Wed Sep 25 07:54:56 UTC 2024: ## Finnish Parliament House Splatters Red in Peat Mining Protest

Helsinki, Finland – In a dramatic demonstration demanding action on climate change, environmental activists from Elokapina (Finland) and Restore Wetlands (Sweden) splattered the walls and pillars of the Finnish Parliament House with red paint on Wednesday morning.

The groups, known for their bold tactics, targeted the Finnish state-owned company Neova, claiming they are responsible for destructive peat mining operations in Sweden. They assert that the paint used was water-soluble and their action aimed to raise awareness about the environmentally damaging practice of peat extraction.

“The peat industry is one of the environmentally harmful industries that the Finnish state openly supports through subsidies,” said Elokapina member Valpuri Nykänen in a press release. “We cannot stress enough how dangerous it is to continue making unsustainable production profitable.”

Nykänen further emphasized the urgency of the situation, highlighting the devastating impact of peat mining on the climate and the need for immediate action. “By shedding light on Neova’s peat mining in Sweden, we shed light on the horrible fact that our state has its hands deep in accelerating the crisis estimated to kill billions in this century alone.”

Helsinki police responded to the incident at 8 am, detaining a dozen individuals involved in the protest. Elokapina, the Finnish branch of the UK-based Extinction Rebellion, has been active in organizing protests throughout the summer, including one attended by Greta Thunberg.

The protest comes on the heels of Neova’s 2022 announcement to resume energy peat production in Finland, following a decline in wood imports from Russia. The government’s target of halving peat use within a decade, set in 2020, has been met with mixed progress. While the consumption of fossil fuels and peat decreased by 10 percent in 2023, the government’s climate strategy faces an uphill battle against the persistent issue of peat extraction.

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