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Tyre Extinguishers

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Tyre Extinguishers
Formation2021; 3 years ago (2021)
PurposeBanning of SUVs in cities
Location
  • Europe, United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand
MethodsDirect action
FieldsRoad safety
Climate movement
Websitetyreextinguishers.com

Tyre Extinguishers is an international climate direct action group which deflates the tyres on sport utility vehicles (SUVs). The group describes driving an SUV as "among the worst single actions that one can take in terms of its climate impacts and its adverse effects on public safety",[1] with SUVs having a disproportionately large impact on the climate crisis relative to other vehicles,[2] worsening air pollution and being more likely to kill pedestrians than smaller sedan cars.[3][1] The group has called for a ban on SUVs in cities, and has said that they "want to make it impossible to own a huge polluting 4x4 in the world’s urban areas".[4]

The group suggests inserting a piece of gravel, lentil or other small object to depress the pin on the valve cap of an SUV's tyre, so that the tyre deflates slowly over time.[5] The activists leave leaflets under the vehicles' windscreen wipers "so that the owner is aware that the car is unusable and gets an explanation as to why this has been done."[6][7]

Activities

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Between 7 March 2022 and July 2022, the group claimed to have deflated over 5000 tyres of SUVs worldwide, [8] including areas of London, Cambridge, Brighton and Hove, Bristol, Edinburgh, Liverpool and Sheffield, the Swiss city of Zurich, the German cities of Essen and Dortmund, the Swedish city Gothenburg, in the New Zealand cities of Auckland, Christchurch and Wellington, and in Los Angeles.[9]

Several Tyre Extinguishers splinter groups formed in Scottish cities including Dundee (The Dundeeflators)[10] and Glasgow (The Deflationists),[11][12][13]

In July 2022, the group's further actions in the United States took place in New York City,[14] Chicago, Scranton, Pennsylvania[15] and the San Francisco Bay Area.[16] The group claimed its first actions in Canada (Waterloo, Ontario) and France (Paris) the same month.[17][18]

On one night in September 2022, the group deflated tyres on over 600 SUVs in the UK, France, Germany, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Norway, Denmark, the Czech Republic and Canada.[19] The group claimed these were its debut actions in Denmark, Norway and the Czech Republic.[20]

In October 2022, the organisation claimed to have reached its initial target of 10,000 SUVs deflated since March 2022, with the actions taking place across 15 countries.[21][22] The group described Australia as its "next big target" in May 2023.[23]

In August 2023 Tyre Extinguishers claimed responsibility for an "independent cell" of their group that had used power drills to puncture the tyres of more than 60 SUVs at a car dealership in Exeter, England. The group described the act as a "necessary escalation", and a retaliation to an incident the previous month where a Land Rover had broken through a fence and killed two schoolchildren.[24]

In October 2023, the group announced its first action in Riga, Latvia, claiming this was the 20th country with active Tyre Extinguisher groups.[25][26]

Organisation

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The name "Tyre Extinguishers" began appearing in 2021, but the group's actions did not begin until March 2022.[6] In 2007, a Swedish group called "The Indians of the Asphalt Jungle" had embraced the same tactic, deflating over 1,500 SUVs (according to its own numbers) and, as reported by Vice, "helping to send the usually relentless growth of domestic SUV sales into a rare reverse".[6]

The group was described by Aston University academics Oscar Berglund and Graeme Hayes as a "pop-up climate movement," given the group's emphasis on individuals or small groups taking action wherever they are using the materials on the Tyre Extinguishers website, rather than a more centralised structure.[27]

Lund University professor Andreas Malm (whose book How to Blow Up a Pipeline argues in favour of the sabotage of fossil fuel infrastructure as a form of environmental activism, and who the Tyre Extinguishers have cited as an inspiration[28]) called the group's actions a form of "extremely peaceful and gentle sabotage."[29] Malm continued, "anyone can deflate an SUV: it is virtually child's play. It requires no formal organization, no leadership, no funds, no implements other than bits of gravel or beans or green lentils. Given the infinitely replicable nature of the action—sabotage as meme—its potential for making SUV ownership less convenient and attractive could not be discounted."[29]

Separate groups have begun to use similar tactics, such as a group called Reclaim Our Communities in Bristol, UK, which deflated tyres on more than 100 SUVs and 4x4s in the city in October 2023.[30]

Legality

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The group claims to have faced no legal issues, and has said that it understood police forces in the United Kingdom to be "divided" on whether it was a crime to let the air out of a tyre.[23]

Journalists have described the actions as criminal[better source needed] and authorities in certain regions have encouraged witnesses to come forward with information.[31][32] In the U.S., Car and Driver magazine noted "State laws against 'tampering with a motor vehicle' are likely to be enforceable, but of course, first the person would have to be caught in the act of letting the air out of the tires."[33]

