The geothermal area of Krisuvik

The nobel-prized economist Joseph Stiglitz lectured last year on our crisis situation and urged us to keep the energy resources and all our natural resources in public property. Today, when we face the Magma-deal and other deals where foreign private companies are aloud to harness for a low price all we’ve got left. It’s not about being against foreign investments, it’s about doing better deals now.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eNfawNWdQ28&feature=player_embedded

Basket Star - Euryalid Ophiuroid-Gorgonocephalus sp. from Sea Mount on Mid Atlantic Ridge. Dive 175 Station No. 43. Depth around 800m

I urge the authorities to stop the sale of HS Orka and for Alþingi to hold a national referendum on the ownership and the utilisation of our energy resources.

www.orkuaudlindir.is

"freedom of speech". photo from the web www.bjork.com

Today is the national day of France and a good opportunity to remember the words: Freedom, egality… and Democracy!

Yesterday, Björk submitted a Formal Proposal to the Public Representative of the Icelandic Parliament, concerning the sale of Iceland’s natural resources to the company Magma Energy. The Proposal, signed by Björk and Jon Thorisson, icelandic assistant of EVA JOLY and writer Oddny Eir,  aims to initiate an open discussion and encourage reconsideration of this sale, ensuring that the interests of the public are being protected and that clarification is achieved on all aspects of this decisive case concerning the future of Iceland.

In addition to the Proposal, Björk publishes on her web  several questions they feel must be asked by the government, by the parliament and by the public before this business exchange can continue. About the resources, about democracy… see www.bjork.com for all details and documents.

Björk will hold a press conference with a performance on Monday 19th July at 4.00pm in the Nordic House, Reykjavik.

Beautiful Nudibranch from the underwaters. http://www.scottishnudibranchs.co.uk/lomanotus-genei.htm

According to a new brithish research (http://www.visir.is/island-a-oruggustu-vatnsbirgdir-jardar/article/2010265674166) Iceland has the safest access to clean water in the future. It’s not big news, as we already know how good our water is, as our other clean energy resources. If we’ll manage to treat our natural resources with enough respect and forsight, they’ll probably be our gold-mine in difficult times. But no rush, no gold-rush please, and don’t interpret the results of this research as a justification to harness and use the resources with greed, as unfortunately is in sight on behalf of the icelandic state: to built new aluminum smelters, to sell the access of the resources to capitalistic private companies… We should rather, and right now!- work hard at defining new laws and ways of owning together and being responsible of our natural resources. How can we have more to say about the ways we would like to handle our water?

Photo: www.bjork.com

Here are some articles on the scandalous selling of Icelandic resources:

http://www.grapevine.is/Features/ReadArticle/Letter-From-Bjork-About-Magma-Energy

http://www.savingiceland.org/0520/magma-energy-takes-over-hs-orka/

http://www.grapevine.is/News/ReadArticle/Foreign-Company-Set-to-Buy-Icelandic-Energy-Company

http://www.grapevine.is/Features/ReadArticle/Feature-Blame-Canada

http://climatechange.thinkaboutit.eu/think2/post/the_battle_is_on_for_control_of_icelands_geothermal_energy_fields/

http://www.grapevine.is/Features/ReadArticle/News-Magma-Energy-Lied-To-Us

"I can no longer remain silent on the very pressing subject that is the selling off of Iceland's nature..."

The other day Björk sent this letter around and to the Icelandic government as an ALARM ! Wake up and do something about this ! Now the post boxes of the parliament members are overloaded and the debate is still on… : should we sell all our natural resources away or not? NOT!

Dear friends,

I can no longer remain silent on the very pressing subject that is the selling off of Iceland’s nature.

I hereby challenge the government of Iceland to do everything in its power to revoke the contracts with Magma Energy that entitle the Canadian firm complete ownership of HS Orka. These are abhorrable deals, and they create a dangerous precedent for the future. They directly go against necessary and oft-repeated attempts to create a new policy in the energy- and resource management of this nation.

Warmly,

Björk Guðmundsdóttir

http://grapevine.is/Features/ReadArticle/Letter-From-Bjork-About-Magma-Energy

marímó þanghnöttur sem er án kjarna en verður til úr þráðum sem greinast í sífellu og sameinast aftur við snúning kúlunnar á vatnsbotni

Eftirfarandi áskorun hefur síðustu daga verið send í pósthólf Ríkisstjórnar Íslands af ótalmörgum einstaklingum fyrir hönd Náttúrunnar og  Íslands:

Ég skora á Ríkisstjórn Íslands
að gera allt sem í hennar valdi stendur
til að rifta samningum um kaup
Magma Energy á HS orku.
Þetta eru forkastanlegir og fordæmisgefandi samningar,
sem brjóta í bága við brýna og ítrekaða viðleitni til að
skapa nýja stefnu
í orku- og auðlindamálum þjóðarinnar.

hér að neðan eru netföng stjórnarliða, fengin af vefsíðu Alþingis, en netfang Gylfa vantar. Orðið á götunni segir að nethólfin séu orðin full enda er mælirinn fullur fyrir alla þá sem bera hag lands og þjóðar og heims fyrir hjarta. svo mætti senda áskorunina á sveitastjórnarliða og alþingismenn og ýmsa þá sem kannski eru búnir að gleyma því að í lögunum stendur að auðlindir og orkunýting eigi að vera í höndum ríkisins. (more…)

http://www.ruv.is/hekla

Just before one o’clock tonight started a volcanic eruption in glacier Eyjafjallajokull in South Iceland. People in the danger zone are leaving their houses and the scientists are coming over in a helicopter to estimate the eruption. Nobody knows for sure now where exactly the eruption but the ashes are falling to the east and floods and lightnings are expected.
Last time there was a volcanic eruption in this glacier it was in 1823 and scientists and volcano amateurs have been “waiting” for this eruption for some time now, and the glacier has been watched intensely last few weeks.

About the glacier from skymounaineers.com: Eyjafjallajokull is a large stratovolcano topped by a 1.5 mile (2.5 km) diameter ice-filled caldera, with several major outlet glaciers pouring through gaps in the caldera rim. It is located directly on the south coast of Iceland, and its name means “Island Mountain Glacier” after the nearby Vestmannaeyjar (Westman Islands) just off the coast. Like many of the volcanoes of south and west Iceland, its climbing history dates back to the 1700’s. Access to the south and east flanks is very easy from the coastal highway. It is supposedly a very fine climb (with alpine ice climbing possibilities on several routes) and also a great ski ascent/descent.