansion plans continue, levels would rise to an incredible 63% above 1990 levels. (5). That is completely irresponsible.

This shows that all the talk about ‘green energy’ from hydro and geothermal is, in reality, a lie. Icelanders have to rise up against these foreign corporations,” says Úlfhildarson. Read More