UK UK Newswire Archive
Julian Assange, Sex Crimes and the U.S. Proxies in Cuba.
09-11-2012 03:45
Young European politicians are now acting under the banner of activism with their governments' assent to support the United States 59 year de facto war with Cuba.Objection to Birklands Opencast Plan Submitted
08-11-2012 22:55
An objection to Hall Construction Servixes for an Opencast Mine at the Birklands site in Gateshead has now been submitted. The objection is based on a number of factors, the rate at which power stations are being closed or converted to burning biomass; that it is Government policy to encourage Power Generators to switch from burning coal to burning biomass; that the expected decline in the need for coal for power generation purposes is expected to drop by 34% by 2017 and how easy it is to ship any coal that is needed into the Port of tyne amongst other reason. The pres release also draws attention to problems with the Growth and Infrastructure Bill now before Parliament.
THE LOOSE ANTI OPEN-CAST NETWORK
BIRKLANDS LANE : WHY DESTROY WHAT’S THERE WHEN THE USE OF COAL FOR POWER GENERATION PURPOSES IS BECOMING HISTORY?
PR 2012 -12 8/11/12
In an objection to the proposal to quarry to take out 275,000 tonnes of coal from the Birklands Lane Opencast site in Sunnyside, Gateshead, the Loose Anti Opencast Network (LAON) makes the following points:
<!--[if !supportLists]-->· <!--[endif]-->By the end of 2016, six heavily polluting power stations which were using coal to produce electricity will be closed. This is equal to a third of the UK’s coal burning generating capacity. These power stations are Ferrybridge (Yorkshire), Ironbridge (Shropshire) Cockenzie (nr. Edinburgh), Kingsnorth (Kent), Tilbury (Essex) and Didcot (Oxfordshire)
<!--[if !supportLists]-->· <!--[endif]-->It is now Government policy to phase out the use of coal for Power generation purposes
<!--[if !supportLists]-->· <!--[endif]-->It is also now Government policy to use a new subsidy system to encourage the remaining coal burning power stations to switch to burning biomass. As a consequence, Tilbury Power Station has already been converted to burning biomass, Ironbridge is to be converted. In addition, half of the UK’s biggest power station, Drax (Yorkshire) is to be converted by 2017 and another large power station Eggborough (Goole on Humberside) is also to be converted.
<!--[if !supportLists]-->· <!--[endif]-->New Department of Energy and Climate change figures predict what the consequence of these changes will be for the demand for coal for power generation purposes in the UK. In 2011 the UK used over 40.5m tonnes of coal. By 2017, the date by when coal extraction on the Birkland Lane site is most likely to finish if planning permission was granted anytime soon, demand is expected to have fallen to 26.6m tonnes, a drop of about 34%.
The use of coal for power generation purposes is becoming history and for the foreseeable future this trend will continue as Power Generating companies continue to reduce the country’s capacity to burn coal.
In addition, the objection points out how easy it is to import coal.
“ All the years of disturbance and nuisance local people will suffer could be avoided if 4 loads of 76,000 tonnes of coal could, instead, be unloaded in the Port of Tyne and transported by a far more environmentally friendly method of transport, rail, to the power stations where it is needed.
This would also mean that the current generation of residents would not have to wait for 23 years before the site began to look mature, assuming that this was in fact a 3.5 year ‘Green to Green’ proposal, with no submission of a future plan to extend the site.”
Steve Leary, who wrote the submission, is the Co-ordinator of the Loose Anti Opencast Network. He has addressed groups elsewhere on planning issues to do with opencast coal applications and recently submitted evidence, which was accepted, to the Select Committee on Communities and Local Government on inadequacies in the way the present planning system deals with opencast mine applications.
He commented
“We in LAON have decided to lodge this objection to make the public, planners and Councillor’s aware to the results of our research. We are entering a new era as far as power generation is concerned and coal will not be part of that picture for the foreseeable future. - Coal for power generation purposes is becoming history. Therefore one of the questions which Gateshead Councillors will face is knowing that this is the case, is 4 shiploads of coal worth saving local people from 3.5 years of disturbance plus innumerable traffic movements by road, if account is also taken of journeys made by employees and suppliers servicing the site in addition to the known estimated heavy lorry movements. This is a stark choice that the Planning Authority has to take. The case being put here is that protecting local people from the loss of amenity caused by working this site, if permission is given, is worth 4shiploads of coal, especially when the use of coal for such a purpose is becoming history.
LAON also has to alert local people to another threat which may impinge on the decision about Kirkland Lane. Currently, the Government is seeking further changes in the planning system that might make it easier for such proposals such as Kirkland Lane to gain planning permission. In the Growth and Infrastructure Bill currently before Parliament, Clause 21 will give the Secretary Of State power to define certain developments as ‘Major Infrastructure Projects’. If quarrying and surface mining are so defined, as some commentators think is possible, then the decision will be made by means of a Public Inquiry and not by the local planning authority, thus making it far more difficult for local people to object to such proposals. So far The Government has refused to define what it means by ‘Major Infrastructure Projects’. It would be deeply ironic if that were to be case in view of the predicted decline in the use of coal.”
The Loose Anti Opencast Network would be willing to work with those who have already objected to this application to ensure that planning permission is not granted.
