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THE TRUE GREEN REPORT

TOXIC CLOUDS OVER BELGRADE

by
Judi McLeod, Editor

May, 1999

Where areGreenpeace and Peter Tabuns

The silence of former Toronto City Councillor Peter Tabuns on continuing NATO bombing of Yugoslavia, since his April 1 appointment as Executive Director of Greenpeace Canada has been deafening.

Ditto for Greenpeace International.

Greenpeace has made millions in campaigns that claim to protect the environment. Protecting innocent civilians in the event of exposure to ecological danger is supposed to be part of their mandate.

The spreading of dangerous toxic vapors cannot be hindered by international borders. Greenpeace is not even protesting toxic clouds over Belgrade from the safety of North American soil.

Is it possible that Greenpeace is not protesting NATO because public opinion will hurt their ongoing fund raising opportunities?

In the face of so much human suffering, how can Greenpeace possibly justify the word ‘peace’ in its glorified name?

Greenpeace silence remains intact even with world scientists crying out to the west about toxic clouds over Belgrade.

Scientists like Dr. Alberto Di Fazio, Senior Scientist, Astronomical Observatory of Rome, are extremely anxious about the situation.

Environment News Service (ENS) reports that a combined petrochemicals and fertilizer factory and oil refinery in the Belgrade suburbs was bombed by NATO forces April 15, releasing large amounts of toxics into the air and water.

Perceptible clouds of toxic gases enveloped the suburb of Pancevo, in the northwest of the city, and many people were injured by chemical inhalation.

The exact number of injured and victims of chemical inhalation is not known.

Pancevo lies on the river, and the toxics are expected to be carried into Romania and Bulgaria, and down the Danube River into the Black Sea.

The plant does not make products for military use, but makes a range of products of an "extremely civil nature", Dr. Tresac said. "Plants of this nature have never been considered military targets," he said.

However, the chemical components of fertilizers are often used in the manufacture of explosives.

Dr. Tresac reported that, "due to power failure and auxiliary fluids interruption a large quantity of combustible, explosive and toxic matters remained trapped in the equipment, installation and tanks. "It will take a lot of time to drain and evacuate all those matters from the plants before the plants could be considered safe for a wide surrounding area."

HIP Petrohemija Pancevo burns were releasing toxics into the environment.

According to the BBC, workers at the complex decided to release tons of carcinogenic ethylene dichloride into the Danube to avoid the risk of an explosion.

Britian’s Times newspaper quoted the Serbian Environment Minister saying the amount of carcinogenic matter in the air over Pancevo was 7,200 times above the permitted level.

NATO planes also hit a chemical complex at Baric near Belgrade causing the evacuation of the entire town of Obrenovac.

Protesting ecological wrongs from the safety of peaceful countries is not protecting the lives of citizens plunged, through no fault of their own, into ecological jeopardy.

If anyone should know the tragedy of war-torn countries, it’s Tabuns who can trace his roots back to the Baltic States.

Where is crusading Greenpeace?

Where is Peter Tabuns?

Dr. Patrick Moore:

CAMPAIGN BASED MORE ON FEAR THAN FACT

Greenpeace co-founder Dr. Patrick Moore, interviewed for The True Green Report last month in an article entitled "Co-founder says Greenpeace has lost its way", on the subject of chlorine:

..."I don’t mean to pick on Greenpeace, but they are close to my heart and have strayed further from the truth than I can tolerate. In this case the issue is chlorine, an element that is used in a wide variety of industrial, medical and agricultural applications.

"In 1985, Greenpeace took up the campaign to eliminate chlorine from all industrial processes, to essentially remove it from human use despite its enormous benefits to society.

