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Gardiner slammed for supporting lignite

30 June 2004

Responding to today's energy announcement by Enterprise Minister Barry Gardiner [1], John Woods,
Director (Northern Ireland) of Friends of the Earth said:

"It is astonishing that the Minister has chosen to protect lignite reserves for both short and long term possible exploitation [2]. In making this announcement he is blighting the lives of thousands of people who will be affected by open cast mining. He is also threatening the prospect of increasing carbon dioxide emissions for the whole of the UK by a massive 1% [3]. This is an extraordinary policy for a Government supposedly committed to combating climate change.

"The Minister should be ruling out the use of lignite, not encouraging it."

Notes

[1] "Energy: A strategic framework for Northern Ireland" published today by DETI.
[2] Ibid. 1. Overview, para 2
[3] The exploitation of the Ballymoney lignite reserves as currently proposed would increase UK
CO2 emissions by 1%.

Friends of the Earth Northern Ireland
7 Donegall Street Place
BELFAST
BT1 2FN
Tel: 028 9023 3488
Fax: 028 9024 7556
Email: foe-ni@foe.co.uk.

Published by Friends of the Earth Trust

Last modified: Oct 2008