Two activists with Everglades Earth First! were sentenced to 60 and 30days after their role in last years blockade of Florida Power and Light’s power plant near the Everglades. Panagioti Tsolkas and Lynne Purvis participated in an action that formed a human chain that shut down Southern Boulevard for hours.
Other activists arrested in the same incident had received only probation.
Last year, over 25 Earth First! activists were arrested after taking confrontational action to protect the Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge which sits 1000 ft from the power plant site and to protect the larger Everglades system.
Everglades Earth First! and the Palm Beach County Environmental Coalition criticized the excessive sentences as attempts to silence freedom of speech by critics of Florida Power & Light.
their prison sentences are not in vain. fucking awesome, everglades ef! thank you.
Both Lynne and Panagioti are doing fine, but we need to get them outa there ASAP. They would love to receive letters. Contact evergladesearthfirst@gmail.com to get info on how to write to them.
Here’s the press release:
Palm Beach County, FL- After being found guilty of
misdemeanor trespassing, blocking traffic in an act of civil disobedience
during the February 2008 protest against Florida Power Light’s West County
Energy Center, Lynne Purvis and Panagioti Tsolkas are sentenced to 30 and 60
days in jail.
During their court case, Purvis and Tsolkas argued that the
environmental damages caused by FPL’s power plant necessitated non- violent
civil disobedience. Scientist
Dr. John van Leer and Dr. Sydney Bachus testified in defense
of Purvis and Tsolkas, stating that the completion of the FPL West County
Energy Center could lead to higher levels of Mercury in the Loxahatchee
Preserve area and aquifer contamination; in addition to the acceleration of
global warming. The State Attorney’s Office contested the environmentalists’
claims, arguing that proposed power plant impact on global warming was not an
imminent threat.
Once open, the Florida Power and Light West County Energy
Center will be the largest fossil fuel burning power plan in the United States,
emitting twelve million tons of potentially toxic carbon emissions and dispensing
13.5 million gallons of
contaminated water into Florida’s aquifer every year.
In addition to jail, Judge Johnson sentence restrains Purvis
and Tsolkas from coming within 500 feet of FPL property. Both remain committed to
protecting Palm Beach
County’s natural resources.
Co-defendant Russell McSpadden responded to the Judge’s
sentence stating, “The FPL West County Energy Center
poses an imminent and severe threat to our quality of life in Palm Beach
County. We are dissapointed with the
Judge’s decision to jail environmental activists who took action to stop
FPL from contaminating the air and water of Palm Beach County. We believe during this
time of global climate change that average citizens must step up and take
action to address the impacts large corporations are having on our environment.
”