Corporate Media Coverage of the Climate Camp
media coverage | 28.08.2006 23:11 | Climate Camp 2006 | Climate Chaos | Ecology
Here is a selection of some of the mainstream media coverage of the Camp for Climate Action over the last couple of days. The day of mass action is scheduled for thursday.
These articles are reproduced here for reference purposes.
Please post any additional URLs of other coverage below as a comment.
These articles are reproduced here for reference purposes.
Please post any additional URLs of other coverage below as a comment.
Climate activists gather in Megawatt Valley
Yorkshire Post Today
Monday 28th August
http://www.yorkshiretoday.co.uk/ViewArticle2.aspx?SectionID=55&ArticleID=1724855
Protesters demonstrate against CO2 emissions
Julie Hemmings
LOOMING over the Yorkshire skyline, Drax power station is impossible to ignore.
Which is why activists have chosen the plant near Selby as the focal point for 10 days of demonstration, based around the Camp for Climate Action pitched in the heart of what they are calling "Megawatt Valley".
Drax anticipated a possible invasion on Thursday and earlier this month obtained an injunction banning protesters from the power station and a nearby footpath. Copies of the document, with a map showing its extent, are fixed to its perimeter fence at 50 yard intervals as a reminder to would-be trespassers.
Dan Lewis, from Leeds, said direct action was the only way to get across a message ignored by Governments and big business in pursuit of economic growth.
In his free time the care assistant plants trees with Treesponsibility, a Calderdale-based community group which promotes sustainable living, and believes climate change is the biggest threat humanity faces.
Drax is the largest coal-fired power station in Europe and pumps out millions of tonnes of carbon dioxide as it generates seven per cent of the UK's electricity.
However, Mr Lewis said this did not even meet demand from all the appliances left on standby.
"Most people in the world don't live like this," he said of energy use in developed countries in the early 21st century.
"There is no way of supplying this level of demand indefinitely from finite resources.
"Our grandparents didn't live like this and our grandchildren won't be able to."
Groups such as Friends of the Earth are represented at the camp on land next to Barlow nature reserve, but organisers insist the gathering is open to all and they have no idea how many will come to stay or join any demonstrations.
They calculated the site, of about 25 acres, would accommodate 2,000 people and have facilities in place to cope with that number, from composting toilets to field kitchens.
The camp is set out with a central area of marquees for workshops and discussion groups – including "action training for day of mass action".
Around the outside lie "neighbourhood" sections for camping, washing and cooking, with campers grouped by their geographical area.
On arrival at the gatehouse, incomers are taken to the welcome tent – and the only sofa on site – for a cup of tea and introductions. A medics' tent – with a solar panel – sits next door.
As the camp took shape over the weekend there seemed to be as many police officers as protesters, with officers circling the site on foot and by van, with marked vehicles tucked discreetly behind hedges in woodland all around Drax.
High-visibility police patrols were in evidence Selby town centre, as a shuttle-bus from the camp collected rail and bus passengers coming to join the protest, while marked video vans roamed the country lanes around Barlow.
Police from North Yorkshire were supplemented by colleagues from South Yorkshire and Durham forces.
Despite the police presence, campaigners said the authorities raised no objections to the gathering after a site inspection on health and safety grounds.
A neighbouring farmer is taking waste from the compost toilets and Selby Council has supplied bins and boxes for recyclables. With a windmill and solar panels, energy on-site comes from renewable sources and camp vehicles run on biodiesel.
=========================
Eco-warriors lay siege to Drax and pledge to shut it down
Monday August 28th
ThisIsYork
http://www.thisisyork.co.uk/display.var.896251.0.ecowarriors_lay_siege_to_drax_and_pledge_to_shut_it_down.php
A CONFRONTATION was today looming between police and hundreds of protesters aiming to shut down a North Yorkshire power station.
The Press can reveal that police are taking the threat posed by the Camp For Climate Action near Drax Power Station, near Selby, so seriously that they have cancelled all new requests for leave and are drafting in officers from as far away as Hampshire.
Today eco-warriors vowed to break the law to achieve their goals, ignoring a legal injunction designed to keep them from the site. One protester, Foye Hatton, 28, of London, said: "On Thursday the plan is through mass civil disobedience to close down Drax Power Station. People also will form small groups who go off and do other actions in the build-up to the big day."
