Ratcliffe-on-Soar power station in Nottingham, 3rd-largest individual contributor to greenhouse gas emissions in the UK
114 UK activists were suspected of “conspiring to shut down Ratcliffe-on-Soar Power Station,” the UK’s 3rd-largest source of greenhouse gas emissions, and arrested “in a night-time police raid” at a school in Nottingham in April, 2009. 20 of these activists are going on trial this month.
The activists are admitting that they intended to shut down the power plant but are pleading “Not Guilty”… err, what?.. This explains:
“The activists are pleading Not Guilty on the grounds of necessity. This means they are admitting they planned to shut the power station down in order to prevent loss of life and serious injury caused through climate change.”
Makes good sense to me. I love this quote from the Ratcliffe on Trial website:
“On the issue of coal-fired power stations they are right … carbon emissions will kill us all … As politicians we do not grasp the urgency of scientific warnings about how little time we have left to radically transform our whole thinking about sustainable energy systems. Inevitably, this leaves the challenge to be picked up by the public rather than by parliament. In doing so, it just doesn’t help if we end up locking up those who would save the planet rather than those who drive us towards climate crises.”
These 20 climate change activists, who “have been through an 18 month mentally, emotionally, and financially gruelling experience in the lead up to this month’s trial,” are looking for a bit of support. You can visit the Ratcliffe on Trial website for more, but these are the 3 most important things they are looking for:
1. Money
As you can imagine the past 18 months and coming months are not without costs.
The defendants have been and continue to make a concerted effort to keep costs down. However, this has not stopped them being huge when one takes into account all the endless police station interviews, court appearances, meetings with lawyers, that have formed part of this process.
We are still way off our target amount, so if there’s anything you can spare (no matter how little) please give via the following means
Please make bank transfers to:
The Skint Fund
SC: 08-92-99
AN: 65385883
Or post a cheque to:
The Skint Fund
18 Stratford Street
Oxford
OX4 1SW
2. Support on Facebook
“Facebook has proved a great way of building support in previous cases.” Like the Ratcliffe on Trial Facebook page, join in the conversation on there, and encourage your Facebook friends to support them as well.
3. Support in Court
The first day of trial is set for November 22 (Monday) and they are looking to have as many supporters in the courtroom as possible. It makes an impression.
For more information on this or anything else above, email info@ratcliffeontrial.org
Show your support for these climate activists in at least one of the ways listed above.
Connect with me on Facebook, StumbleUpon, Twitter, or Care2.
Photo Credit: Ratcliffe-on-Soar Power Station by philmciver via flickr (CC license)