Greenpeace activists scale BP HQ in London over Gulf oil spill
Greenpeace activists scale BP's headquarters in London over oil spill in Gulf of Mexico
Thursday, 20, May 2010 06:24
By Sarah Garrod.
Greenpeace campaigners have today scaled the headquarters of BP in London in protest at the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.
Two activists hoisted a flag on the building reading 'British Polluters', after the environmental campaign group criticised the oil giant's response to the Deepwater Horizon spill.
The spill - sparked by an explosion on the rig on April 20th which killed 11 people - has caused widespread environmental devastation in the Gulf of Mexico, which is home to a number of delicate ecosystems and endangered species.
The environmental campaign group said in a statement: "The Greenpeace volunteers arrived at 05:30 BST before climbing onto a small metal balcony above the front door. They then attached a specially designed giant flag to the company's flagpole bearing the words 'British Polluters' alongside the altered BP logo.
"[Tony] Hayward flew into London last night and is in the UK for the first time since the Deepwater Horizon rig exploded in the Gulf of Mexico a month ago. News reports suggest that he will chair a board meeting inside the building this morning to discuss the long term consequences of the spill, which is leaking thousands of barrels of oil each day. Today is also Mr Hayward's 54th birthday."
One of the two Greenpeace climbers, 36-year-old Ben Stewart from north London said: "The oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico can be traced back to decisions made in this building. Under Tony Hayward's leadership BP has taken huge risks to pump oil from ever more remote places, while slashing investment in the clean energy projects that could actually help reduce our dependence on oil and beat climate change.
"BP's bright green logo is a pathetic attempt to distract our attention from the reality of what this company is doing, both in the Gulf of Mexico but also in places like the tar sands of Canada. Tony Hayward's reckless approach will cause more disasters unless action is taken to stop him."
In its latest news update, BP said today that "subsea efforts continue to focus on progressing options to stop the flow of oil from the well through interventions via the blow out preventer (BOP), and to collect the flow of oil from the leak points".
However, the firm added that: "This remains a new technology and both its continued operation and its effectiveness in capturing the oil and gas remain uncertain."