In Singapore in 2024, a man was arrested and charged with public nuisance after allegedly deflating the tyres of at least five SUV in a car park in Woodlands. He could face a jail term of three months, a fine, or both.[34]

References

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  1. ^ a b "Climate activists deflate car tyres in 'wealthy area' to 'disrupt' drivers". The Argus. 30 March 2022. Retrieved 29 September 2023.
  2. ^ Cozzi, Laura; Petropoulos, Apostolos (15 January 2021). "Carbon emissions fell across all sectors in 2020 except for one – SUVs". IEA. Retrieved 2022-08-01.
  3. ^ "Why Are You Doing This?". Tyre Extinguishers. Retrieved 16 September 2023.
  4. ^ Gayle, Damien (29 November 2022). "Tyre Extinguishers deflate tyres of 900 SUVs in 'biggest ever action'". The Guardian. Retrieved 29 November 2022.
  5. ^ "How To Deflate An SUV Tyre". Tyre Extinguishers. Retrieved 2 June 2023.
  6. ^ a b c Rogers, Douglas (2022-05-22). "Who Are the Tyre Extinguishers? The Climate Activists Sabotaging SUVs". www.vice.com. Retrieved 2022-05-28.
  7. ^ "How To Deflate An SUV Tyre". Tyre Extinguishers. Retrieved 2022-05-28.
  8. ^ "Meet the climate activists deflating tyres to stop SUV ownership". Channel 4 News. 2022-06-20. Retrieved 2022-07-18.
  9. ^ [a][b][c][d][e][f][g][h][i][j][k][l][m][n][o][p][q][r][s][t][u][v]
  10. ^ Keith, Jake. "Eco vandals strike again in Dundee as tyres on 20 cars deflated overnight". The Courier. Retrieved 2022-06-02.
  11. ^ Williams, Craig (2022-06-01). "Glasgow wealthy areas targeted as climate activists let down 70 SUV tyres". GlasgowLive. Retrieved 2022-06-02.
  12. ^ "Rival climate groups deflate SUV tyres in Glasgow and Edinburgh". The Guardian. 2022-06-01. Retrieved 2022-06-02.
  13. ^ "'Reckless' eco vandals deflate car tyres in crusade against SUVs". STV News. 2022-05-27. Retrieved 2022-06-02.
  14. ^ "Climate activists deflate tires on 40 SUVs in NYC, cops seeking suspects". New York Post. 2022-07-01. Retrieved 2022-07-09.
  15. ^ "News". Tyre Extinguishers. Retrieved 2022-07-09.
  16. ^ Cano, Ricardo (2022-07-07). "'Your gas guzzler kills': Bay Area drivers' SUV tires deflated by apparent climate activists". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2022-07-09.
  17. ^ "'Your gas guzzler kills': Environmental group says it deflated tires on Kitchener SUVs | Globalnews.ca". Global News. Retrieved 2022-07-18.
  18. ^ "News". Tyre Extinguishers. Retrieved 2022-07-18.
  19. ^ "Tyre Extinguishers claim more than 600 SUVs 'disarmed' in one night". The Guardian. 2022-09-07. Retrieved 2022-09-10.
  20. ^ "News". Tyre Extinguishers. Retrieved 2022-09-10.
  21. ^ "News". Tyre Extinguishers. Retrieved 2022-11-01.
  22. ^ NacióSantCugat. "Els ecologistes "Tyre Extinguishers" reivindiquen haver actuat a Sant Cugat". www.naciodigital.cat (in Catalan). Retrieved 2022-11-01.
  23. ^ a b Blair, Alex (30 May 2023). "Radical climate activists pushing to 'inconvenience SUV owners' by deflating 4x4 tyres in major cities". news.com.au. Retrieved 2 June 2023.
  24. ^ Gayle, Damien (7 August 2023). "Activists drill holes in tyres of more than 60 SUVs at Exeter car dealership". The Guardian. Retrieved 7 August 2023.
  25. ^ "'Environment activists' deflate car tires in Rīga". eng.lsm.lv. Retrieved 2023-10-23.
  26. ^ "News". Tyre Extinguishers. Retrieved 2023-10-23.
  27. ^ Hayes, Graeme; Berglund, Oscar. "Tyre Extinguishers: activists are deflating SUV tyres in the latest pop-up climate movement". The Conversation. Retrieved 2022-04-12.
  28. ^ Childs, Simon; selimbulut (2022-08-11). "Tyre Extinguishers: direct action group deflating climate change". Rolling Stone UK. Retrieved 2023-04-23.
  29. ^ a b "Andreas Malm introduces Verso's new free ebook, Property Will Cost Us the Earth". Versobooks.com. 2022-04-19. Retrieved 2022-09-10.
  30. ^ Cork, Tristan (2023-10-20). "Tyres deflated on more than 100 SUVs and 4x4s in Bristol overnight". Bristol Live. Retrieved 2023-10-23.
  31. ^ "'Your gas guzzler kills': Environmental group says it deflated tires on Kitchener SUVs | Globalnews.ca". Global News. Retrieved 2022-07-28.
  32. ^ "'Gas guzzler kills': more than 30 SUVs have tires deflated". therecord.com. 2022-07-18. Retrieved 2022-07-28.
  33. ^ Blanco, Sebastian (2022-07-10). "SUV-Hating Tyre Extinguishers Group Is Deflating Tires as Protest". Car and Driver. Retrieved 2022-07-28.
  34. ^ "Man arrested for allegedly deflating vehicle tyres in Woodlands carpark". CNA. 20 November 2024. Retrieved 21 November 2024.

