CANA’s Keep the Coal in the Hole Summer Festival in January 2012 was a great success. It brought people from all over the country to meet with and get to know Southland people opposed to Solid Energy’s massive plans for lignite mining in Southland. It also led to the formation of a number of regional coal action groups, including Southland’s own Coal Action Murihiku (CAM).

And now CAM, with assistance from CANA, has organised the 2013 Summerfest, with the overall theme “Shaping Our Future – We Have Options!”. See the website:

http://nocoalsummerfest.org.nz/

The 2012 Summerfest was held on Mike Dumbar’s farm near Mataura. The 2013 Summerfest will be held from Friday 18 January to Monday 21 January 2013 at Dolamore Park, a beautiful camping ground surrounded by bush about 10 minutes by car from Gore, very near the north-western corner of Solid Energy’s landholdings in the Mataura Valley.

You can register online for Summerfest. To do so, please read the Festival Kaupapa and then the Festival Information page, which is also where you can get started on the registration process.

On the website, you can also find information about the Festival programme and speakers – keep checking back for updates to these. We already have one international speaker confirmed: Rob McCreath from Friends of Felton in Queensland – where they stopped mining in their valley and prevented the installation of a chemical plant. He’s definitely worth hearing.

Help with posters: Coal Action Murihiku have produced 500 coloured, eye-catching posters to advertise Summerfest, for distribution around the country. If you can help put them up where you live, please email Jenny Campbell, jennycam (at) xtra.co.nz, with your name, mailing address, contact phone number, and contact email address, plus the number of posters you need.

See you in Southland!