Good news and campaign victories, 2001

Friends of the Earth (FoE) is mindful of the fact that almost no environmental victories are the result of the actions of a single organisation; it is alliances and collaborations between different sectors and groups that brings about both short-term victories and long-term change. With this in mind, the following are some of the victories we have helped achieve and good news from our campaigns in 2001.

Locally...

Brisbane
Reverse Garbage, a business which finds commercial uses for materials which would otherwise end up in landfill, won the 'inaugural good practice award' for environmental, social and financial sustainability from ANA Friendly Society. On average, Reverse Garbage diverts up to 2 tonnes of materials per week from landfill.

Brisbane
The Bicycle Revolution, another small-scale business established by FoE Brisbane, recently won the award for the Quest Newspapers "New Small Business of the Year" for the Southern Region of Brisbane. This is the same award that Reverse Garbage won in 1999.

Jabiluka
FoE has campaigned for many years, in conjunction with the Mirrar traditional owners of the region and other environment groups, for an end to the threat of further uranium mining, and for the protection of Kakadu. In 2001, we helped keep the pressure on Rio Tinto through the ŒRio ­ time to choose¹ postcard, which was a joint project between FoE, the Australian Conservation Foundation and the Environment Centre of the Northern Territory. More than 4,000 cards were delivered to Rio Tinto. FoE Australia worked closely with FoE in England to hold protest actions at Rio Tinto's London headquarters. The mine project is currently stalled indefinitely.

Sydney, wetlands being restored
After five years of campaigning, the construction of the Whites Creek wetland has begun. The weeds on the site have been removed and engineering works should be finished in Jan/Feb 2002. Planting should be carried out in early Autumn. Leichhardt Council received a Stormwater Trust Grant for $244,500 and Leichhardt Council will provide about $100,000. Initially Friends of the Earth had carried out planning and consultation work valued at $30,000.

The education program is progressing well. A number of community meetings proved successful and special ecology demonstrations on frogs, birds and lizards were very popular. Many local schools are interested in using the wetlands for teaching purposes.

What¹s next? Above the wetlands is an old house owned by the Council. Local residents and FoE are lobbying the Council to establish an environmental education centre and city farm. Community vegetable plots already exist next to the house.

During several stages of this campaign lots of flack was thrown at FoE. We had a hard fight and nearly lost a couple of times. The good story is that we received heaps of good publicity each time someone tried to stop us.

Forests saved in Victoria
FoE and Friends of Gippsland Bush (FoGB) have been busy identifying eastern Strzelecki native forest under the control of US-based company, Hancock's Holdings. Hancock's bought the publicly owned softwood estate when it was privatised in 1998. Recent field trips have found extensive areas of mixed bluegum, messmate, mountain grey gum and mountain ash forest in the Greig Creek catchment near Tarra Bulga National Park. These areas of are obvious high conservation significance for the Strzelecki Koala and possibly Tiger Quoll. Also of note is a 3km stretch of messmate and mountain ash on the eastern face of Sassafras Creek, old growth blue gum in the Flynn¹s Creek catchment, and remnant vegetation in Bodman and Spring Creek catchments south of the Grand Ridge Road near Blackwarry. FoE was also involved in 'finding' some significant myrtle beech cool temperate rainforest within Hancock¹s holdings in the Tarra River tributary.

Less than one year ago Hancock were still clearing remnant vegetation when they logged their plantations. Due to pressure by FoE and FoGB, this problem appears now to have been rectified (however the recent takeover of APP by Hancock gives us grounds for concern). Hancock¹s is now leaving native vegetation, including crucial gully lines, in some recently logged plantations in the upper Morwell River catchment. Hancock¹s licence allows the company to log everything within their holdings, but due to pressure by FoE, FoGB and the Hancock Watch website, the company appears not to be logging native forest within their estate.

Somerton, Melbourne
The campaign to stop construction of the Somerton power generator on the outskirts of Melbourne was more than a local campaign ­ it was (to us!) a great example of 'thinking local and acting global'. While the Somerton generator may be small bikkies in the scheme of greenhouse gas emissions, it was our chance to say 'Enough is Enough', or actually as one of our banners proclaimed 'Climate Change Stops Here!'

