Protestors call on council to take firmer climate action

ACTVISTS are holding daily ‘meditation vigils’ outside the council offices in Omagh in a bid to make the local authority take greater action on climate change.

The vigils, led by environmentalist, Marella Fyffe, coincide with world leaders meeting at the COP 26 summit Glasgow to discuss their ambitions to reduce carbon emissions.

Marella told the UH, “It’s okay doing a bit of recycling and going around doing little school projects, but at the end of the day they’re irrelevant.

“What we need to be doing is hitting the big stuff – that’s anything from mining, to farming and sewerage. Those three things alone are massive in their production of carbon.”

Ms Fyffe and her fellow activists have vowed to meet outside the Grange Park council offices at 9am and 9pm for every day of the COP climate summit.

“We need to stop fiddling around the edges and make some decent decisions and that’s what really concerns me,” she added.

The vigils are being streamed live on the anti-goldmine group, CAMIO’s Facebook page.

Ms Fyffe said, “The meditation vigils are in solidarity with those humans that are trying to make a difference at COP 26 and to call on the best of our humanity, both on the global level and also on the local level.”

She added that the world faces “civilizational collapse” if leaders do not act to cut emissions and end biodiversity loss. Ms Fyffe cautioned, “This decade right now, this is the most important ten years for us as human race. Let’s start now.”

The first and deputy first ministers were at the global summit in Glasgow earlier this week.

Michelle O’Neill said, “The climate crisis is no respecter of different political views and the executive stands ready to play its part in this global response.”

In its climate action plan action plan published last month, Fermanagh and Omagh District Council vowed become net zero on carbon emissions in their operations by 2040 and get the district itself to net zero by 2042.

Errol Thompson, chair of the council, said, “The time for debate and discussion is over, we now need commitment and action from all sectors, and this begins with the council.”