Give climate-friendly technology a chance
Address to Oxfordshire County Council by Sam Clarke of Oxford
Friends of the Earth, 8 January 2008
Councillors and
fellow residents, I represent Friends of the Earth in Oxford who have
been campaigning against the
introduction of an incinerator in Oxfordshire for 2 years now. We are
proud to
be in a County with almost the lowest waste arisings of any and in a
County
which has made so many gains in recycling waste. But we fear that with
the
technology choice of incineration proposed to you today, Oxfordshire
will
become one of the dirtiest counties and one which damages our climate
the most.
I have three
main points to make in support of this
First, if we
think about the incinerators contribution to power generation: the sort
of
incinerator proposed is worse than a gas fired power station in its
climate
emissions and almost as poor as a coal fired station for generating
electricity.
As a way of generating power it is a carbon dinosaur. We should be
backing
renewable energy with zero emissions, not gloating about the energy.
Secondly, as a
way of dealing with our waste, incineration is the worst technology
available.
The best is called Mechanical and Biological Treatment (MBT). This
technology
is now in use in 70 places in Europe.
Six of
these are now successfully operating in the UK and more are being
installed, so
it is also a well known technology. It is the best option climate wise,
and has
been selected by the Conservative led Counties of Norfolk, Essex and
Cambridgeshire. But MBT technology is no longer being considered for
Oxfordshire. To have limited the choice of technologies at this stage
is surely
a strategic mistake.
Thirdly, a 25
year contract which is envisaged is damaging and potentially expensive.
It
cannot take into account the government’s stated intention to limit and
thus
penalise carbon emissions; it also threatens the County’s success in
boosting
recycling rates. Your background paper says that the chosen solution
“must not
be a substitute for reuse, recycling and composting”. We agree, But we
believe that
this choice risks undermining the hard won recycling gains unless the
terms of
the contract are for much shorter periods. Stoke, for example who have
an
incinerator have discovered that because of their long contract, it
will cost
them £85,000 pa to remove the plastics from their waste to
improve their recycling.
So,
in conclusion we are respectfully asking
Councillors not to accept this report as it stands; we are calling for
the
inclusion of the climate superior MBT system in the process. The public
are
opposed to incineration and they support the County’s climate change
efforts.
We hope you will give MBT, the climate friendly technology a chance.
Thank you.
|
