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UNESCO:
Protect the Reef, Not Coal!
UNESCO: Protect the Reef, not coal!
Across the globe, coal and climate change pose an immediate threat to some of the world’s greatest natural and cultural places. Here in Australia half of the Great Barrier Reef is likely already dead, and the new Adani mega coal mine threatens the rest.
But UNESCO, the international body responsible for protecting places like the Reef, has gone silent.
We call on the UNESCO World Heritage Committee to demand that governments comply with the Paris Agreement and stop coal and other fossil fuel developments that are fueling climate change and destroying World Heritage sites around the globe.
Check local petition pages for:
Protecting heritage sites all over the world:
In Australia, Bangladesh, Kenya, Turkey and more, coal and climate change pose an immediate threat to some of the world’s greatest natural and cultural places. But UNESCO, the international body responsible for protecting these places, has gone silent.
We call on the UNESCO World Heritage Committee to demand that governments comply with the Paris Agreement and stop coal and other fossil fuel developments that are fuelling climate change and destroying World Heritage sites around the globe.
Turkey
Many civilisation heritage sites are threatened by coal development in Turkey. Among these are the Hecate temple in Lagina (Yatağan), the ancient port city of Kyme, the Byzantine fortress of Pegae, and the Ilgın – Çavuşçugöl natural reserve. Many more could be threatened if Turkey pursues it’s plan to build even more coal plants.
Australia
Up to 50% of the Great Barrier Reef may be dead already thanks to warming oceans, prompting UNESCO itself to launch a shocking report on the Reef. The report was later removed after objections from the Australian government — a clear sign that the government’s coal addiction is speaking louder than scientific consensus.
Bangladesh
In Bangladesh, the government is building a 1320 Megawatt coal plant in the Sundarbans forest — a UNESCO heritage site and home of the endangered Royal Bengal tiger and gangetic dolphins.
Kenya
The Kenyan government has proposed to build a $ 2 billion coal-fired power plant in Lamu county, along with a port and a transport corridor (linking Ethiopia, Uganda, Kenya, and South Sudan).
Lamu Islands is a UNESCO World heritage site, and extremely rich in both ecological and cultural diversity. The area is endowed with various plant and animal species on the mainland, in addition to being home to East Africa’s richest marine ecology which attracts thousands of tourists annually.