Skip to content or view mobile version

Home | Mobile | Editorial | Mission | Privacy | About | Contact | Help | Security | Support

A network of individuals, independent and alternative media activists and organisations, offering grassroots, non-corporate, non-commercial coverage of important social and political issues.

Biomass protestors admit guilt on procedural, but not moral, grounds

Maryla | 22.06.2011 15:49 | Climate Chaos | Ecology | Energy Crisis

Protesters against Forth Energy's Biomass Power Stations were in court today. Four were found guilty and three not guilty. On 16th May the protesters blocked all entrances to Grangemouth Port in Scotland for over 6 hours in protest over Forth Energy's Biomass Power Station plans.



ay 2011 in protest at plans by port owners, Forth Ports, to build 4 large biomass power stations in East Scotland. Four were found guilty of obstructing the public highway and three were found not guilty. They admitted blocking the entire port for 6 hours, bringing fuel tankers and other port traffic to a standstill. But they claim that the severity of the plans, which include burning vast quantities of wood, and the threat of the impending approval of the plans, meant they had no alternative but to protest in the way they did. Forth Energy, a company mainly owned by Forth Ports, plan to build one of the power stations at Grangemouth docks. The others are planned for the ports of Leith, Rosyth and Dundee. All power stations would burn biomass, mainly in the form of imported wood and in quantities equivalent to two-thirds of the entire UK's wood production. This, the company admit, would make local sourcing of the wood impossible. The activists, blockaded the port from 7.45 in the morning of 16^th May. At one entrance they used a 20 foot (6 metres) high tripod made of scaffolding poles to which 3 activists attached themselves. The other entrance was made impassable by 5 people who locked themselves together using "arm tubes”. Meanwhile 12 supporters held banners and handed out leaflets to drivers and port workers explaining the reason for the blockade. Police used cutting equipment and a scaffolding construction to remove the protestors. Kimberley Ellis, one of the activists, a renewable energy student from Dundee said: “We put our bodies in the way because the government seems to be taking no notice of the problems these power stations would create; the destruction of forests and other ecosystems, climate change impacts and the displacement of communities and indigenous peoples. Locally it will lead to health problems associated with air pollution. On top of it all, the disposing of warm waste water will kill fish and other sea and river life by causing unnatural temperature changes. I have written letters of objection, met with my MSP and spoken in front of Dundee councillors – I saw no other legal means to stop this madness. ” “The planning process is undemocratic and we found no legal means to preventing this crime against humanity and the planet. Forth Energy’s biomass plans are far from renewable but absolute greenwash, stealing subsidies from truly renewable, local energy resources. Biomass on this scale is a major threat to biodiversity”, said Johnny Agnew from Glasgow, currently doing his masters in wildlife conservation, who held out on a tripod for 8 hours on the day of action. Ally Coutts from Aberdeen adds: “There are so many ways that these plans are bad that I saw no alternative but to get involved. Creating such a vast new demand for wood can never be sustainable despite the energy being classed as renewable. A demand on this scale will lead to the environmental problems wherever the company decides to source the wood.“ Increased demand for biomass is leading to the destruction of old-growth forests including rain forests, which are being replaced by industrial tree plantations such as eucalyptus. Industrial plantations lead to the depletion and pollution of water and soils and they are linked to the displacement and evictions of communities in the global South. The world’s forests help regulate weather patterns and their functions are essential for mitigating climate change. Because the creation of biomass for power stations destroys forests and causes carbon dioxide emissions, they would be a major contributor to climate change if the plans go ahead. Action Against Agrofuels contests Forth Energy’s “bogus” figures concerning carbon savings. A research study investigating the carbon debt from wood-bioenergy found that... burning bioenergy will produce more GHGs than the combustion of fossil fuels for at least 150 years. [3] Smokestack emissions from biomass power stations are even higher than those of coal fired power stations – so it is of crucial importance to consider the greenhouse gases released in every step of the process. This includes displacement of old-growth forests as well as long-distance shipping, road transport, construction and disposal of ashes. Although nearly 1,000 local people in Grangemouth have objected to the plans, backed by the local authority, who has voted against the plans, they will have little say in the Government’s decision. Local impacts will include significant air pollution in an area with high levels of pollution already, and serious threats to marine life in a protected nature area. Many studies have shown that Scotland has an abundance of natural energy sources such as wind, solar, wave and tidal energy which can be harnessed locally, along with energy efficiency measures and major improvements in public transport infrastructure, would be real solutions to climate change.[4],[5] Notes to editor: - [1]The four power stations which will produce a total 530MW will burn a total of 5.3 million tones of wood a year. They will be at Rosyth, Leith, Dundee and Grangemouth. The annual UK wood production lies around 8.4 million tonnes per annum. - The four power stations would burn approximately the equivalent of 2/3 of all the wood the UK currently produces every year. - The UK’s total demand for wood for pulp, paper and biomass is already altogether unsustainable as the UK relies on net imports for over 80% for its wood and wood products. - The Firth of Forth is a Site of Special Scientific Interest, an SPA (Specially Protected Area), Natura 2000 and RAMSA wetland. Friends of the Earth has shown that European biomass imports have already led to neo-colonial land grabbing in Africa [3] The Joanneum Research study, commissioned by BirdLife International, the European Environment Bureau and Transport & Environment www.birdlife.org/eu/pdfs/Bioenergy_Joanneum_Research.pdf [4] The Power of Scotland Secured  http://www.foe-scotland.org.uk/sites/files/possv6final.pdf [5] Zero Carbon Britain – A new energy strategy  http://www.zerocarbonbritain.org/

