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Earthlife Africa JHB: Makoma Lekalakala challenge François Hollande and GDF Suez to end coal and save lives

Francios Hollande
Photo by Reuters
Francios Hollande

29th April 2015

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/ MEDIA STATEMENT / The content on this page is not written by Polity.org.za, but is supplied by third parties. This content does not constitute news reporting by Polity.org.za.

Environmental justice organisation,
Earthlife Africa Johannesburg, will picket for the third time in two
weeks outside of the partly French government owned GDF Suez's offices
in Johannesburg tomorrow. Earthlife Africa Johannesburg, and it's
partner organisations, oppose the imminent 1200 MW Thabametsi coal-fired
power station in the Waterberg region of Limpopo Province.

The picket will take place at the GDF Suez offices (located at 6-10
Woodlands Drive, Woodmead, Johannesburg) from 10:00 am to 12:00 pm on
the 30th of April 2015. The picket will be followed by a larger
demonstration on the 15th of May 2015, which will coincide with
Earthlife Africa Johannesburg's appeal of the power station.

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Earthlife Africa Johannesburg will be delivering a letter to the French
power company expressing their concern over the company's choice to
continue supporting coal in the developing world. Burning coal, the
organisation argues, is a climate bomb; with direct impacts on the
health of South African communities, workers and the environment. The
letter is based on a version handed over to French President, François
Hollande, on the 28th of April in Paris at the GDF Suez annual general
meeting (AGM) by Environmental Organisation Friends of the Earth France.
In the letter, the organisation accused President Hollande of
masquerading for global action against climate change whilst allowing
French public companies to continue increasing their carbon intensive
activities around the world.

In November 2014, at the Environmental Conference in Paris, Hollande
stated that ³public subventions to fossil fuels must be stopped². Last
February, in Manila, Hollande again called for concrete actions to fight
climate change. Yet, France has not stopped supporting the development
of coal-fired projects around the world. GDF is about to build a new
coal-fired power plant in Leczna in Poland where it is estimated that
45,000 people dye every year because of coal-related disease. GDF will
also build the Thabamesti coal-fired power station in South Africa, in a
region already considered an air quality priority area. The GDF Vado
Ligure power plant in Italy has recently been shut down by the Italian
justice because of coal pollution related mortality.

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Dominique Doyle, Energy Policy Officer at Earthlife Africa Johannesburg
argues that: ³This year France will be the host country to the 21st
Conference of Parties of the United Nations on climate change. France
and GDF Suez need to stop their fraudulent green washing and lead the
way in the transition to cleaner energy². Earthlife Africa's Senior
Programme Officer,Makoma Lekalakala, further remarks that: ³GDF has the
potential to be the global leader in sustainable energy, and South
Africa is an ideal location to make real climate change mitigation
commitments².

So far, GDF Suez South Africa has not responded to the protests by
Earthlife Africa Johannesburg, nor has it responded to any requests made
on twitter. Neither can GDF Suez South Africa be reached by telephone.
In a surprising turn of events, GDF Suez CEO, Gérard Mestrallet, has
even denied the Thabametsi power plant approval to concerned French
citizens. Gérard Mestrallet has recently called himself a Climate CEO in
an open letter to world governments calling for urgent climate action; a
title which Earthlife Africa Johannesburg finds extremely ironic.

 

Issued by Earthlife Africa Johannesburg

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