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Severn barrage rejection welcomed but nuclear support condemned

The Energy Review's rejection of the Welsh Assembly Government's support for a Severn Barrage has been welcomed by Friends of the Earth Cymru. The review says that the barrage would raise strong environmental concerns but that an investigation of all options for tidal energy needs to be undertaken.[1]

Gordon James of Friends of the Earth Cymru said:

"We welcome the Energy Review's overall aim of reducing carbon dioxide emissions from energy use and are particularly pleased that the environmentally destructive and costly Severn Barrage proposal has not won favour. We were always surprised that the Welsh Assembly Government supported such a scheme when more cost-effective and environmentally acceptable options, such as tidal lagoons, look more promising."

The environmental campaigning group has also rejected the Review's call for new nuclear power stations to be built."

Gordon James continued:

"Nuclear power is unsafe, uneconomic and unnecessary. We can tackle climate change and meet our energy needs without building new reactors.

The argument that Wylfa nuclear power station could be replaced by a new nuclear power station in time to fill an energy gap caused by its closure is simply wrong. While Wylfa will close in four years time, it would take ten to fifteen years to build a new nuclear power station.

Other sources of electricity generation would have to be found, particularly to cater for the demands of Anglesey Aluminium, after 2010. We believe that this demand could be met by a gas-fired combined heat and power plant on the Anglesey Aluminium site, marine current turbines off the Anglesey coast and offshore wind farms.

We welcome the Energy Review's commitment to significantly increase output from renewable energy sources, such as wind, tidal, wave and solar power. This, though, is meant to be government policy at the moment but they are falling short of the targets they have set.[2] This review must not simply re-package existing policy in new clothing; it must ensure that the governments in both Westminster and Cardiff deliver clean energy generation on a substantial scale.

We also welcome plans to boost energy efficiency. This commitment has been made before but, on this occasion, we hope that policies will result in significant reductions in energy use and associated emissions. The Welsh Assembly Government would have to redraft its energy saving plan in order to achieve this."

"The growing threat posed by climate change means that we have to implement policies that reduce carbon dioxide emissions as quickly as possible. Building a new nuclear power station at Wylfa would merely be a distraction from policies that would be effective and that could be implemented soon. If the Welsh Assembly Government is to achieve its aim of Wales becoming a global showcase for clean energy, it ought to continue to reject the nuclear option in favour of major improvements in energy efficiency, a significant deployment of renewable energy and support for cleaner coal technologies".

ENDS

NOTES

1. Energy Review page 101 states:

"Tidal impoundment schemes - such as barrages and lagoons - and tidal current technologies have the potential to make a significant contribution to carbon reductions. In common with other power generation projects they could bring with them a number of external benefits, but generally are not competitive with other forms of low carbon generation. During the course of consultation we have received a range of views on tidal generation, in particular on the plans for a Severn Barrage, which could provide around 5% of current UK electricity demand by 2020.

This could cost in the region of £14 billion. It is clear that while attractive in terms of energy generation and associated benefits, plans for a Severn Barrage would raise strong environmental concerns in view of the designations that apply to the Severn Estuary.

We are however interested in improving our understanding of how to make best use of the potential tidal resource in UK waters. Together with the Welsh Assembly Government, we will therefore work with the Sustainable Development Commission, the South West Regional Development Agency and other key interested parties to explore the issues arising on the tidal resource in the UK , including the Severn Estuary, including potential costs and benefits of developments using the range of tidal technologies and their public acceptability."

2. The Carbon Trust recently estimated that, on present trends, the government would only meet half its target of generating 20% of electricity from renewable sources by 2020.