Sweden: Save Gotland's protected nature from mining!

Peter s. started this petition to Janez Potočnik, Member of the European Commission started this petition to

Update, 24th of April 2015: Today we deliver 30738 signatures to the Swedish Minister for Climate and the Environment, Deputy Prime Minister Åsa Romson.

----------Update, 12th of April 2015: The Swedish Environmental Protection Agency has recommended the Swedish government to declare the whole area as a Natura 2000 site. As a direct result of this the court process has been halted until decissions are made by the government or until 31th of August 2015.

----------Update, 2nd of June 2014: The Court of Ground and Environmental Issues grants Nordkalk permission for the mining operation and finds that there is no need to get a preliminary decision from the EU-court.

----------Update, 18th of June 2013: The Supreme Court rules that the previous ruling of admissibility cannot hinder an approval procedure according to the requirements in article 6.3 of the EEG Habitats Directive. The case is remanded to the Land and Environments Court. This is again a great but temporary victory as we now have to go through the whole legal process again.

----------Update, 1 September 2012: Under intense pressure, the forest contractor Mellanskog has stopped logging while the court makes its decision. This is an amazing victory, but only temporary. Let's keep the pressure on the EU Commissioner to ensure the forest is saved for good!

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A Finnish mining company has started work on a limestone mine on the Swedish island of Gotland, putting a sensitive and protected natural environment under threat. The Swedish Environmental Protection Agency (Naturvardsverket) is appealing in court, but while they wait the company is going ahead with work on the mine -- and only pressure on the EU Environment Commissioner can stop this now. Despite finding that the proposed environmental protection measures are too weak, a Swedish court has given mining company Nordkalk the right to start mining anyway. While the EPA and environmental organisations are appealing to the Supreme Court, work on the mine has already started. In addition to threatening the bordering Natura 2000 EU protected areas and endangered species found in the area, the mine will also put the island's biggest freshwater reserve at risk. But EU Environment Commissioner Janez Potočnik is responsible for ensuring that Sweden meets in EU environmental obligations, and he can step in and save Gotland from this mess -- but only if we give him the political support he needs to interfere. Swedish EU parliamentarian Carl Schlyter and others are already calling on the Commissioner to intervene. Sign the petition now to add an overwhelming public call on the Commissioner to save Gotland and its protected nature areas! As a local resident myself, I'll work with other locals opposed to the mine and environmental organisations to ensure that our voices are delivered straight to the Commissioner! For more information www.facebook.com/ojnareskogen and www.Ojnareskogen.se.