We still don't know if the generator will be completed in time to meet peak electricity demand in summer, though it¹s looking less and less likely. That said, there is no doubt that this campaign, and particularly the blockade are a 'good news' story for the end of the year.

The FoE Melbourne climate collective faced many hurdles in even embarking on the campaign. Some of these were;

We decided to work with the Friends of Merri Creek, who were campaigning to have the pipeline to the generator re-routed. We initially tried to get them to change the focus of their campaign to what we considered was the over-arching issue ­ we cannot afford to increase greenhouse gas emissions Š therefore the entire project should be scrapped in favour of introducing energy conservation measures. They refused to be swayed, even when we argued that a two-degree rise in temperature would kill the threatened Growling Grass Frog that they were desperately trying to save from the pipeline. This made campaigning complicated, and as it turned out the frog got most of the media attention, leaving us frustrated that a massive issue such as the fact that Victoria has no energy strategy could be sidelined in favour of an 'easy grab' with a cute angle.

The broader environment movement was initially skeptical of our analysis of the generators. It took a lot of work to get the message out, even amongst our peers, that while gas CAN be part of a transition to a less fossil-fuel intensive economy, it is not NECESSARILY a good thing. The Somerton generator and the others like it around Victoria will result in a net INCREASE in emissions, something the world simply cannot afford. Gas is ONLY useful when it replaces more greenhouse intensive fossil fuels and this substitution results in a net reduction in greenhouse gases.

Although green bans were in place on the site there were actually four separate unions involved, each of different political persuasions and levels of involvement with the bans. These were the CFMEU, the AMWU, the AWU and the ETU. As the blockade got underway it became clear that 'green bans' can exist more in theory than in practice, and many of the workers kept working even with protesters on site and in dangerous situations. Staying in touch with the union reps and workers was a full time and vital job. From this, we developed some good relationships with a number of union organisers.

While all that may seem gloomy, the results were fantastic. Some of these outcomes have been;

• An increased sense of cohesion in working together as a collective and increased knowledge of the urgency of energy conservation in Victoria (previous campaigns had focussed more on international issues such as the Pacific and international negotiations);
• Experience in blockading - many of us had never done much direct action, police liaison, media, etc;
• Increased knowledge of the climate campaign in the activist community;
• Collaboration with local groups ;
• Excellent relationships developed with all of the involved unions, and even the lads from the Dunlop tyre factory across the road, who let us use their toilets and power points! We showed that unions and environmentalists can work well together and share common visions for the future;
• Increased awareness within the environment movement of the need for careful analysis of gas projects;
• The project proponent is AGL. Following our campaign at Somerton, there was a downgrading of AGLs ratings by a number of ethical investment researchers such as the Monash Eco-Pool, and unfavorable reports in the Australian Conservation Foundation¹s corporate report.

Overall the Somerton campaign was a great stepping stone to our primary focus next year on the Victorian State government. We need to legislate so that the perverse incentives which exist now for electricity retailers to promote increased consumption are removed and energy conservation is given the priority it needs. Most importantly Victoria NEEDS an energy strategy ­ currently it has none, and these types of inappropriate projects can pop up on an ad hoc basis dependent on the whim of the market and whether a corporation thinks they can make money selling electricity that we don¹t need.

Climate Justice National Day of Action
June 22nd 2001 was the date of the first ever National Day of Action for the Climate in Australia. Held to coincide with the beginning of the second week of climate talks in Bonn (CoP6), the actions highlighted Australia's obstructionist role in the international climate negotiations. Some highlights were:

Adelaide
The 'other' Umbrella group (activists representing Australia, Japan and Canada) met at the Queen Adelaide fountain to hand out leaflets and tell the public that nuclear power is no solution to global warming.

Brisbane
FoE Brisbane donned their year 2070 outfits of wetsuits, flippers and goggles and took to the streets to raise awareness of the impacts of climate change on Australia and the importance of taking action now.

Melbourne
The 'Climate Ark', led by Noah and flanked by sea creatures, sailed through the streets of St Kilda handing out leaflets calling attention to the impacts of climate change on our neighbours in the South Pacific. Soon afterwards, Australia and the United States were tried for crimes against the climate, with the judge taking evidence from affected nations such as Tuvalu.

