London Concrete – part of Aggregate Industries, and already in the news this month for a fatal incident – has now been targeted by climate protesters.
Extinction Rebellion activists blocked the entrances of its premises in East London:
The disruption is planned to halt the expansion of the site, which is intended to support the construction of the Silvertown Tunnel.
The Silvertown tunnel is a £1bn toll road proposed to run under the Thames.
The project – backed by the London mayor, Sadiq Khan – has drawn widespread criticism from environmentalists, local politicians and others concerned about deadly air pollution in the capital.
Construction "could begin in late 2019 or 2020, with the new tunnel expected to open from 2025." The proposal is opposed by the 'No to the Silvertown Tunnel' campaign. An Extinction Rebellion spokeswoman said:
Concrete has a huge environmental impact and building another tunnel will only make air pollution across East London worse.
The air pollution is already at dangerous levels and is affecting the health of children and adults in the area. With the siting of this industry right next to two schools, these children face lifelong negative impact on their health.
We confirm there are currently peaceful protests taking place outside of our London Concrete premises in Bow, East London and we are cooperating with authorities on this matter.
We are cognisant of the carbon footprint of cement and concrete and we are at the forefront of efforts to mitigate climate change.
Of course, if AI has been at the forefront of any efforts to mitigate climate change, we all know by now how very unsuccessful those efforts have been. As we've posted in the past: If AI’s record is an example of corporate action on climate change, we’re all screwed; and parent LafargeHolcim: Acting in a way that would “wipe out most life on the planet”. We've posted how:
AI's emitting nearly 1.3 million tonnes of CO2 each year, more than 5x the amount in 1999.
LafargeHolcim’s net CO2 emissions increased in 2018 to 121,000,000 tonnes*, up from 118,000,000 tonnes in 2017, up from 115,000,000 tonnes in 2016.
BREAKING: Members of Extinction Rebellion East London groups peacefully block the entrance to London Concrete in Bow. This action is part of the #SummerUprising - a week of disruption to urge local councils, industry and government to #ActNow on the climate/ecological emergency. pic.twitter.com/zjnfEEUdIt— Extinction Rebellion 🌻 (@ExtinctionR) July 16, 2019
Both entrances to London Concrete in Bow currently blocked by peaceful rebels! #SummerUprising #ActNow pic.twitter.com/B6Kh6CwiSq— Extinction Rebellion 🌻 (@ExtinctionR) July 16, 2019
BBC London lunchtime news report on @LdnRebellion @ExtinctionR @TowerXR @XR_Newham action against London Cement and the Silvertown Tunnel. @Heidi_LDN @sabrodrigues61 @nickbowes1975 @Len_Duvall @MuradQureshiLDN @FloEshalomi @VictoriaRance @CarolineRussell @sianberry @nuttyxander pic.twitter.com/bdkRAWRwLn— StopSilvertownTnL (@SilvertownTn) July 16, 2019
"Concrete has a huge environmental impact and building another tunnel will only make air pollution across East London worse." - @ExtinctionR https://t.co/ech3BnaJWC— DW News (@dwnews) July 16, 2019
According to @ChathamHouse cement = 8% of global CO2 emissions. That's why @ExtinctionR / @TowerXR are blockading London Concrete in Bow today #ClimateEmergency #ClimateAction— DoctorsForXR (@DoctorsXr) July 16, 2019
Tributes to cyclist killed by cement lorry in south west London #scourgeoftheroads #drivers https://t.co/Y04ojfEJUD— coshgirl (@coshgirl) July 8, 2019
* Net CEM CO2 emissions. Total gross direct CO2 emissions 135Mt. Total indirect CO2 emissions 30Mt. Source: LafargeHolcim Sustainability Report 2018
