http://www.greenpeace.org/~comms/16.html (Einblicke ins Internet, 10/1995)The position of the Pacific Pintail at 0700 GMT was 17 degrees and 12 minutes South and 35 degrees and 24 minutes West, on a distance 190 miles north-north-west of the Abrolhos Island, which means that the Pacific Pintail has passed into the Brazilian EEZ.
The Brazilian Government, on March 8, released a statement saying that the transit of the vessel 'Pacific Pintal' through the jurisdictional waters of Penedos de Sao Pedro and Sao Paulo and of Fernando de Noronha, in the high seas waters adjacent to national jurisdiction continues to cause concern for the Brazilian Government because of the risks of pollution charecterised by the nuclear waste transports. The Brazilian Government further called for a re-evaluation of IMO and IAEA regultaions on the basis of the goals expressed in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.
Chile's House of Representatives yesterday unanimously adopted a resolution asking the Chilean Executive branch to take a tougher stance on the issue of radioactive waste shipments. In the draft resolution the Chilean House of Representatives requests the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to: - deliver to the governments of Japan, France and the United Kingdom, as well as to the legislative branches of those same countries, Brazil's most strong protest over this new shipment of radioactive material by sea. - request the governments of England, France and Japan to terminate their plans to continue to ship radioactive wastes, since they are a grave risk to the environment, human health and international security.
The Chilean House of Representatives agrees as well to request the Government of President Eduardo Frei Ruiz Tagle to forbid the Pacific Pintail to sail in Chilean territorial waters.
Foreign Minister, Jose Miguel Insulza issued a statement on February 23rd that Chile will not allow the shipment to pass through it's territorial waters nor through the country's 200-mile economic exclusion zone. The next day, on the same day the Pacific Pintail left France, the Brazilian Government issued a statement of concern which stated that their coast and waters "mustn't be exposed to eventual risks of accidents involving such cargoes."
On March 1st, in a meeting with Greenpeace, Argentina's Vice Foreign Minister Fernando Petrella states that his government has formally notified Japan that the transport will not be allowed entry to Argentina's 200 mile EEZ.
Petrella also states that the government does not want the Cape Horn route to be used for such transports. On March 8th, Brazil's Department of External Affairs confirmed that it had sought bilateral contact with the Embassies of Japan, France and UK, to express Brazil's concern with the route of the Pacific Pintail.
The French plutonium company Cogema continues to refuse to inform countries about the details of the shipping route, most likely out of fear that more countries will prohibit entrance of the British flagged Pacific Pintail into the waters under their jurisdiction. This veil of secrecy, however, also implies that 'selected transit' states are prevented from issuing navigational warnings to ships in the vicinity of the Pacific Pintail or from ensuring with a Navy escort that the radioactive waste freighter stays out of their waters.
Greenpeace is encouraging countries around the world to call for a halt to the plutonium industry at the United Nation's April Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) at the United Nations in New York.
Media updates from the Solo are sent out on a daily basis at approximately 0700 GMT and 1900 GMT. If additional information on the Pacific Pintail's voyage or it's cargo of radioactive pollution is required, please contact Bas Bruyne on the Solo (phone: ++871-1301166--warning, cost is $10 per minute), or Karen Richardson at ++44171-226-3151. Photo requests should be made to Mark Warford at Greenpeace Communications (++44-171-8330-600).
Media and others interested in tracking the shipment's route daily should access Greenpeace World Wide Web site at: HTTP://WWW.greenpeace.org/
Best regards and No Nukes!
Ulf Birgander (Captain)
Bas Bruyne (Campaigner)
This morning at 0912 GMT the Brazilian Navy arrived and positioned itself next to the Pacific Pintail and is keeping pace with the ship. The Brazilian Navy ship is the P42, the "Grajau". This is a large patrol craft of 46.5 meters.
At the time the Navy came, the Pintail was 180 miles northeast of the Brazilian Island Abralhos. At the time of writing (1100 GMT), the Brazlian Navy has left us again, but we hope they will return.
That's all for now. More in the 1900 updated.
Cheers, Bas
The position of the nuclear waste ship Pacific Pintail at 1900 GMT was 19 degrees and 43 minutes South and 36 degrees and 41 minutes West, at a distance 170 miles of the Brazilian Coast, east of the Brazilian city Vitoria. This morning at 0912 GMT, the Brazilian Navy vessel P42, the "Grajau" joined the Pintail and stayed with the radioactive waste shipment for 2 hours. The Pacific Pintail has been sailing since early this morning in Brazilian waters.
The lack of information from the French plutonium company Cogema about the route of the ship is causing deep concern with states along the possible shipping route. The Brazilian Foreign Ministry, on March 8, released a note that the transit of the vessel 'Pacific Pintail' through the juridical waters of Penedos de Sao Pedro and Sao Paulo and of Fernando de Noronha, in the high seas waters adjacent to national jurisdiction continues to cause concern for the Brazilian Government because of the risks of pollution characterised by the nuclear waste transports. The Brazilian Government further called for a re-evaluation of International Maritime Organization (IMO) and International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) regulations on the basis of the goals expressed in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.
The production of plutonium not only is directly responsible for the production of high level radioactive waste, and its transport through shipping lanes, fisheries and tourist areas, but is also a great cause for concern with regard to the spread of nuclear weapons world wide. Civilian nuclear plutonium programs will have produced around 550 tonnes of plutonium by the year 2010, largely by France, the UK, and Japan. By comparison, current military stocks of plutonium are estimated at 257 tonnes. Combined, approximately 100,000 nuclear weapons worth of fissile material has been produced over the last 50 years by the nuclear military and civilian industries. This shipment of highly radioactive plutonium waste onboard the Pacific Pintail represents a significant step in the nuclear industry's attempt to further increase our society's dependence on plutonium.
Ultimately to end radioactive waste shipments like the Pacific Pintail the international community will have to end the production of plutonium, whether produced for civil or military purposes. Only in this way can we hope to have a chance to deal with the enormous radioactive pollution already left behind for our children, their children and future generations to come. Greenpeace is encouraging countries around the world to call for a halt to the plutonium industry at the United Nation's April conference of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) in New York.
If additional information on the Pacific Pintail's voyage or it's cargo of radioactive pollution is required, please contact Bas Bruyne on the Solo (phone: ++871-130-1166--warning $10 per minute), or Karen Richardson (++44171-226-3151). Photo and other media requests should be made to Mark Warford or Blair Palese at Greenpeace Communications (++44-171-8330-600).
Media and others interested in tracking the shipment's route daily should access Greenpeace World Wide Web site at: HTTP://WWW.greenpeace.org/
Best regards and No Nukes!
Ulf Birgander (Captain)
Bas Bruyne (Campaigner)