"The basis of the campaign was the discovery that the use of chlorine as a bleaching agent in the pulp and paper industry resulted in the production of minute quantities of dioxin, some of which ended up in waste water. The industry responded quickly and within five years of the discovery had virtually eliminated dioxins by switching to a different form of chlorine or eliminating chlorine altogether. The addition of secondary treatment resulted in further improvements. Independtent scientists demonstrated that after these measures were taken, pulp and paper mills using chlorine had no more environmental impact than those that didn’t use chlorine.

"Did Greenpeace accept the science? No, they tried to discredit the scientists and to this day continue a campaign that is based more on fear than fact. It’s as if chlorine should be banned from the periodic table of elements altogether so future generations won’t know it exists."

DAY ONERS IN BRAVER DAYS

This is the crew of the Phyllis Cormack, renamed the "Greenpeace" for the first Greenpeace expedition to protest hydrogen bomb testing by the US at Amchitka Island. Top, left to right:

• Bob Hunter (Toronto-based Journalist), served 1971-1977

• Dr.Patrick Moore, served 1971-1986

• Bob Cummings, deceased, writer for the Georgia Strait, served 1971-1982

• Ben Metcalfe, CBC commentator, purged for controversial opinions. Not too fond of David McTaggart, served 1971-1974.

• Dave Birmingham, ship's engineer pacifist/socialist, served 1971.

Bottom left to right:

• Dr. Richard Fineburg, political science prof at University of Alaska, served 1971.

• Lyle Thurston, M.D. ship's doctor, served 1971-1976 .

• Jim Bohlen, leader of the expedition, Quaker, MIT engineer grad, served 1971-1974

• Terry Simmons, pacifist lawyer academic, now practicing law in Reno Nevada, served 1971-1974

• Bill Darnell, carpenter, union official, teacher, credited with coming up with name Greenpeace.

• Captain John Charles Cormack, described as “tough love with a heart of gold,” deceased.

MILKING IT:

WHERE THERE IS A WILL, THERE'S A WAY

Greenpeace advertises How A Woman Can leave A Legacy And Have A proper Will in its most recent, free camera-ready Greenpeace Page, circulated by NewsCanada , May, 1999.

"For individuals who feel they cannot afford to make a large donation to a cause they support during their lifetime, a bequest in a will can be a good way to make a lasting contribution," says Greenpeace. "For a free copy of the booklet " Questions & Answers About Wills" which answers man (sic) more questions about wills, write to: Greenpeace, 1726 Commercial Drive, Suite 200, Vancouver, B.C."

Greenpeace and their brothers in the International Fund For Animal Welfare get a lot of their money from "little old ladies."

Brian Davies, the man who flew French actress Brigette Bardot and 55 journalists to the ice floes in the Gulf of St. Lawrence by helicopter in March, 1977, was given a settlement worth $2.5-million when he left the International Fund for Animal Welfare two years ago.

Ian MacPhail, a former consultant to the fund, described Mr. Davies’ payout as "absolutely disgraceful".

"After 15 years of acting as a consultant to the fund, I am horrified at the information, given that the charity’s money comes from little old ladies who don’t have a lot."

Internal data from the International Fund for Animal Welfare reveals 72% of the charity’s supporters are female and most are over 55. They are retired or white collar professionals working as teachers, local government officers, clerical workers, and lecturers.

Lucrative Greenpeace International shows revenues of $126.5 million for 1997; and has 2.9 million members worldwide.

As Our Toronto noted in last month’s True Green Report, Greenpeace hypocritically uses PVC (polyvinyl chloride) by soliciting funds from donors’ credit cards. Credit cards are made with PVC. PVC credit cards cannot be made without chlorine, now under intense attack by Greenpeace.

In advertising for women to make "lasting contributions" to the environmental giant in their last will and testament, Greenpeace greed shows that where there’s a will, there’s a way.

Canada Free Press founding editor Most recent by Judi McLeod is an award-winning journalist with 30 years experience in the print media. Her work has appeared on Newsmax.com, Drudge Report, Foxnews.com, Glenn Beck. Judi can be reached at: judi@canadafreepress.com



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