ENVIRONMENTAL activists are taking part in a weekend of action across the region to remind people the world remains at risk from climate change.

Extinction Rebellion North-East are staging banner drops and protests in town and cities across the next three days.

A spokesman for the group said: “The weekend will be filled with creative, non-violent direct action to draw attention to the greatest existential threat we face: the climate and ecological emergency that threatens the living world, including us humans.

“People up and down the country will come together in their communities to tell the Government that, frankly, we’ve had enough of them putting us all at risk.”

The Northern Echo:

Major actions are planned for London, Manchester and Cardiff, before protestors plan to show up at the opening of Parliament on Tuesday.

The spokesman said: “We plan to hold our Government to account, forcing MPs to face the truth about the seriousness of our situation, about the need to act now and to prepare for the crisis with a national citizens assembly.”

The protests started yesterday in Middlesbrough to highlight the hundreds of deaths from air pollution in the town each year.

Banner drop have been staged this morning at Framwellgate Bridge in Durham, Northumbria University in Newcastle, over A69 at West Denton, Bridge End Roundabout in Hexham and from the bridge over the Tyne at Wylam.

The spokesman added: “Over the weekend we will be highlighting how banks that invest in fossil fuels are fuelling the climate and ecological crisis.”

Action has been staged at Barclays Bank in Hartlepool, and at 1pm, at Seaton Carew there is a performance on the beach highlighting the danger of rising levels, featuring a guest appearance from the grim reaper.

On Sunday there will be talks, workshops, stalls at activities from 11am-3pm outside the Baltic in Gateshead.

On Monday protestors will attend Saltholme Bird Sanctuary to highlight plans to expand the power station onto conservation land.

The spokesman said: “Faced with multiple global crises, coronavirus, racial injustice, economic inequality, climate and ecological devastation, we have never been more acutely aware of our vulnerability on a finite planet.

“We are now at about 1.1 degree of climate heating above pre-industrial levels and already we seeing the impact on human societies of the early stages of climate breakdown: mega wild fires in California, vast areas of Bangladesh flooded, and erratic weather has badly affected UK potato and wheat crops.

“We are predicted to go over the 1.5 degree of warming threshold within the next 5 years as emissions rebound after the pandemic.

“Without drastic action earth’s temperature is on course to rise by a terrifying 4°C by the end of the century.

“That amount of heating would make some parts of the world too hot for humans, risks crop failures on a global scale, and sea level rises could flood the homes of hundreds of millions of people.

“What it will mean when our children realise we have built a world they cannot live in?”