Saving Iceland

ALCOAs web in the northeast. Click for larger.

Just some of the important issues that are missing from the IR report below are for example the large scale destruction of all the geothermal areas in the northeast and the incredible net of electric pylons that the project entails. It should also be noted that once the smelters are built demands for enlargements always surface. The smelter capacity usually aimed for by aluminium companies is around 500.000 tonns. Once ALCOA have exhausted the geothermal energy of the northeast they will be going for the remaining glacial rivers of all of the north of Iceland. For more information see: A letter to ALCOA from Dr. Ragnhildur Sigurdardóttir and Gudmundur Páll Ólafsson
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30th August 2007
From Mines and Communities

The world’s second-highest capitalised mining company has made a giant leap forward (some might think, backwards [sic]) by agreeing a friendly acquisition of Alcan, Canada’s premier integrated aluminium producer. Only an extraordinary shareholders meeting, scheduled for September 14th, stands in the company’s way of becoming the world’s major player in this field: the outcome is virtually certain.

Underwriting the deal’s syndicated US40 billion loan – claimed by Rio Tinto as the largest ever raised in the UK and fourth biggest in the world – are three major investment banks, RBS (UK), Deutsche Bank (Germany) and Credit Suisse (Switzerland). Read More

PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate Release
26 August 2007

Sold! Sigur Rós auction for Saving Iceland

A signed copy of a limited edition collection of Sigur Rós records has sold on ebay.com for US $512 [1]. As a gift of support, Sigur Rós had personally decided to donate all the proceeds from this auction to the protest group Saving Iceland. [2] Read More

Western Austalian Forest Alliance – Alcoa Clearing Jarrah Forest for bauxite mining

Community Alliance for Positive Solutions Inc. – A group representing communities whose health has been seriously affected by ALCOA’s pollution.

The 12th of September has been called as a day of international action against heavy industry.

In the 2007 Saving Iceland protest camp, people from five continents explored the similarities between their fights against common enemies, in particular the aluminium industry, and were empowered by the enormous strength of the global movement they were creating. From there, this global day of action was decided upon.

We call on activists from all over the world to join in with creating a locally based yet global movement for planet and people that kicks heavy industrial corporate greed off this earth! Read More

Update! 26 August 2007
Wow, the collection sold for a cool US $512! Thank you to everyone who made up the twenty-seven bids and of course to ‘mictech_01’ from Germany who put down the winner. Also, another massive we love you to Sigur Rós for this, for the inspiring music and for the support. PRESS RELEASE Read More

Saving Iceland
27 July 2007

Today we wrapped our protest camp at Bringur, Mosfellsheidi, but we are not through with this summers actions.

This means that if you are planning to join us in our fight against heavy industry in Iceland you are not too late. We have plenty of energy left and loads of targets to protest at.

Write to us at savingiceland@riseup.net if you want to find us.

Is the Energy on the Doorstep?

By Dr. Ragnhildur Sigurðardóttur

Many things have been said and written about plans for ALCOA´s aluminium plant at Bakki near Húsavík. One after another, important men have praised the idea and by now the only political parties not supporting it are the Iceland Movement and the Left Green party.
The propaganda of the supporters follows these lines: “utilise the national energy potential,” “the people of Húsavík have a right to an aluminium plant,” “the plant will only use energy drawn from the land nearby Húsavík, “damming of Skjálfandafljót and Jökulsá á Fjöllum is nothing but environmental propaganda”, “Geothermal energy has a low environmental impact”, “preparation work has been exceptionally well done.”
But how much truth do those slogans contain? Is there something more that needs to be looked into? Are the people of Húsavík, politicians included pushing the issues forward without really having looked at all the facts? Read More

In this exhaustive text, Felix Padel and Samarendra Das give a thorough analysis of the situation of the aluminium industry in India, its history as a global force of destruction intrinsically linked to the arms industry and its links to genocide. This is required reading for anyone with an interest in the aluminium industry, peace, and the desperate situation of the people of Orissa, India. Read More

Trouw (daily), Netherlands, 21 January 2007

Large dams have dramatic consequences. Ecosystems are destroyed and numerous people are made homeless, often without adequate resettlement. But it is yet little known that large-scale hydro-electricity is a major contributor to global warming. The reservoirs could, despite their clean image, be even more devastating for our climate than fossil fuel plants.

A few years ago, I spent a month in the valley of the Narmada River, to support tribal activists who have been resisting the Sardar Sarovar dam in central India for decades. These indigenous inhabitants, or adivasis, are desperate. In their struggle, inspired by Gandhi, they attempt to drown themselves when their villages are flooded. Death seems preferable to being forced to move from their valley to tin houses on infertile, barren soil. If they’re lucky, they can live on land that nobody else wants, the only available in the densely populated India. This forced resettlement, made necessary by ´progress´, is not unsimilar to what befell American Indians or the Aborigines in Australia. The consequences of mega hydro: cultures die and alcoholism, depression and violence remains. Read More