Greenpeace’s New Rainbow Warrior to Fight Marine Pollution

The Rainbow Warrior, Greenpeace International’s flagship boat known for its crusade against the destruction of environment, is being revived to an all new form. The custom-built sailboat is set to sail in September 2011. Once on the sea, it will fight against illegal shipments of timber, unlawful fishing operations, gather evidence that can be used for prosecution and stop the activities altogether.

Unlike its predecessors, Rainbow Warrior I and Rainbow Warrior II which were acquired and remodeled, Rainbow Warrior III will be constructed from scratch by Greenpeace.

Design of the sailboat

Rainbow Warrior, also informally referred to as Rainbow Warrior III, helps the environment in dual capacity. While it continues its protest duties against climate change and toxic pollution, its own impact on the ocean will be the least. It will rely on 4,300 square feet of sail for propulsion, reducing the running of the engine for only 10% or less. The heat from the engine will be recycled to warm the cabins and water by using a greywater system and technology. The ship, taking shape in the German and Polish shipyards will be equipped with state-of-the-art technology and high-tech communication facilities for the crew. It will be one of the greenest sailboats ever constructed.

History of Rainbow Warrior

The history of Rainbow Warrior is as legendary as the Greenpeace’s mission to sustain and protect the environment. It is no wonder that the account of Rainbow Warrior is interesting and also controversial and will be more popular than the Whale Wars show, as the warrior started its protests much ahead.

Rainbow Warrior I started operations in the year 1978 after being acquired from UK’s Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (MAFF). It travelled around the world to collect money for campaigns against seal hunting, whaling, and nuclear testing during the late ‘70s and early ‘80s. In 1985, it was campaigning against nuclear testing in Pacific. It was sunk by a mission named Operation Satanique to carry out the nuclear testing uninterruptedly. This became a huge controversy as a Greenpeace activist was killed in this incident. After recovering the wreck and conducting a forensic investigation, it was laid to rest at Matauri Bay in Cavalli Island in Newzealand. It is been serving as a dive wreck and artificial reef to promote marine life since then. A 20^th anniversary memorial edition of the 1986 book Eyes of Fire: The Last Voyage of the Rainbow Warrior was published in 2005. The author, David Robie, was on the bombed ship.

Rainbow Warrior II was acquired in 1989 and it has been serving Greenpeace since then. It is due to retire after putting in 21 years of service for the organization.

Know more about the The Rainbow Warrior on the website.

You might also like to read Green Ship Recycling and Eco-friendly ferry.

Reference

Greenpeace.org

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