Greens vow to step up campaign against new nuclear plants in East Anglia

As expected, list of sites announced today for possible deployment by 2025 includes Bradwell and Sizewell

The list of potential sites for new nuclear power stations announced today (1) includes both Bradwell in Essex and Sizewell in Suffolk, as was widely expected.

Public consultation lasts just 1 month, and there is bound to be widespread concern as to whether any level of public response will change any decisions, compounded by the new national planning regime which will take decision making away from local communities and hand it over to the Infrastructure Planning Commission (IPC) (2).

Following the assessment period, sites that are "found to be suitable for the development of new nuclear power stations" will be listed in a draft Nuclear National Policy statement.

The Green Party has long campaigned against nuclear power due to its high cost and the unsolved problems with radioactive waste and risks of radioactive discharges. There also remains a small, but real risk of a catastrophic accident or terrorist attack, which could cause huge loss of life and result in large areas of East Anglia becoming uninhabitable.

Only recently, the operators of the Bradwell nuclear power station were found guilty of having allowed discharges of radioactive material over long periods into the estuary of the River Blackwater. Coastal nuclear sites are more vulnerable to flooding as sea-levels rise faster than IPCC predictions, combined with an increase in extreme weather conditions.

The Greens are also dismayed that concentration on nuclear power by the Labour Government will take available investment and infrastructure away from renewables. A new generation of nuclear power stations would use valuable coastal high-capacity connectors to the grid, connectors which would otherwise be used for offshore wind, wave and tidal, making it more likely that the UK will miss legal commitments on renewables for 2020. Eastern Region Green Party is dismayed that the huge opportunity for jobs in renewables in this Region, especially in coastal areas, will be squandered, if the money goes to nuclear instead and the party will be writing to object to the proposed sites and encouraging many others to do the same.

The full list of nominated sites is:

1. Bradwell, Essex, NDA
2. Braystones, Cumbria, RWE Npower
3. Dungeness, Kent, EDF Energy
4. Hartlepool, EDF Energy
5. Heysham, Lancashire, EDF Energy
6. Hinkley Point, Somerset, EDF Energy
7. Kirksanton, Cumbria, RWE Npower
8. Oldbury, Gloucestershire, the NDA and Eon
9. Sellafield, Cumbria, NDA
10. Sizewell, Suffolk, EDF Energy
11. Wylfa, North Wales, RWE Npower and the NDA

Active Norfolk's Brand New Club and Coach Development Programme is Out NOW!

The workshops listed below all still have places available, and are priced at £10.00 for a member of a clubmark club, £12.00 for a coach is registered on our coaches database or £14.00 to the public:

Thursday 30th April - 6.30pm to 8.30pm

Web Design For Your Club @ Lynn Grove VA High School

To book your place on any of the above workshops, simply click on www.activenorfolk.org/courses or e mail Ian Grange on ian.grange@activenorfolk.org

The Plight of the Honeybee

As the BBC launch "Who Killed The Honeybee?" as part of a season of programmes exploring how food gets from the field to the plate, a professional Norfolk bee keeper is hoping to publicise the problem of bee deaths in Norfolk.

Mike Thurlow, one of the UK’s 300 professional bee farmers from Orchid Apiaries in Surlingham says "the problem is very serious, if it doesn’t change there will be no bees".

Mike is giving two talks as part of the co-op Produced In Norfolk’s events at the Norwich and Norfolk Sustainable Living Festival and plans to take live bees to Wroxham Farmers Market where he regularly sells his honey.

Jane Miller Director of Produced In Norfolk says, “Concerns about bee losses are mounting; apart from the loss of pollination and financial losses for farmers the emotional loss can also be devastating. We hope raising awareness at the events in May will encourage more understanding locally and explain why it is so important to save our bees in Norfolk.”

Gambia Charity

Just an update on our Gambia charity, Friends of Fajikunda Nursery School. I recently visited Gambia and am delighted to report that the new school building is up and running. The only work left is for the playground surface to be completed.

Thank you to everyone who has supported our fundraising over the last 9 years. We are now turning our attention to sponsoring individual children at the school. Whilst we were there one of our party went up river to Bansang, a local town a long way up river and far away from the usual tourist trails.

There he went to the local basic school (catering for children from 8 - 16 yrs). Education is free for this age group. However our representative was surprised to find that the only "free" part was the actual teachers. There was no money for equipment, materials, furniture etc.

The class he visited had insufficient seats - some pupils were on chairs, some sat on desks and some had to stand at the back and see as best they could. There was no chalk (although one small boy did have a tiny nub of chalk in his pocket which he handed to our colleague).

Following this visit our charity will be seeking to raise funds to employ local carpenters to make desks and chairs for the school.

We are very grateful to FAKENHAM ROTARY CLUB who are holding a HOG ROAST at WOOD NORTON VILLAGE HALL on SATURDAY 30TH MAY 2009 at 7.00 for 7.30 p.m.

Tickets are £12.50 and include a free glass of wine, the main course and strawberries and cream.

The profits are to be donated to our charity.

If any one would like to come to what will be a lovely evening out please telephone Janet Teather (01263 825032) or email to janetteather@hotmail.com or telephone John Scott at 01362 683624 to book your tickets.