Activist detained from protest action

 Thunberg joined thousands of other activists and protesters taking part in weekend demonstrations against the razing of the German village that would make way for an expansion of the Garzweiler lignite coal mine, which is owned by European energy giant RWE. Once the eviction is complete, RWE plans to build a 1.5-kilometer perimeter fence around the village, sealing off the village’s buildings, streets and sewers before they are demolished.

The expansion of the coal mine is significant for climate activists. They argue that continuing to burn coal for energy will increase planet-warming emissions and violate the Paris Climate Agreement’s ambition to limit global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. Lignite is the most polluting type of coal, which itself is the most polluting fossil fuel.

Thunberg tweeted on Friday that she was in Lützerath to protest the expansion, and asked others to join. On Saturday, Thunberg addressed the activists. “The carbon is still in the ground,” she said. “And as long as the carbon is in the ground, this struggle is not over.”

“We need to stop the current destruction of our planet and sacrificing people to benefit the short-term economic growth and corporate greed,” she said.

Climate activists have long been protesting the expansion of this coal mine, which cuts into the village of Lützerath.