Locations

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  1. ^ "Climate activists deflate SUV tyres in wealthy London neighbourhoods". The Guardian. 4 March 2022. Retrieved 2022-03-18.
  2. ^ Davis, Barney (8 March 2022). "Eco-warriors deflate SUV tyres in Chelsea, Primrose Hill and Dulwich". www.standard.co.uk. Retrieved 2022-03-18.
  3. ^ "Climate activists have deflated hundreds of SUV tyres in affluent areas across the UK". The Big Issue. 8 March 2022. Retrieved 2022-03-18.
  4. ^ "Tyre Extinguishers: Scores of SUVs have tyres deflated by activists". BBC News. 8 March 2022. Retrieved 2022-03-18.
  5. ^ "Climate activists deflating car tyres in carbon emissions protest". The Argus. Retrieved 2022-03-18.
  6. ^ "Climate activists let down SUV tyres across Britain in 'gas guzzler' protest".
  7. ^ Streeting, Louisa (8 March 2022). "Climate activists deflate hundreds of SUV tyres in the night". Bristol Post. Retrieved 2022-03-18.
  8. ^ Shepherd, Jordan (10 March 2022). "Tyre-deflating eco-warriors say driving a gas-guzzling SUV is 'racist'". scottishdailyexpress. Retrieved 2022-03-18.
  9. ^ "New group of activists are targeting 'well to-do' areas of Yorkshire - by letting down tyres". www.yorkshirepost.co.uk. Retrieved 2022-03-18.
  10. ^ Flood, Rebecca (9 March 2022). "Eco-warriors targeting SUVs by deflating tires claim to have struck in L.A." Newsweek. Retrieved 2022-03-18.
  11. ^ "Identity appeal after car tyres deflated in Brighton and Hove". Sussex Police. Retrieved 15 April 2022.
  12. ^ "Tyre Extinguishers go global as activists vow to make owning SUVs 'impossible'". The Independent. 24 March 2022. Retrieved 2022-04-12.
  13. ^ "Zurich - Climate activists deflate SUV tires - 20 minutes - 247newsbulletin". 247newsbulletin.news. Retrieved 2022-04-12.
  14. ^ "Activists deflate tyres on SUVs in Edinburgh". BBC News. 11 April 2022. Retrieved 2022-04-12.
  15. ^ "'Tyre Extinguishers' climate activists deflate the tyres of SUVs in Edinburgh". uk.news.yahoo.com. Retrieved 2022-04-12.
  16. ^ Keane, Daniel (2022-04-22). "London climate activists deflate tyres on 120 SUVs". Evening Standard. Retrieved 2022-04-24.
  17. ^ Sigodo, Melissa (2022-04-22). "Climate activists boast their 'biggest night' as they deflate tyres on 120 cars". MyLondon. Retrieved 2022-04-24.
  18. ^ "Tyre Extinguishers in New Zealand spread as Christchurch SUVs hit". www.voxy.co.nz. Retrieved 2022-06-02.
  19. ^ Strang, Ben (2022-06-02). "Police tracking climate activists after tampering with car, causing near miss". Stuff. Retrieved 2022-06-02.
  20. ^ "Climate action group claims responsibility for deflated Auckland tyres". 1 News. 2022-05-06. Retrieved 2022-05-09.
  21. ^ "Klimataktivister i stort däcksabotage i Göteborg". www.expressen.se (in Swedish). Retrieved 2022-06-02.
  22. ^ "Tyre Extinguishers' actions 'amount to harassment' says councillor as same vehicles targeted again". www.edinburghnews.scotsman.com. Retrieved 2022-06-02.
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