30.08.2011
Since 10.30 this morning a group of over 50 activists have been blockading a coal transport railway in the Cologne area. The action takes place at the same time as the nearby international Climate Camp, protesting the open-cast mining of brown coal (www.klimacamp2011.de)
The activists peacefully blocked the line early this morning, erecting banners and greenwashing the railway tracks. The protest is aimed at energy giant RWE, which operates a number of power stations in the area and is responsible for about 10% of Germany’s carbon dioxide emissions.
The protest is being kept well-supplied with blankets and food by members of the climate camp, and is currently preparing for a night on the tracks.
The international climate camp is situated in the village of Manheim which is scheduled to be destroyed in order to enlarge a brown coal strip mine. Brown coal, or lignite, is a less pure form of coal and is therefore much less energy-efficient and creates greater emissions than regular coal.
The international climate camp includes guests from as far afield as Colombia and Azerbaijan and aims to build links within the international climate justice movement, calling for urgent system change, not climate change.