Richard Lane, 28, from York, said: "We know we are not going to make a difference to the UK emissions with this action but the fact is that we all know global warming is a disaster looming down on us."
Drax has warned that, because it is such an important station - supplying seven per cent of Britain's electricity needs - any shutdown could destabilise the National Grid and lead to power cuts.
Earlier this month, plant bosses obtained a court injunction banning protesters from the site.
The Press understands that assistance has been given to the North Yorkshire force from several other forces, mainly from the North of England, and that some leave has been cancelled.
The North Yorkshire force declined to comment on either the cancellation of leave or assistance from elsewhere, but Hampshire Constabulary confirmed to The Press that it had sent ten officers to North Yorkshire, where they would remain all week, and Cleveland Constabulary said it would be sending officers to help on a daily basis, starting at the weekend.
A police source also said: "All rest days have been re-rostered and any new annual leave has been cancelled to ensure there will be enough officers on hand to cope."
The source added that rank- and-file officers had concerns about resources being tied up during one of the busiest times of the year.
Assistant Chief Constable Peter Bagshaw said in a statement that the force had made preparations with other protection agencies to ensure they could respond to any issues arising from the camp.
This would ensure people could exercise their lawful right to demonstrate, while minimising disruption to local residents, businesses or visitors to the area.
Deputy Chief Constable Ian McPherson said: "We aim to provide reassurance by promoting safety, maintaining order and reducing the fear of crime. We also aim to minimise disruption to local communities, residents and businesses by maintaining the local neighbourhood policing service."
---
Activists gather from across the UK
CLIMATE campaigners from across the country descended on a field close to Drax Power Station on the opening weekend of a ten-day camp.
Hundreds of green protestors pitched tents, set up compost toilets and started work on an electricity-generating windmill on the legally-squatted farmer's land next to Barlow Common, near Selby.
Some had arrived on Thursday morning, built a scaffolding tower and put up marquees to lay claim to the area, which they plan to use throughout the national Camp For Climate Action.
On the first day there was a heavy police presence on the roads around the camp.
Some officers were photographing anyone who entering it.
But inside there was a festival atmosphere with the field split into "neighbourhoods" of activists who held group meetings to decide how their section would be run.
Eco-activist Alex, 27, from London, said the camp aimed to shut down Drax and educate people about climate change but also show how a low-energy lifestyle could work.
==========================
Hundreds in power station protest
Monday 28th August
By Mark Foster
Northern Echo
http://www.thisisthenortheast.co.uk/display.var.896515.0.hundreds_in_power_station_protest.php
HUNDREDS of climate campaigners have descended on a field by one of Britain's biggest power stations to demonstrates against the emissions they claim cause global warming.
The ten-day Camp for Climate Action is targeting the giant Drax power plant near Selby, North Yorkshire - and the eco-warriors have vowed to break the law and ignore a legal injunction designed to keep them from the site.
One protester, Foye Hatton, 28, of London, said: "On Thursday the plan is through mass civil disobedience to close down Drax power station. People also will form small groups who go off and do other actions in the build-up to the big day."
continued...
Another, Richard Lane, 28, from York, said: "We know we are not going to make a difference to the UK emissions with this action but the fact is that we all know global warming is a disaster looming down on us."
On the first day of the demo there was a heavy police presence on the roads around the camp and some officers were photographing anyone who entering it.
However inside there was a festival atmosphere with the field split into "neighbourhoods" of activists who held group meetings to decide how their section would be run.
Police are understood to have cancelled new requests for leave in order to cope should a confrontation happen and other officers are being drafted in from other forces.
Drax supplies seven per cent of Britain's electricity and has warned that any shutdown could destabilise the National Grid and lead to power cuts.
And earlier this month, plant bosses obtained a court injunction banning protesters from the site.
In a statement police said they were working with partner agencies to keep the situation under control.
Deputy Chief Constable Ian McPherson said: "We aim to provide reassurance by promoting safety, maintaining order and reducing the fear of crime.
"We also aim to minimise disruption to local communities, residents and businesses by maintaining the local neighbourhood policing service."
He added: "We will facilitate lawful and peaceful protest but criminality or disorder will be dealt with swiftly and firmly
==========================
Hundreds in power station protest
Saturday, 26 August 2006
BBC
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/north_yorkshire/5288602.stm
Protesters camp near Drax power station
Hundreds of campaigners were gathering at Britain's biggest coal-fired power station this weekend to protest over carbon dioxide emissions.
