-----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]] On Behalf Of Matthew Townsend Sent: Wednesday, November 10, 1999 8:19 PM To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: Ruling 'a fantastic victory for whales and dolphins' Greens celebrate extended protection for sea life and delay in commercial exploitation of GM plants Ruling 'a fantastic victory for whales and dolphins' Paul Brown Environmental campaigners celebrated a "fantastic victory" last week after protection for whales, dolphins and rare deep sea coral was extended to 200 miles from British coasts. The High Court ruled that the Government had failed to apply European Union law properly. The action brought by Greenpeace means that oil exploration by 10 oil companies off the northwest coast of Scotland will be severely disrupted. Mr Justice Maurice Kay ruled that the Government had failed properly to apply the EU habitats directive and wrongly restricted its impact to territorial waters extending only 12 nautical miles from the coast. He declared that the directive applied up to the limit of Britain's economic zone - 200 nautical miles from the mainland - affecting areas that are due to be explored for oil and gas. He ruled that the Government cannot lawfully grant oil exploration licences without considering the harmful effects on wildlife, as required by the directive. Oil companies fear the ruling could lead to delays and added costs in the exploration for oil on the "Atlantic frontier". Greenpeace has been involved in a long campaign to stop further exploitation, partly because of the damage to wildlife and because more oil and gas fields will add to global warming. The group says the explosions used by oil and gas companies to locate potentially exploitable fields below the ocean floor can upset whale navigation and migration. The executive director of Green peace, Peter Melchett, said the decision was a fantastic victory for whales, dolphins and deep-water corals. "The government should learn from this defeat and review whether it can afford to continue to license new oil exploration given the damage that it will cause to British marine wildlife and the global climate," he said. The judge gave the Trade and Industry Secretary, Stephen Byers, and the 10 oil companies, permission to challenge his ruling in the Court of Appeal because it was of major public importance. * The world's climate is heating up far faster than predicted, according to super-computer predictions at the Hadley centre for climate change in Berkshire. The increase will be faster than at any time in the world's history. It will be far too fast for natural systems to adapt and will threaten world food production. Most of the Amazon rain forest will disappear, releasing millions of tonnes of extra carbon dioxide into the atmosphere as the carbon in the wood is released as carbon dioxide. The Guardian Weekly 11-11-1999, page 11 Matthew Townsend Ph: 61 (3) 9225 7319 Fax: 61 (3) 9225 8668 Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Internet: http://www.ozemail.com.au/~mdt -- For MAI-not (un)subscription information, posting guidelines and links to other MAI sites please see http://mai.flora.org/