About LAON
The Loose Anti-Opencast Network (LAON) has been in existence since 2009. It functions as a medium through which to oppose open cast mine applications. At present LAON links individuals and groups in N Ireland (Just Say No to Lignite), Scotland (Coal Action Scotland), Wales (Green Valleys Alliance, The Merthyr Tydfil Anti Opencast Campaign), England, (Coal Action Network), Northumberland, (Whittonstall Action Group, North Pennine Protection Group) Co Durham (Pont Valley Network), Leeds, Sheffield (Cowley Residents Action Group), Kirklees, (Skelmansthorpe Action Group) Nottinghamshire (Shortwood Farm Opencast Opposition), Derbyshire (West Hallum Environment Group, Smalley Action Group and Hilltop Action Group) , Leicestershire (Minorca Opencast Protest Group) and Walsall (Alumwell Action Group).
Contacting LAON
Steve Leary LAON’Ss Co-ordinator, at infoatlaon@yahoo.com
You can now follow LAON on Twitter @ http://twitter.com/Seftonchase
>> 21 Nov 2012 << London Protest >>
08-11-2012 21:55
http://www.demo2012.org.uk/
You lock up kids you get locked out
08-11-2012 17:32
On the night of the 7th November 2012, unknown activists superglued the locks of Barnardo's shop in Cardiff and left a message to protest against the cooperation of Barnardo s with Cedars detention who are not even refraining from locking up children in their detention center.The action was probably part of the action day against Barnardo s that was held today in different places all over UK.
Leicester - Smash Workfare Saturday!
08-11-2012 17:31
Leicester action against workfare, from 9.30 am, this Saturday 10th November. Claimants, workers, waged, unwaged... all welcome to get involved.Greece, Athens: General strike 07.11.2012 - riots (photos)
08-11-2012 16:36
Pompey Palestine Benefit TONIGHT!!
08-11-2012 13:07
Portsmouth Benefit for Palestine TONIGHT!!MP's & Bardem support demo for jailed Western Sahara activists
08-11-2012 12:06
As demonstrators in London mark the 2nd anniversary of the Gdiem Izik protest camp in Western Sahara, MP's and Javier Bardem express their supportReminder: join the action against Barnardo's today!
08-11-2012 00:06
Blog on the biodiversity crisis
07-11-2012 20:40
Have a look at this new blog, "Into the Eremozoic", about the biodiversity crisis and the sixth mass extinction...
CURO Housing renting its homes as holiday lets to wealthy tourists
07-11-2012 17:03
CURO Housing proposes to privatise 600 affordable homes in Bath and re-let them on the private market and for holiday letsCandidate hustings for Police & Crime Commissioner
07-11-2012 16:55
Monday 5th November 2012
At 5.30pm the 4 Candidates attended hustings for the Police & Crime Commissioners job.
A Couple of hundred members of the public, student and academics gathered in the Social Science Department of Nottingham Trent University
Tony Roberts, Conservative candidate
Paddy Tipping, Labour's candidate
and independents:
Dr Raj Chandran, retired GP and Mayor of Gedling
Malcolm Spencer, a former police officer
They each made an opening presentation before they were chanlenged on their policies by the audience.
Personally, I didn't find any of them attractive [hold the front page !!!].
The attached audio gives you an idea of what i mean. But, as of thursday 15th November, one of them will be in post, replacing the current arrangement of oversight from the Nottinghamshire Police Authority.
The facilitator of the meeting, the political editor of the Nottingham Post, asked the audience for thier opinion on the likely turnout. A few hands went up over 80% [amazing eh?] Most put their hands up for varios figures between 20 - 40%. I and many others though somewhere around the 10-15% mark. Some predicting as few as one in ten people in Notts would vote next Thursday. But Mr Tipping said: "There are about 800,000 voters in Notts and if you get 10 per cent that's 80,000 people – that's a bigger mandate than any other politician in Notts."
God god!! as ever ..... that sound like some pretty weak democracy to me.
One of their main jobs will be administer £42m in cuts in the police budget. .... so, there you have it.
____________________________________________
ALAN LODGE
Photographer - Media: One Eye on the Road. Nottingham. UK
Email: tash@indymedia.org
Web: http://digitaljournalist.eu
Member of the National Union of Journalists [NUJ]
____________________________________________
"It is not enough to curse the darkness.
It is also necessary to light a lamp!!"
___________________________________________
<ends>
National Anti-Fur Demonstration
07-11-2012 16:32
Sussex University The Badger Newspaper Lies To Readers
07-11-2012 15:51
Picardie, First World War, a mother’s grief.
07-11-2012 13:46
Solidarity across prison walls: Harmondsworth demo for Prince
07-11-2012 12:58
http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2012/11/502181.html), No Borders and other groups held a noise demo outside the detention centres.
Don't Dance with Israeli Apartheid - Boycott Batsheva Dance in Birmingham
07-11-2012 11:27
Protest outside Birmingham Hippodrome on Tuesday 13th November and Wednesday 14 November at 18:00'Sworn Enemies'? A Response To George Monbiot from Media Lens
07-11-2012 11:04
Hi George
It's good to know that your email is intended in a 'friendly and constructive spirit'. We hope you will post a link to this response on your home page and via Twitter.
You write that Media Lens is a 'project whose purpose is to engage and persuade progressive journalists by critiquing their work and encouraging people to write to them'.
We do, of course, encourage readers to send polite emails to journalists. But our primary purpose is to raise public awareness by highlighting examples of corporate media bias. What people do with that awareness is really up to them. Our hope is that it feeds into activism, campaigning and the creation of non-corporate media like MediaBite, News Unspun and BS News.
Above all, we're trying to stimulate debate and participation. Engaging with journalists is certainly part of that, but we have few illusions about influencing media employees who often have little room for manoeuvre and who are deeply dependent on the corporate system. We do hope for marginal improvements as a direct result of our work - they do happen and do matter - but it's not a primary concern.