Maryla

Upcoming Coverage
View and post events
Upcoming Events UK
24th October, London: 2015 London Anarchist Bookfair
2nd - 8th November: Wrexham, Wales, UK & Everywhere: Week of Action Against the North Wales Prison & the Prison Industrial Complex. Cymraeg: Wythnos o Weithredu yn Erbyn Carchar Gogledd Cymru

Ongoing UK
Every Tuesday 6pm-8pm, Yorkshire: Demo/vigil at NSA/NRO Menwith Hill US Spy Base More info: CAAB.

Every Tuesday, UK & worldwide: Counter Terror Tuesdays. Call the US Embassy nearest to you to protest Obama's Terror Tuesdays. More info here

Every day, London: Vigil for Julian Assange outside Ecuadorian Embassy

Parliament Sq Protest: see topic page
Ongoing Global
Rossport, Ireland: see topic page
Israel-Palestine: Israel Indymedia | Palestine Indymedia
Oaxaca: Chiapas Indymedia
Regions
All Regions
Birmingham
Cambridge
Liverpool
London
Oxford
Sheffield
South Coast
Wales
World
Other Local IMCs
Bristol/South West
Nottingham
Scotland
Social Media
You can follow @ukindymedia on indy.im and Twitter. We are working on a Twitter policy. We do not use Facebook, and advise you not to either.
Support Us
We need help paying the bills for hosting this site, please consider supporting us financially.
Other Media Projects
Schnews
Dissident Island Radio
Corporate Watch
Media Lens
VisionOnTV
Earth First! Action Update
Earth First! Action Reports
Topics
All Topics
Afghanistan
Analysis
Animal Liberation
Anti-Nuclear
Anti-militarism
Anti-racism
Bio-technology
Climate Chaos
Culture
Ecology
Education
Energy Crisis
Fracking
Free Spaces
Gender
Globalisation
Health
History
Indymedia
Iraq
Migration
Ocean Defence
Other Press
Palestine
Policing
Public sector cuts
Repression
Social Struggles
Technology
Terror War
Workers' Movements
Zapatista
Major Reports
NATO 2014
G8 2013
Workfare
2011 Census Resistance
Occupy Everywhere
August Riots
Dale Farm
J30 Strike
Flotilla to Gaza
Mayday 2010
Tar Sands
G20 London Summit
University Occupations for Gaza
Guantanamo
Indymedia Server Seizure
COP15 Climate Summit 2009
Carmel Agrexco
G8 Japan 2008
SHAC
Stop Sequani
Stop RWB
Climate Camp 2008
Oaxaca Uprising
Rossport Solidarity
Smash EDO
SOCPA
Past Major Reports
Encrypted Page
You are viewing this page using an encrypted connection. If you bookmark this page or send its address in an email you might want to use the un-encrypted address of this page.
If you recieved a warning about an untrusted root certificate please install the CAcert root certificate, for more information see the security page.

Global IMC Network


www.indymedia.org

Projects
print
radio
satellite tv
video

Africa

Europe
antwerpen
armenia
athens
austria
barcelona
belarus
belgium
belgrade
brussels
bulgaria
calabria
croatia
cyprus
emilia-romagna
estrecho / madiaq
galiza
germany
grenoble
hungary
ireland
istanbul
italy
la plana
liege
liguria
lille
linksunten
lombardia
madrid
malta
marseille
nantes
napoli
netherlands
northern england
nottingham imc
paris/île-de-france
patras
piemonte
poland
portugal
roma
romania
russia
sardegna
scotland
sverige
switzerland
torun
toscana
ukraine
united kingdom
valencia

Latin America
argentina
bolivia
chiapas
chile
chile sur
cmi brasil
cmi sucre
colombia
ecuador
mexico
peru
puerto rico
qollasuyu
rosario
santiago
tijuana
uruguay
valparaiso
venezuela

Oceania
aotearoa
brisbane
burma
darwin
jakarta
manila
melbourne
perth
qc
sydney

South Asia
india


United States
arizona
arkansas
asheville
atlanta
Austin
binghamton
boston
buffalo
chicago
cleveland
colorado
columbus
dc
hawaii
houston
hudson mohawk
kansas city
la
madison
maine
miami
michigan
milwaukee
minneapolis/st. paul
new hampshire
new jersey
new mexico
new orleans
north carolina
north texas
nyc
oklahoma
philadelphia
pittsburgh
portland
richmond
rochester
rogue valley
saint louis
san diego
san francisco
san francisco bay area
santa barbara
santa cruz, ca
sarasota
seattle
tampa bay
united states
urbana-champaign
vermont
western mass
worcester

West Asia
Armenia
Beirut
Israel
Palestine

Topics
biotech

Process
fbi/legal updates
mailing lists
process & imc docs
tech