Greenpeace Press Release – 2015-07-30 12:21:45
http://readersupportednews.org/news-section2/312-16/31543-greenpeace-were-blocking-shells-icebreaker
We’re Blocking Shell’s Ship!
*Take Action*
Ask President Obama to deny Shell from drilling in the Arctic.
(July 29, 2015) — As I write this, I’m preparing to suspend myself from a bridge, blocking Shell’s icebreaker from leaving Portland, OR for the Arctic. And if you got this email, that means I made it.
Shell is almost ready to drill in the Arctic but its icebreaker containing a vital piece of drilling equipment hit something, causing a gaping hole. So it had to come down here to Portland to get patched up. We are now what stands in between Shell and an Arctic oil catastrophe.
While I’m holding up the ship, you can take action by asking President Obama to cancel Shell’s drilling plans and protect the Arctic!
Shell isn’t just threatening polar bears and walruses with its drilling plans. By tapping into a new source of oil ironically only accessible because of melting ice it’s threatening the entire world with worsening climate change.
I’m prepared to stay up here as long as possible, and so are my friends. We have enough supplies to last several days, and we’re not letting Shell’s ship through.
I’m inspired by the courage of everyone who has acted so far: from the Alaska Native communities who have been resisting driling for years, to the thousands of kayaktivists who met the rig in Seattle, to the millions who have spoken out against this terrible plan.
Every minute Shell is delayed is more time for us to convince the Obama administration to cancel the company’s drilling plans. Take action now!
The fight to save the Arctic is heating up, and we can win. There’s only a very short window of time that Shell can drill, and this once leaky icebreaker already threatened the whole operation.
Shell has been here before. In 2012, the company conducted Arctic drilling tests, spectacularly crushing a containment dome (the same piece of vital equipment aboard this leaky icebreaker) and crashing a drilling rig into the Alaskan coast.
But Shell still thinks it can safely drill and, for some reason, the Obama Administration agrees. The government just allowed Shell to clear a major legal hurdle. So that leaves it up to us to stand up against the oil giant.
Shell is almost ready to drill. Tell President Obama it’s not too late to change his mind and stop Shell before the last ship reaches the Arctic.
And that’s why we’re out here. I don’t know how long we’ll be able to stay, but we’re going to delay Shell for as long as we’re able. And we’re going to make sure the world is watching so everyone knows about Shell’s dirty plans to spoil the Arctic and heat up our world.
Join me today and tell President Obama to stop Shell and leave a clean climate legacy.
For the Arctic,
Georgia Hirsty, Greenpeace climber
P.S. We’ll be here blocking Shell as long as we can. Follow along live and join the call to President Obama to protect the Arctic and our climate.
Follow breaking updates from the scene of this incredible display of people power, and don’t forget to say #ShellNo by telling President Obama to reject Arctic drilling.
Activists Stop Shell Vessel as It
Attempts to Leave Portland Harbor
Ryan Schleeter
(July 29, 2015) — Greenpeace activists have suspended themselves from St. Johns Bridge in Portland, Oregon to block a Shell Oil vessel from leaving port for Alaskan waters. The climbers have enough supplies to last several days, and are prepared to stay in Shell’s way as long as possible. Follow here for LIVE updates.
26 Greenpeace climbers have put themselves between Shell and the Arctic, blocking the Fennica — a Shell vessel carrying a crucial piece of drilling equipment — as it attempts to leave Portland, Oregon.
Right now, Kristina and 25 other Greenpeace US activists are blocking Shell’s icebreaker ship from heading to the Arctic by occupying a bridge on its route out of Portland.
The icebreaker Fennica is carrying crucial drilling equipment for Shell’s Arctic operation. Without it, Shell is not allowed to drill for oil in the Arctic as per their plans. The ship was scheduled to leave the dock this morning to join the rest of Shell’s oil drilling fleet but 26 courageous activists stepped in.
ACTION: Let Shell know that these 26 activists are not alone. More than 7 million of us stand by them. Oil drilling in the Arctic? #ShellNo https://secure.greenpeace.org.uk/ShellNo
Shell isn’t just threatening polar bears and walruses with its drilling plans. Arctic ice is already melting fast as global temperatures rise, but Shell wants to exploit the melting ice to drill for more oil.
That’s why Kristina Flores and their colleagues have taken action today. “We have an opportunity here to prevent Shell from exploiting the Arctic. I am just one of the millions of voices who believe that we will succeed†they said from the bridge.
Over the last three years, Shell’s attempts to drill for oil in the Arctic have yielded nothing but a terrible safety record. The company has managed to crush its safety equipment and run its drilling rig aground, showing how wildly unprepared it is to drill in unpredictable Arctic conditions.
Shell only has a short window to drill in the Arctic this summer, so every second this protest continues is another second without Arctic drilling. That’s why the activists plan to stay on this bridge for as long as possible.
Show them your support to strengthen their morale for this brave act of protest https://secure.greenpeace.org.uk/ShellNo This is a #PeopleVsShell movement and the people will win!
