FOUR activists chained themselves to a conveyor belt at the world’s biggest coal terminal on 14 July 2008, disrupting operations for a second day.
The
Port Waratah Coal Services loading and handling operation was stopped for more than two hours because of the protest.
The conveyor belt was not operational when the activists chained themselves to it, but the other two ship loaders were also stopped for safety reasons.
Police eventually moved in on the Newcastle facility and removed the protesters. According to environmental groups, the protest was part of a planned six-day action aimed at shutting down coal export operations at the Newcastle port, because of the perceived link between coal use and climate change.
Authorities had arrested about 37 people on 13 July, after they chained themselves to train and rail tracks at the port. That action resulted in 20,000t of coal not being loaded.
The port is the export hub for many coal companies such as
BHP Billiton,
Xstrata,
Rio Tinto,
Gloucester Coal and
Centennial Coal.