Organisers of the Camp for Climate Action hope to attract up to 2,000 demonstrators to the 10-day event at Drax Power Station in North Yorkshire.
By Saturday lunchtime some 200 had set up camp on land next to Barlow Common nature reserve near the Selby complex.
They want to shut down the site, saying it is the UK's largest emitter of CO2.
Although their camp is just outside the power station boundaries, a campaign spokeswoman said protesters may decide to enter the site next week in a bid to force it to close.
Anna Harrison said individuals would decide whether they were prepared to risk arrest by joining the "day of creative mass action" on 31 August, when demonstrators will converge on the site with the aim of forcing it to shut down.
She said: "I can't speak for everyone else but I do know that a lot of people feel so strongly that they are prepared to break the law.
"The issue of climate change is so urgent that lots of people are prepared to step out of line to make a stand."
The power station has secured an injunction prohibiting any trespassing on the site and restricting the use of a nearby footpath.
Drax said it wanted to ensure the protesters did not force the station to close or put their own safety at risk.
It had no objection to "peaceful and lawful demonstration" but did not want protesters exposed to the dangers and hazards "inherent to our highly complex industrial site"
=========================
Protesters plan to shut biggest power station
John Vidal
Monday August 28, 2006
The Guardian
http://www.guardian.co.uk/waste/story/0,,1859750,00.html
More than 500 activists have occupied farmland near Europe's largest power station, aiming to shut it down this week in protest at its greenhouse gas emissions. The Climate Change Camp, powered by sunlight, wind and compost, is targeting Drax power station in Yorkshire, which generates about 7% of all UK electricity. The protesters have declined to say how they plan to shut the station.
The company has warned that the protesters' actions could lead to blackouts. The company said it recognised people's right to protest, but would not allow interruption of the electricity supply.
==========================
Eco-campaigners set up camp amid tight security
Sat 26th August
York Press
http://www.yorkpress.co.uk/news/yorknews/display.var.895804.0.ecocampaigners_set_up_camp_amid_tight_security.php
HUNDREDS of activists were today arriving in North Yorkshire for the start of a massive environmental protest - still planning to shut down a massive power station next week.
The Camp For Climate Action is holding a ten-day protest in "Megawatt Valley", south of Selby, to highlight concerns about climate change.
The venue for the camp had previously been kept a closely-guarded secret, but organisers yesterday began constructing the site on farmland next to Barlow Common nature reserve, about three miles south east of Selby and two miles north west of Drax Power Station.
continued...
The station recently obtained an injunction to stop a proposed day of action on Thursday, banning protestors from its premises and restricting the use of an adjacent footpath.
Nearby Eggborough Power Station has already deployed security staff to prevent anyone trespassing there.
Camp spokeswoman Anna Harrison warned today that some protesters were prepared to break the injunction in their efforts to close Drax station down.
"They feel that this is a matter of such importance that they are prepared to break the law," she said.
But asked precisely what actions they intended taking, she said this would be discussed during the camp.
The power station has been selected as the focus of the protest, because protestors claim it is the UK's largest emitter of carbon dioxide.
Anna said it was impossible to say how many would join the camp, although she was hoping for thousands and was confident that many hundreds would turn up from across Britain and also abroad. As well as the day of action, the camp promises "education about climate change, sustainable living, with a mix of workshops and meetings.
Anna said the preparatory work included the erection of marquees and provision of compost toilets.
She claimed the farmland was currently unused and, while it had initially been squatted, there had since been "friendly" negotiations with the farmer who owned it and she believed there had been an offer of compensation. The site would be cleared up afterwards, she added.
A Drax Power Station spokeswoman said it had been liaising with the authorities and security staff were deployed around the site.
She said the injunction had been taken out for two main reasons: the safety of staff and protesters, and the security of electricity supplies.
She said there were hazards and dangers on such a site, and there could be a fatality if people entered it.
At the same time, if protesters succeeded in shutting the station down, the National Grid could be destabilised because Drax supplied seven per cent of the country's electricity needs. If this were to happen, it could result in power cuts in certain areas. She said Drax had offered to meet the protesters to discuss their concerns, and this offer, not so far taken up, remained open.
# The amount of damaging carbon dioxide spewed out by Yorkshire's coal-burning power stations could be cut by half over the next 15 years, a new study has claimed.
