Norway: Greta Thunberg joins Indigenous Sámi protest over wind farms
'Thunberg, Indigenous protesters block Norway energy ministry over wind farms', Reuters, 27 February 2023
Environmental campaigner Greta Thunberg and hundreds of other activists on Monday blocked entrances to Norway's energy ministry, protesting against wind turbines built on land traditionally used by Indigenous Sami reindeer herders.
Thunberg, a vocal advocate for ending the world's reliance on carbon-based power, said the transition to green energy could not come at the expense of Indigenous rights...
"Indigenous rights, human rights, must go hand-in-hand with climate protection and climate action. That can't happen at the expense of some people. Then it is not climate justice."Greta Thunberg
Norway's supreme court in 2021 ruled that two wind farms built at Fosen in central Norway violated Sami rights under international conventions, but the turbines remain in operation more than 16 months later...
The ministry said the ultimate fate of the wind farms is a complex legal quandary despite the supreme court ruling and is hoping to find a compromise.
The court's verdict did not say what should happen next to the 151 turbines, which can power some 100,000 Norwegian homes, or what should happen to the dozens of kilometres (miles) of roads built to facilitate the construction...
Owners of the Roan Vind and Fosen Vind farms include Germany's Stadtwerke Muenchen, Norwegian utilities Statkraft and TroenderEnergi, as well as Swiss firms Energy Infrastructure Partners and BKW.
"We trust that the ministry will find good solutions allowing us to continue the production of renewable energy while maintaining the rights of the reindeer owners," Roan Vind said in a statement.
Utility BKW said it expected the wind turbines to remain in place, with compensatory measures to ensure that the rights of the Sami reindeer herders are guaranteed.
Stadtwerke Muenchen declined to comment. Statkraft and Energy Infrastructure Partners were not immediately available for comment.
ENDS