This is irresisitible

News comes from the United States that Greenpeace, one of the most vociferous environmental NGOs, who has an enormous influence on the agenda in the European Union, is in trouble over … ahem … its environmental behaviour.

The State of Alaska has file criminal charges. Apparently a Greenpeace boat, the Arctic Sunrise, capable of carrying 128,000 gallons of fuel and lubricants, entered Alaskan waters to protest against the logging going on around Ketchikan. However, the boat seems to have ignored the fact that it was supposed to produce an oil-spill-prevention plan and proof of financial responsibility should a spill occur.

Greenpeace was notified of these heinous crimes and, according to the prosecutor’s office, the ship’s agent agreemd to stay in port to rectify what they assured all and sundry were simply mistakes. (They probably were but it is still funny.)

Things get worse at this point. The Arctic Sunrise did not stay in port but went off on its environmental business, according to the state, in

“… environmentally sensitive areas during peak salmon runs, without care and consideration for the catastrophic impacts that would occur from failure to have the necessary resources to initiate a response”.

Tsk, tsk. Presumably Greenpeace understood what all that meant because its spokespersons have been heard to mutter about clerical errors and lack of proper documentation. In fact, one of their lawyers groaned that environmental regulations are “getting to be more complicated in this day and age”. Ah yes. Many businesses would agree with that.