By stopping the harmful gas before it enters the atmosphere, coal-fired power stations can be made more environmentally friendly, the report said. The plans would involve storing the gas safely underground or under the sea.
The Yorkshire And Humber Assembly's Vision For Coal report, written by a panel of energy experts, concludes that coal could eventually become a carbon-neutral fuel.
Yorkshire Post Today
Monday 28th August
http://www.yorkshiretoday.co.uk/ViewArticle2.aspx?SectionID=55&ArticleID=1724855 Protesters demonstrate against CO2 emissions
Julie Hemmings
LOOMING over the Yorkshire skyline, Drax power station is impossible to ignore.
Which is why activists have chosen the plant near Selby as the focal point for 10 days of demonstration, based around the Camp for Climate Action pitched in the heart of what they are calling "Megawatt Valley".
Drax anticipated a possible invasion on Thursday and earlier this month obtained an injunction banning protesters from the power station and a nearby footpath. Copies of the document, with a map showing its extent, are fixed to its perimeter fence at 50 yard intervals as a reminder to would-be trespassers.
Dan Lewis, from Leeds, said direct action was the only way to get across a message ignored by Governments and big business in pursuit of economic growth.
In his free time the care assistant plants trees with Treesponsibility, a Calderdale-based community group which promotes sustainable living, and believes climate change is the biggest threat humanity faces.
Drax is the largest coal-fired power station in Europe and pumps out millions of tonnes of carbon dioxide as it generates seven per cent of the UK's electricity.
However, Mr Lewis said this did not even meet demand from all the appliances left on standby.
"Most people in the world don't live like this," he said of energy use in developed countries in the early 21st century.
"There is no way of supplying this level of demand indefinitely from finite resources.
"Our grandparents didn't live like this and our grandchildren won't be able to."
Groups such as Friends of the Earth are represented at the camp on land next to Barlow nature reserve, but organisers insist the gathering is open to all and they have no idea how many will come to stay or join any demonstrations.
They calculated the site, of about 25 acres, would accommodate 2,000 people and have facilities in place to cope with that number, from composting toilets to field kitchens.
The camp is set out with a central area of marquees for workshops and discussion groups – including "action training for day of mass action".
Around the outside lie "neighbourhood" sections for camping, washing and cooking, with campers grouped by their geographical area.
On arrival at the gatehouse, incomers are taken to the welcome tent – and the only sofa on site – for a cup of tea and introductions. A medics' tent – with a solar panel – sits next door.
As the camp took shape over the weekend there seemed to be as many police officers as protesters, with officers circling the site on foot and by van, with marked vehicles tucked discreetly behind hedges in woodland all around Drax.
High-visibility police patrols were in evidence Selby town centre, as a shuttle-bus from the camp collected rail and bus passengers coming to join the protest, while marked video vans roamed the country lanes around Barlow.
Police from North Yorkshire were supplemented by colleagues from South Yorkshire and Durham forces.
Despite the police presence, campaigners said the authorities raised no objections to the gathering after a site inspection on health and safety grounds.
A neighbouring farmer is taking waste from the compost toilets and Selby Council has supplied bins and boxes for recyclables. With a windmill and solar panels, energy on-site comes from renewable sources and camp vehicles run on biodiesel.
=========================
Eco-warriors lay siege to Drax and pledge to shut it down
Monday August 28th
ThisIsYork
http://www.thisisyork.co.uk/display.var.896251.0.ecowarriors_lay_siege_to_drax_and_pledge_to_shut_it_down.php A CONFRONTATION was today looming between police and hundreds of protesters aiming to shut down a North Yorkshire power station.
The Press can reveal that police are taking the threat posed by the Camp For Climate Action near Drax Power Station, near Selby, so seriously that they have cancelled all new requests for leave and are drafting in officers from as far away as Hampshire.
Today eco-warriors vowed to break the law to achieve their goals, ignoring a legal injunction designed to keep them from the site. One protester, Foye Hatton, 28, of London, said: "On Thursday the plan is through mass civil disobedience to close down Drax Power Station. People also will form small groups who go off and do other actions in the build-up to the big day."
Richard Lane, 28, from York, said: "We know we are not going to make a difference to the UK emissions with this action but the fact is that we all know global warming is a disaster looming down on us."
Drax has warned that, because it is such an important station - supplying seven per cent of Britain's electricity needs - any shutdown could destabilise the National Grid and lead to power cuts.
