If the third runway in the UK is the proof of the country’s climate hypocrisy then Sweden’s would be the huge new highway projects in Stockholm and Gothenburg.

In Gothenburg, the second-largest city in Sweden, climate activists from Klimax and the Friends of the Earth “decorated” cranes with banners, planted trees and even had a breakfast on the construction site to highlight and protest against the climate highway madness being built in Sweden.

“It’s bad enough that large amounts of taxpayers’ money is being wasted on projects that won’t work, but these road projects will even lead to an increase of carbon dioxide emissions. It’s ironically that that we activists’ risks getting arrested while the real criminals, who on a consciously and cynically way make decisions that will lock us into a continued increase of carbon dioxide emissions will go free. We just can’t sit quiet while climate criminal politicians threaten future generations living condition; it’s every citizen’s obligation to put pressure on the decision makers so they make climate friendly choices”, said Lovisa Börjeson from Klimax in Gothenburg.

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If you live in northern Europe you might have heard about a new “climate manifesto” from Vattenfall, Europe’s third-largest energy company which is wholly owned by the Swedish government.

With this “climate manifesto” Vattenfall is a trying to influence politicians and governments to put a global price on CO2 emissions, support (read financial support) climate friendly technologies and implement climate requirements for products. It all sounds good but this is just another greenwashing campaign from a dirty energy company.

Vattenfall (Swedish for waterfall) is a company that owns 20 coal powered plants around Europe (none in Sweden), three of them are the dirtiest in Europe.

And even when we face a man-made climate crisis beyond our wildest dreams Vattenfall is still investing more money into fossil fuels such as coal, which is alone responsible for a third of global greenhouse gas emissions. They are currently building a new coal plant outside of Hamburg in Germany that once completed will become the biggest in Europe.

And during the last two years Vattenfall have invested nearly 400% more money in fossil fuels, such as nuclear energy and coal, than in renewable energy sources. As a result Vattenfall last year released more greenhouse gases than all of Sweden combined (85 million tons compared to Swedens 55 million tons).

And now their “climate manifesto” is facing protests from environmental organisations. Greenpeace in Sweden is for example encouraging people to send in a new and more honest version of Vattenfall and its logo.

And the Swedish climate group Klimax (Climax), known in Sweden for their campaigns against private motorism, the aviation and meat industry last week blocked the entrance to Vattenfall’s head office. The protestors demanded that Vattenfall should stop its latest greenwashing campaign and end their investments in dirty coal.

If Vattenfall cares so much about the current climate crisis why don’t they just reduce their investments in dirty fossil fuels, close their coal plants and invest more in clean renewable energy? And why try a cheap greenwashing gimmick to influence politicians? After all, they are already owned by the Swedish government.

Last week the climate organisation Klimax (climax) held a large demonstration in central Copenhagen, the capital of Denmark. The demonstration was the first of many more planned by the organisation before December 2009 when the top UN climate meeting Cop15 will be held.

“Denmark is to host the UN COP15 climate summit in the late winter of 2009. We are going to make that summit one the leaders will never forget. We are going to raise our voices in ways they cannot escape. We are going to tell them that we are not going to accept them playing Russian Roulette with our climate anymore. They are the few yet the consequences of their actions affects every being on the planet. We are going to protest using Nonviolent Direct Action because we cannot allow some delegates to endanger the face of the planet anymore. It is time to take the power back.”

Around 500-600 people participated, mainly young people, in the march through the central parts of Copenhagen under the slogan “hands of our climate.”

The demonstrators also took more direct action by planting trees at a crossing and smashing a window using a miniature version of a wind power station on the headquarter for the Danish Industry. The Danish Industry is a lobbyist organisation which represents some of the dirtiest and most CO2 polluting companies in Denmark.

Later on they released three banners from a construction site with the words “planet” “before” “profit”. When the demonstration was about to end a coffin full of water balloons was opened and thrown on the police.

More photos from the demonstration can be found here.

Photo Credit: Mimo: Mimophoto.dk, Mimophoto.deviantart.com, Myspace.com/mimophoto

The Swedish climate group Klimax (climax), known in Sweden for their campaigns against private motorism, aviation and the meat industry, have been putting up stickers with the text “Flying Kills” on advertisements from different aviation companies.

The stickers are meant to resemble the stickers you can find on cigarette packages warning the buyer of the dangers the cigarettes will cause.

With texts such as “Flying Kills” and “Flying will lead to climate chaos” the guerrilla campaign is a smart initiative that surely will make some people stop and think.

Simon Retallack, from the UK Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR), likes the idea of putting warning labels on adverts for flights, holidays and cars.

We know that smokers notice health warnings on cigarettes, and we have to tackle our addiction to flying in the same way.

But if we are to change people’s behaviour, warnings must be accompanied by offering people alternatives to short-haul flights and by steps to make the cost of flying better reflect its impact on the environment.

Simon Retallack wants higher air fares, including carbon offset charges. And any passenger unwilling to contribute should “be forced to actively opt out”.