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The communities of San Foca and Melendugno in southern Italy are resisting a gas mega-pipeline on their land — the Trans Adriatic Pipeline — which would bring gas from Azerbaijan to Europe.
In Puglia, local mothers, teachers, health workers, grandparents and olive farmers have been leading a peaceful and determined resistance to protect their land and their community from TAP, despite facing a violent response by the police and individual fines of up to €10,000. The area where the pipeline and gas receiving terminal is due to be built is home to local olive farms, aquifers, pristine forest and stunning coastline.
It’s happening now. In the early hours of Monday 13 November, hundreds of police encircled Melendugno. They imposed a “red zone” around the TAP construction site, making it prohibited for journalists, citizens and local government officials to access the site — a move clearly designed to suppress the resistance.
Take action in solidarity with the communities affected by the Trans Adriatic Pipeline.
While not everyone can be in Italy on the front line of the resistance, the banks whose finance will make TAP and other new fossil fuel projects possible can be found in communities all across Europe. It’s time to disrupt the biggest and most expensive new fossil fuel projects in Europe where they are weak: by cutting off the finance.
TAP, like other major fossil fuel projects, cannot go ahead without the backing of banks. Currently the public European Investment Bank (EIB) is weighing up a €1.5bn loan to the project, whilst the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has just approved a $500 million loan to TANAP, another section of connecting pipeline that’s part of the Southern Gas Corridor. Once public banks have begun financing these projects, we expect private banks to follow their lead.
It’s likely that the Italian government, with the backing of the European Commission, has taken control of the heavily policed area in Melendugno to give the impression that the project is moving forward, and provide the certainty that the banks will need to lend its financial support.
But with such determined local resistance, and increasing international pressure on banks to reject TAP loans, this certainty is under threat. By acting together we can help to toxify investments in TAP and new fossil fuels.
From the international Divest the Globe days of action to recent #noTAP actions across Europe targetting the EIB and EBRD, we’ve been inspired by the creativity and solidarity shown by the growing movement to defund fossil fuels.
6 FEB: Next EIB board meeting
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