Earlier this month, plant bosses obtained a court injunction banning protesters from the site.
The Press understands that assistance has been given to the North Yorkshire force from several other forces, mainly from the North of England, and that some leave has been cancelled.
The North Yorkshire force declined to comment on either the cancellation of leave or assistance from elsewhere, but Hampshire Constabulary confirmed to The Press that it had sent ten officers to North Yorkshire, where they would remain all week, and Cleveland Constabulary said it would be sending officers to help on a daily basis, starting at the weekend.
A police source also said: "All rest days have been re-rostered and any new annual leave has been cancelled to ensure there will be enough officers on hand to cope."
The source added that rank- and-file officers had concerns about resources being tied up during one of the busiest times of the year.
Assistant Chief Constable Peter Bagshaw said in a statement that the force had made preparations with other protection agencies to ensure they could respond to any issues arising from the camp.
This would ensure people could exercise their lawful right to demonstrate, while minimising disruption to local residents, businesses or visitors to the area.
Deputy Chief Constable Ian McPherson said: "We aim to provide reassurance by promoting safety, maintaining order and reducing the fear of crime. We also aim to minimise disruption to local communities, residents and businesses by maintaining the local neighbourhood policing service."
---
Activists gather from across the UK
CLIMATE campaigners from across the country descended on a field close to Drax Power Station on the opening weekend of a ten-day camp.
Hundreds of green protestors pitched tents, set up compost toilets and started work on an electricity-generating windmill on the legally-squatted farmer's land next to Barlow Common, near Selby.
Some had arrived on Thursday morning, built a scaffolding tower and put up marquees to lay claim to the area, which they plan to use throughout the national Camp For Climate Action.
On the first day there was a heavy police presence on the roads around the camp.
Some officers were photographing anyone who entering it.
But inside there was a festival atmosphere with the field split into "neighbourhoods" of activists who held group meetings to decide how their section would be run.
Eco-activist Alex, 27, from London, said the camp aimed to shut down Drax and educate people about climate change but also show how a low-energy lifestyle could work.
==========================
Hundreds in power station protest
Monday 28th August
By Mark Foster
Northern Echo
http://www.thisisthenortheast.co.uk/display.var.896515.0.hundreds_in_power_station_protest.php HUNDREDS of climate campaigners have descended on a field by one of Britain's biggest power stations to demonstrates against the emissions they claim cause global warming.
The ten-day Camp for Climate Action is targeting the giant Drax power plant near Selby, North Yorkshire - and the eco-warriors have vowed to break the law and ignore a legal injunction designed to keep them from the site.
One protester, Foye Hatton, 28, of London, said: "On Thursday the plan is through mass civil disobedience to close down Drax power station. People also will form small groups who go off and do other actions in the build-up to the big day."
continued...
Another, Richard Lane, 28, from York, said: "We know we are not going to make a difference to the UK emissions with this action but the fact is that we all know global warming is a disaster looming down on us."
On the first day of the demo there was a heavy police presence on the roads around the camp and some officers were photographing anyone who entering it.
However inside there was a festival atmosphere with the field split into "neighbourhoods" of activists who held group meetings to decide how their section would be run.
Police are understood to have cancelled new requests for leave in order to cope should a confrontation happen and other officers are being drafted in from other forces.
Drax supplies seven per cent of Britain's electricity and has warned that any shutdown could destabilise the National Grid and lead to power cuts.
And earlier this month, plant bosses obtained a court injunction banning protesters from the site.
In a statement police said they were working with partner agencies to keep the situation under control.
Deputy Chief Constable Ian McPherson said: "We aim to provide reassurance by promoting safety, maintaining order and reducing the fear of crime.
"We also aim to minimise disruption to local communities, residents and businesses by maintaining the local neighbourhood policing service."
He added: "We will facilitate lawful and peaceful protest but criminality or disorder will be dealt with swiftly and firmly
==========================
Hundreds in power station protest
Saturday, 26 August 2006
BBC
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/north_yorkshire/5288602.stm Protesters camp near Drax power station
Hundreds of campaigners were gathering at Britain's biggest coal-fired power station this weekend to protest over carbon dioxide emissions.
Organisers of the Camp for Climate Action hope to attract up to 2,000 demonstrators to the 10-day event at Drax Power Station in North Yorkshire.
By Saturday lunchtime some 200 had set up camp on land next to Barlow Common nature reserve near the Selby complex.
