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Dong tolls the knell for Hunterston coal? Under-age fag-buying, Josephine’s art show and a chance to win a £15,000 prize.

Art, coal, embroidery and a £15,000 competition.

Written by Alison Prince
Thursday, 15 October 2009

2,360 views   0 comments


Josephine Broekhuizen has a splendid solo show running in Irvine.
Full report under News.

Ding Dong, knell?

Lucy Wallace puts the case against a coal-fired plant at Hunterston so powerfully that we give her the front page this week.


Hi everyone,

The Danish company, Dong, have pulled out of the Hunterston deal. This is fantastic news, but unfortunately Peel Energy, the other main company involved, are insisting that they will press on with the proposal. In the light of the collapse of the Kingsnorth proposals and the recent climbdown by BAA on Heathrow's third runway, big polluting developments like this are starting to look really sketchy. All the more reason to put the pressure on. Peel's position is looking untenable. If you haven't signed the petition or written to Kenneth Gibson/ Ross Finnie, now is the time to do so!

Here is Lucy’s letter written to the local press earlier this week, before Dong abandoned its interest:

I wonder how many Arran residents are fully aware of the proposed development of a coal fired power station across the water at Hunterston? I for one am extremely worried about the implications for increasing Scotland's greenhouse gas emissions, as well as the local environmental damage that this development will cause.

Unneccessary and Dirty Coal
Building a new coal fired power station seems mad at a time when we are all working hard to reduce our carbon emissions. Coal is the most polluting of all the fossil fuels and recent research (by RSPCA Scotland in conjunction with Friends of the Earth Scotland, WWF Scotland and World Development Movement) has proved that Scotland’s energy needs can be met through investment in greener energy and renewables. The development is described as being “carbon capture ready”. What this means is that space will be allocated for carbon capture technology, should this become cheap and accessible enough at some point in the future to implement at the site. The Scottish Government is to be commended for leading the world in setting an ambitious target of a 42% reduction in carbon emissions by 2020, but this new development will be a serious setback for Scotland's goals.

Destruction of Fragile Habitats
The proposed development at Hunterston also threatens the valuable inter-tidal habitat at Southannan Sands, home to wading birds such as redshank and curlew and an important stopping of point for migratory geese and swans. Much of the inter-tidal habitat of the Clyde Estuary has been lost through development during the 20th and 21st century, and Southannan sands represents one of the few areas where this habitat still exists. The proposed development will cover 236 acres (95ha), extending out in to large areas that are currently undeveloped and important for wildlife. Not only that, but the building will be a colossal 152m high (about 500ft).

What can we do?

Copy this letter to our local MSP Kenneth Gibson (Kenneth.Gibson.msp@scottish.parliament.uk) and regional MSP Ross Finnie (Ross.Finnie.msp@scottish.parliament.uk) to let them know what you think of the development. Please also sign the online petition at: http://www.petitiononline.com/CalEnv/petition.html

If you would like to join an Arran group that is campaigning against the development please e-mail me at eider@hotmail.co.uk
Lucy Wallace
Isle of Arran Wildlife Festival 2010
www.arranwildlife.co.uk

RSPB Information Officer, Isle of Arran
www.rspb.org.uk

01770 601339
07825 644161


Kenneth Gibson writes:

I am surprised that DONG have pulled out of this project, prior even to Ayrshire Power Limited (APL) in whom they had a half share, applying for planning permission. It seems that DONG now realise that such a project is fraught with environmental, technical and financial difficulties and may never be either financially viable, nor will its electricity be required. DONG also, sensibly, want to focus on renewables.

Last November everything seemed so different. The project was to be the world's first large scale carbon capture and storage plant, producing the same level of electricity as Hunterston B working to full capacity and providing it in a much cleaner way than the dirty coal plants at Longannet or Cockenzie. Since then it has emerged that a new Hunterston coal plant may only partially be CCS from inception, a fact that is unacceptable to most local people. To provide full CCS, environmental mitigation, transport upgrades and thepipeline infrastructure required to transport liquified carbon via Longannet to the North Sea is a tall order without massive subsidies from the UK Government, provided either directly or from a levy on electricity bills.

For months now, as constituents will know, I have doubted the viability or requirement for a coal-fired power station at Hunterston. With Longannet and Cockenzie likely now to be refurbished and loads of renewable energy projects in the pipeline from Kintyre to the Great Glen to Shetland, the electricity generated by a new Hunterston coal plant is unlikely to be needed in Scotland. Although Peel Energy have decided to soldier on, for now, and will lodge a planning application soon, the writing is on the wall. Such an application will take years to progress. However, I doubt this project will ever be brought to fruition


West of Scotland Liberal Democrat MSP Ross Finnie said:
‘I welcome Dong’s decision to withdraw from its joint venture with Peel Energy to build a New Power Station at Hunterston where 75% of emissions will be unabated. I can only hope that Peel Energy will also see sense and drop its plans for a New Coal Power Station that will create 75% unabated CO² emissions.’

The Greens have lodged a parliamentary motion urging Peel to drop out of the scheme too, and calling on Scottish Ministers to prioritise efforts to reduce energy demand.

Patrick Harvie MSP said:

‘Scotland could be powered almost six times over by renewable energy, yet Ministers of all parties have stuck religiously to dead end technologies like nuclear and coal. It seems the private sector have been quicker to realise that the future of Scotland's electricity network is decentralised and renewable, not opencast coal and bogus pledges to capture carbon.

‘Today's good news follows the announcements over the last seven days that neither a similar coal plant at Kingsnorth nor Heathrow's Runway 3 will go ahead. The decks are being cleared of massively polluting projects, and SNP Ministers should think again about other expensive and unacceptable schemes like the additional Forth Road Bridge. They now have a golden opportunity to move towards the kind of successful low carbon economy Scotland needs, but it will require some courage and some actual change in policy.’

See under News how Valdete’s birthday party went – who else would be given a mobile phone and a laptop, among much else? Also details of Josephine Broekhuizen’s solo art show in Irvine, an embroidery weekend in Brodick and the inside story of how many underage smokers can buy fags from machines. Oh, and a chance to win £15,000-worth of help to make your house warm, efficient and cheaper to run.


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