Communities Opposed to New Coal at Hunterston

A community-led campaign against the proposed building of a £2bn coal-fired power station at Hunterston in North Ayrshire.

We are campaigning to prevent:

the devastation of the local environment including important bird habitats and a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI)
adverse impact on public health from waste products which will include at least 400,000 tonnes of fly ash, 45,000 tonnes of bottom ash and 220,000 tonnes of gypsum per year
unnecessary and damaging increase in Scotland’s CO₂ emissions which will contribute towards climate change.

Conch supporters marching beneath the banner at The Wave, Glasgow, 5th December 2009

Fundraising Gig - thanks

Our fundraising gig (see pics) on 20/11 raised c. £1000. A thousand and one thanks go to Jill and Bernard for all their hard work and generosity and to the Banned for entertaining us all so well. Anyone who still has ticket money to hand in or who couldn't come on the night, but would like to make a donation please come along to the next CONCH meeting or get in touch.

Peel out of carbon capture competition

Peel, DONG and RWE.XE are no longer participating in the UK's government-run competition to fund development of a coal-fired power plant fitted with carbon capture and storage technology.
Read more

New policy for coal power

09/11/2009

New coal power stations in Scotland must be able to utilise carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology to cut emissions, so any new application for a coal fired power station will need to incorporate CCS demonstration, with CCS planned to be mandatory for new coal stations from 2020.

Determining and delivering on Scotland's energy future

A Report of the Economy, Energy and Tourism Committee of the Scottish Parliament argues for:

a) energy efficiency to be first priority,
b) promoting decentralised electricity (and heat) generation,
c) no consent being given for new heat wasting power stations.

Read summary
Read full report

CONCH legal challenge

STV news report (includes video)

Read the briefing about the legal challenge.

CONCH supporters are angry at the decision by the Scottish Government to add this coal station to the National Planning Framework, which sets out priority national developments in Scotland, which don’t have to go through the normal planning process. Hunterston was added in after the consultation period had ended and without any local people having a chance to have their say. As a result, our right even to question the need for this coal station has been taken away.

Hunterston Coal Station is being marketed as being “clean-coal”, but carbon capture technology is not yet commercially viable and would at very best only apply to a small percentage of the station’s output. This station will be far from clean.

By bringing people together, our campaign will enable all our voices to be heard and ensure that this disastrous proposal will never go ahead.

One down, one to go

With DONG energy dropping out, the CONCH campaign has had a real boost – but the fight is not over yet. Peel Energy have said that they intend to carry on with their plans.
How much of this is just a standard PR response and how feasible it is for them to go it alone remains to be seen… but CONCH will be carrying on with our campaign until the plans are defeated and we still need your help to help build on all we have achieved so far.


> Home Home About CONCH Coal Station Proposal Contact us Help CONCH Donate CONCH Meetings Public Events Press Releases CONCH in the Media Info (Open Access) Links	Communities Opposed to New Coal at Hunterston A community-led campaign against the proposed building of a £2bn coal-fired power station at Hunterston in North Ayrshire. We are campaigning to prevent: the devastation of the local environment including important bird habitats and a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) adverse impact on public health from waste products which will include at least 400,000 tonnes of fly ash, 45,000 tonnes of bottom ash and 220,000 tonnes of gypsum per year unnecessary and damaging increase in Scotland’s CO₂ emissions which will contribute towards climate change. Conch supporters marching beneath the banner at The Wave, Glasgow, 5th December 2009 Fundraising Gig - thanks Our fundraising gig (see pics) on 20/11 raised c. £1000. A thousand and one thanks go to Jill and Bernard for all their hard work and generosity and to the Banned for entertaining us all so well. Anyone who still has ticket money to hand in or who couldn't come on the night, but would like to make a donation please come along to the next CONCH meeting or get in touch. Peel out of carbon capture competition Peel, DONG and RWE.XE are no longer participating in the UK's government-run competition to fund development of a coal-fired power plant fitted with carbon capture and storage technology. Read more New policy for coal power 09/11/2009 New coal power stations in Scotland must be able to utilise carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology to cut emissions, so any new application for a coal fired power station will need to incorporate CCS demonstration, with CCS planned to be mandatory for new coal stations from 2020. Read more Determining and delivering on Scotland's energy future A Report of the Economy, Energy and Tourism Committee of the Scottish Parliament argues for: a) energy efficiency to be first priority, b) promoting decentralised electricity (and heat) generation, c) no consent being given for new heat wasting power stations. Read summary Read full report CONCH legal challenge STV news report (includes video) *Read the briefing about the legal challenge.* CONCH supporters are angry at the decision by the Scottish Government to add this coal station to the National Planning Framework, which sets out priority national developments in Scotland, which don’t have to go through the normal planning process. Hunterston was added in after the consultation period had ended and without any local people having a chance to have their say. As a result, our right even to question the need for this coal station has been taken away. Hunterston Coal Station is being marketed as being “clean-coal”, but carbon capture technology is not yet commercially viable and would at very best only apply to a small percentage of the station’s output. This station will be far from clean. By bringing people together, our campaign will enable all our voices to be heard and ensure that this disastrous proposal will never go ahead. One down, one to go With DONG energy dropping out, the CONCH campaign has had a real boost – but the fight is not over yet. Peel Energy have said that they intend to carry on with their plans. How much of this is just a standard PR response and how feasible it is for them to go it alone remains to be seen… but CONCH will be carrying on with our campaign until the plans are defeated and we still need your help to help build on all we have achieved so far.
For more information, contact the CONCH campaign Photo of Eggsborough Power Station by Foto43 used under the Creative Commons licence, with thanks Photo of Al Gore by Monikia Flueckiger. Used with thanks under a Creative Commons licence.

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