Sydney
Activists sandbagged Kirribilli House to call attention to the rising tide of climate change.

Keep an eye out for the next National Day of Action for the Climate in 2002 and contact your local FoE group to help organise or get involved.

Wildspaces a great success
For the 6th year, the national environmental and social justice film festival, Wildspaces, was a great success. This year it was shown in 23 locations around the country.

Supporting local communities
When news came through about the devastating earthquakes that hit El Salvador in January, FoE activists in Melbourne organised a radiothon in conjunction with 3CR community radio. Working with a cross section of local Latin American organisations, FoE and 3CR raised several thousand dollars to directly support communities affected by the earthquakes.

Tracking the nuclear cycle
FoE continued its work of educating local communities about the possible impacts of radioactive waste shipments should the new nuclear reactor be built in Lucas Heights in Sydney. Rural communities in western NSW and South Australia would be put at risk by road-based transport of waste. FoE met with local groups, trade unions, Indigenous communities and local Government authorities to raise awareness of these issues. The Mayor of Hay, NSW, stated after one of these meetings "we didn¹t know we were on the transport route until we heard it from Friends of the Earth". FoE has helped galvanise communities throughout the region to oppose these shipments, with many re-asserting their 'nuclear free' status.

Given that issues in much of this region are often not in the public's eye, there is the danger of significant issues slipping through because of lack of attention. In 2001, FoE continued its tradition of running 'exposure tours' to visit areas and communities affected by the nuclear cycle. These tours give a first hand experience of affected areas and are significant in generating broader support within the activist community.

Illegal logging halted
FoE blew the whistle on a number of instances of illegal logging in Western Victoria, including destruction of habitat trees used by the endangered Red Tailed Black Cockatoo. FoE triggered local media, action by state authorities and local government, and achieved agreements from plantation companies regarding future logging management and protection of habitat trees.

Turning the tables on nuclear power
In the leadup to the November 11 federal election, some of Australia's leading independent bands and musicians, including Killing Heidi, Bodyjar, and Dave Graney, joined together in calling for a nuclear free Australia. The Turn da Tables statement, initiated by FoE, reads in part "we share a vision for a nuclear free Australia in the new millennium. Australia¹s future is in leading the world in clean, green technologies".

Federal election
For the first time in many years, FoE actively campaigned on environmental issues in a federal election. FoE worked with a large cross section of leading green groups to develop a common campaign and vision document and excellent national co-ordination of environmental activity. The national nuclear campaign joined with the Australian Conservation Foundation in waging a high profile campaign in South Australia, based on the key issue of the radioactive waste facility planned for that state. FoE rated the major political parties on their stated policies on nuclear issues and launched a significant postcard campaign (SA ­ too good to waste) in conjunction with the ACF.

Towards the Earth Summit
In conjunction with the Green Foundation and Heinrich Boll Institute, FoE hosted an international workshop in Canberra in April 2001, under the banner 'Towards Rio + 10'. Representatives from 56 countries attended this seminar, which aimed to develop strategies for the NGO community in the lead-up to the UN Conference on Sustainable Development to be held in South Africa in September 2002.

...And Globally

FoE International turns 30
On Sunday June 10th, Friends of the Earth International (FoEI) celebrated its thirtieth anniversary with the release of a special publication and the launch of a new logo and visual identity. From the few individuals who came together with the dream of creating an international environmental network of groups working for environmental protection and social justice in 1971, Friends of the Earth has grown into a global federation with 66 national member groups. FoEI currently has nearly one million members around the world, and unites some 5,000 local grassroots groups in South, North, East and West.


No funding for nukes!
In a stunning and surprising victory for FoE Europe campaigners, the Ukrainian government has withdrawn its request for European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) funding for the controversial K2R4 nuclear plants.

In December 2000, the EBRD had approved a US$215 million loan to finance K2R4, subject to fulfillment of a list of conditions within the year. The Ukrainian government had hoped for a softening of the loan conditions at the 29 November EBRD board meeting, but when Germany stood firm they decided to withdraw their request for financing. The regional development banks and their funding of destructive projects are a key focus of the FoE International Financial Institutions campaign. FoE worked with the Bankwatch Network on this issue.