They want to shut down the site, saying it is the UK's largest emitter of CO2.
Although their camp is just outside the power station boundaries, a campaign spokeswoman said protesters may decide to enter the site next week in a bid to force it to close.
Anna Harrison said individuals would decide whether they were prepared to risk arrest by joining the "day of creative mass action" on 31 August, when demonstrators will converge on the site with the aim of forcing it to shut down.
She said: "I can't speak for everyone else but I do know that a lot of people feel so strongly that they are prepared to break the law.
"The issue of climate change is so urgent that lots of people are prepared to step out of line to make a stand."
The power station has secured an injunction prohibiting any trespassing on the site and restricting the use of a nearby footpath.
Drax said it wanted to ensure the protesters did not force the station to close or put their own safety at risk.
It had no objection to "peaceful and lawful demonstration" but did not want protesters exposed to the dangers and hazards "inherent to our highly complex industrial site"
=========================
Protesters plan to shut biggest power station
John Vidal
Monday August 28, 2006
The Guardian
http://www.guardian.co.uk/waste/story/0,,1859750,00.html More than 500 activists have occupied farmland near Europe's largest power station, aiming to shut it down this week in protest at its greenhouse gas emissions. The Climate Change Camp, powered by sunlight, wind and compost, is targeting Drax power station in Yorkshire, which generates about 7% of all UK electricity. The protesters have declined to say how they plan to shut the station.
The company has warned that the protesters' actions could lead to blackouts. The company said it recognised people's right to protest, but would not allow interruption of the electricity supply.
==========================
Eco-campaigners set up camp amid tight security
Sat 26th August
York Press
http://www.yorkpress.co.uk/news/yorknews/display.var.895804.0.ecocampaigners_set_up_camp_amid_tight_security.php HUNDREDS of activists were today arriving in North Yorkshire for the start of a massive environmental protest - still planning to shut down a massive power station next week.
The Camp For Climate Action is holding a ten-day protest in "Megawatt Valley", south of Selby, to highlight concerns about climate change.
The venue for the camp had previously been kept a closely-guarded secret, but organisers yesterday began constructing the site on farmland next to Barlow Common nature reserve, about three miles south east of Selby and two miles north west of Drax Power Station.
continued...
The station recently obtained an injunction to stop a proposed day of action on Thursday, banning protestors from its premises and restricting the use of an adjacent footpath.
Nearby Eggborough Power Station has already deployed security staff to prevent anyone trespassing there.
Camp spokeswoman Anna Harrison warned today that some protesters were prepared to break the injunction in their efforts to close Drax station down.
"They feel that this is a matter of such importance that they are prepared to break the law," she said.
But asked precisely what actions they intended taking, she said this would be discussed during the camp.
The power station has been selected as the focus of the protest, because protestors claim it is the UK's largest emitter of carbon dioxide.
Anna said it was impossible to say how many would join the camp, although she was hoping for thousands and was confident that many hundreds would turn up from across Britain and also abroad. As well as the day of action, the camp promises "education about climate change, sustainable living, with a mix of workshops and meetings.
Anna said the preparatory work included the erection of marquees and provision of compost toilets.
She claimed the farmland was currently unused and, while it had initially been squatted, there had since been "friendly" negotiations with the farmer who owned it and she believed there had been an offer of compensation. The site would be cleared up afterwards, she added.
A Drax Power Station spokeswoman said it had been liaising with the authorities and security staff were deployed around the site.
She said the injunction had been taken out for two main reasons: the safety of staff and protesters, and the security of electricity supplies.
She said there were hazards and dangers on such a site, and there could be a fatality if people entered it.
At the same time, if protesters succeeded in shutting the station down, the National Grid could be destabilised because Drax supplied seven per cent of the country's electricity needs. If this were to happen, it could result in power cuts in certain areas. She said Drax had offered to meet the protesters to discuss their concerns, and this offer, not so far taken up, remained open.
# The amount of damaging carbon dioxide spewed out by Yorkshire's coal-burning power stations could be cut by half over the next 15 years, a new study has claimed.
By stopping the harmful gas before it enters the atmosphere, coal-fired power stations can be made more environmentally friendly, the report said. The plans would involve storing the gas safely underground or under the sea.
The Yorkshire And Humber Assembly's Vision For Coal report, written by a panel of energy experts, concludes that coal could eventually become a carbon-neutral fuel.
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