Bristol East, helped by volunteers from Bath, organised a successful 2 hour peaceful protest on the dual carriageway outside Silvey's M32 Services as part of Greenpeace UK's Shell Day 2. The location was chosen in the knowledge that there would be plenty of passing traffic and therefore a good opportunity to communicate our message that Shell needs to get the hell out of the Arctic.
Well we have had partial success with that demand - though encroaching ice melt has had a big part to play in Shell's decision to withdraw from drilling activities for the remainder of the year. But with the glare of public attention brought about by Greenpeace's campaign, the company also had to admit that an oil containment dome had been damaged in tests. The dome is part of Shell's key safety equipment that is required to be in place before drills can enter oil-bearing rock. These series of events call into question the industry's ability to drill for oil safely in Arctic conditions. We know that this retreat is temporary and that Shell will be back next year to continue its reckless programme of activities. So our protest was important to let Shell know that we are going nowhere until the Arctic is declared a sanctuary against commercial exploitation.
We numbered 28, which included two polar bears .... and one man sized chicken! Our numbers were swelled by the Hussey family, who joined us for an hour as part of Sarah Hussey's birthday celebration. Sarah had attended the first Shell Day protest back in July and really enjoyed the experience. When asked by her family what she wanted to do on her special day, she said she wanted to spend some time campaigning with us. We salute your commitment Sarah and are grateful you got your family involved too.
A big well done to Olly from Bradford-on-Avon who turned up in a fabulous chicken costume and provide good entertainment for the passing motorists. I'm still trying to fathom out a connection between the Arctic and a chicken - but what the heck I loved the randomness of it all. I still want to know if Olly travelled all the way on the train in the costume!
Many thanks to Paula from Bath and John who donned our polar bear costumes, To undertake a couple of hours incased in fur on a warm sunny day takes some dedication. Well done also to Richard L, Sergey and Simon who were busy handing our leaflets to the motorists as they stopped at the traffic lights - a good strategy to get our message across. It was good to hear the 'toots' of support from passing motorists. I loved the fact that people of all ages took part in the waving of placards and banners and great to meet some of the volunteers who had supported us on the first Shell Day. We hope you found it just as enjoyable and thanks for making it a successful morning.
Following the worrying news that has seen a record increase in the Summer melt in the Arctic it vindicates that our campaign message is as important as ever. It is a stark warning that global warming is possibly increasing even faster than previously predicted. Governments and major corporations cannot avoid the responsibility that they have a crucial role to play in reducing carbon emissions. For example our government needs to ensure that the new Energy Bill capitalises on opportunities to invest in renewables and not fossil fuels. The likes of Shell need to realise that they are contributing to the problem and need a new direction to invest more in renewable energy. And we can do our bit too in our everyday lifestyle choices.
In the video below some of those who attended give a wide variety of reasons why they took part in the protest. If you want to do more then sign the Save The Arctic petition here or get involved with your local Greenpeace group. As Paula the polar bear says, "Doing something is better than doing nothing". Photos of the day can be found at our Flickr site. Click here.
A final 'well done' to all who were involved in making Shell Day 2 a success.
Comments