For more information, contact janneke@foei.org or visit
http://www.bankwatch.org/k2r4 or http://www.foei.org

Ilisu Dam victory
Campaigners responded with delight to the November news that British corporation Balfour Beatty had pulled out of involvement in the environmentally, politically and socially disastrous Ilisu Dam in the Kurdish region of Turkey. Although the company which heads the dam consortium still hopes to find a partner to replace Balfour Beatty, many believe that the death knoll has been sounded for the project. FoE England director Charles Secrett said:

"This is a tremendous win for campaigners against a disastrous dam project. Balfour Beatty's very welcome decision to drop out of the project shows the power of shareholder pressure and publicity campaigns by groups like FoE and the Ilisu Dam Campaign."

For more information, visit:
http://www.foe.co.uk/campaigns/corporates/success_stories/ balfour_beatty_give_up.html.

Amazon pipeline stalled
Roberto Smeraldi of FoE Project Amazonas has informed us of the suspension of the public consultations on the EIA for Urucu gasoduct. The proposed pipeline would cross 522 kilometres of pristine Amazon rainforest, opening up the way to colonisation from the Rondônia state upwards into the Amazonas state. Please follow updates at
http://www.amazonia.org.br/english/

Project Amazon recognised
Friends of the Earth - Brazilian Amazon was awarded the Henry Ford Prize for Environmental Conservation for 2001. The award - aimed at choosing the "Initiative of the Year" in environmental conservation - was granted to the project "Fire: Chronic Emergency", implemented in 24 municipalities of the Brazilian Amazon and aimed at a series of integrated activities of fire prevention at the community level. For the first time since it was established, the award was granted to a project with a strong social focus.

Banks stop funding rainforest destruction
Three of the top-four Dutch banks - ABN AMRO Bank, Rabobank and Fortis Bank - have decided to stop or substantially restrict the financing of the development of oil palm plantations (these plantations are a major source of tropical rainforest destruction). This is the result of a joint campaign by Sawit Watch Indonesia, Milieudefensie (Friends of the Earth Netherlands) and Greenpeace Netherlands.

The fourth main bank, ING, has been quoted as saying: "Illegal logging is not possible, but if forest clearing is government approved, we are still prepared to finance." FoE Netherlands is in the early stages of a new consumer campaign against ING.

Shell drops plan to explore for gas in national park
In May, Shell announced that it was dropping plans to explore for gas in Kirthar National Park in Pakistan. The oil giant announced a "re-alignment of their Pakistan business portfolio". The sudden move has been greeted with delight by FoE, which was pursuing a major legal case against Shell's Kirthar project in the Pakistani courts at the time.

Food dumping in the South
In May, FoE Ecuador and other groups in Latin America tested food aid from the USA, and found high levels of GM soya and corn in food aid. This triggered a substantial campaign, which resulted in the Ecuadorian government banning GMOs in two significant food aid programs.

Bush flooded
FoE generated more than 100,000 messages to the US president to protest at the US governments uncooperative approach to the climate change negotiations. At peak times, an e-protest was sent every second.

Freeport court victory
Friends of the Earth Indonesia (WALHI) has won a very significant Court ruling; the first successful court case against the Freeport gold and copper mine in West Papua. The South Jakarta District Court ruled against the mine in late August, finding that Freeport had violated an environmental law. WALHI sued the company following an accident on May 4, 2000, in which a large pile of waste collapsed. Four workers went missing and were presumed dead. The accident also caused a flood in a village 16 kilometres downstream.

Keeping it global

The FoE network continues to take a constructive role in many of the global negotiations and processes affecting the environment, from climate change to trade, the World Bank, International Monetary Fund, and the Regional Development Banks. FoE seeks to place a global perspective to local issues, and to raise issues not taken up by the western media. As one example, a FoE international delegation carried out a three-day mission to assess the impacts of human-triggered environmental disasters in El Salvador in October 2001. FoE seeks to raise the big picture environmental issues; sustainability, resource consumption, climate justice and equity, environmental justice and ecological debt. Its federation structure means that all groups, from 66 countries around the world, have an equal say in setting direction and campaign priorities. This democratic and decentralised structure makes FoE unique amongst the global environment movement, and makes us well placed to continue with effective and visionary campaigns in 2002 and beyond.