Gorleben (Germany), Nov 09: A group of anti-nuclear activists staged a sit-in today at a pithead tower on a disputed dump site in northern Germany to protest an upcoming shipment of reprocessed waste from France. The 12 activists scaled the 40-meter structure at the Gorleben mine early this morning, unfurling banners including "Gorleben - no atomic toilet." Police, deployed in force to protect this week's waste transport, did not immediately intervene.
The latest shipment, the first since November last year, is expected to set off late today from a reprocessing plant at La Hague in northwestern France and arrive at Gorleben on Wednesday. Previous shipments to Gorleben, a traditional focus of protests by the country's anti-nuclear lobby, have regularly led to clashes between demonstrators and police.
Today's action followed a peaceful protest yesterday by more than 3,000 people in the nearby town of Dannenberg.
The German government is considering building a permanent radioactive waste disposal site at Gorleben, a disused salt mine. Environmental activists argue that the plan poses a risk of groundwater contamination.
Bureau Report