Hunterston Coal fired power station proposal – climate campaigners react
20 November 2008
Campaigners from Friends of the Earth Scotland, the World Development Movement and WWF Scotland reacted to proposals announced today by Peel Energy and DONG Energy to construct a new coal fired power station at Hunterston. The proposal is for a “capture ready” plant, rather than one implementing carbon capture and storage technology to cut climate changing emissions from the outset.
Liz Murray, Head of Campaigns in Scotland for the World Development Movement, said:
“Climate change is the greatest crisis facing humanity. It will affect us all, but it is the world’s poorest people who are already being hit first and worst. If the Scottish Government gives the go ahead for this new coal plant at Hunterston, it will totally compromise Scotland's ability to reduce its emissions by the amount needed to avert dangerous climate change. The Scottish Government must take a global view on this issue and not allow new, unabated coal in Scotland.”
Duncan McLaren of Friends of the Earth Scotland said:
“Scotland does not need new coal plants for energy security, but we owe it to the wider world to help develop carbon capture and storage technology. No new coal fired power station should be approved by the Scottish Government unless it operates carbon capture from day one, or meets an equivalently tough emissions performance standard by other means.
“The idea of ‘Capture readiness’ is a dangerous smokescreen, which requires little more than that land be set aside for the kit to be added at a later date, without any guarantee that it will ever actually be installed and operated. It's also completely unnecessary: carbon capture is already in operation in Germany, albeit only at a small scale.
Mr McLaren added:
“The writing is already on the wall for the aging and unreliable Hunterson nuclear power station, but it is already being replaced by clean renewable power. Scotland doesn’t need a dirty coal station instead of a nuclear dinosaur."
Dr Richard Dixon, Director of WWF Scotland said:
"Scotland has the best renewable energy resources of any country in Europe. It would be madness to waste time and money building new coal-fired power stations. The creation of new coal fired power stations without carbon capture from the start would seriously undermine our ability to meet the 80% target to reduce carbon emissions proposed in the Scottish Climate Change Bill. It’s vital we don’t lock ourselves into high carbon infrastructures that remove the incentive to invest in renewable energy, energy efficiency and deliver a low carbon Scotland."
Editor's Note
1. Although CO2 is the most important climate change gas, other greenhouse gases make up around 20% of Scotland’s total emissions. WWF believes the Scottish Climate Change Bill should:
· Establish the legal framework to require the reduction of Scotland’s greenhouse gas emissions by at least 80% by 2050.
· Contain statutory annual targets for at least 3% cuts in emissions year on year to set us on a steady path of reductions to 2050.
· Include climate change emissions from international aviation and shipping.
· Set a limit on the amount of international climate credit that Scotland can use to meet its annual targets
· Include annual reports to Parliament on progress on targets and plans for future action.
2. The Scottish Government received over 20,000 responses to their consultation on what should be in the Bill.
3. WWF Scotland is part of Stop Climate Chaos, an alliance of development, environment and civil society groups aiming for tougher action to reduce emissions - http://stopclimatechaosscotland.org
4. If everyone used natural resources and generated carbon emissions at the rate we do in the UK we would need three planets to support us. The way we live is leading to environmental threats such as climate change, species extinction, deforestation, water shortages and the collapse of fisheries. WWF is working to help people live a good quality of life within the earth’s capacity. For more information visit www.wwf.org.uk/oneplanet
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