Arrests at power station blockade

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Arrests at power station blockade

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lorries queue up outside Aberthaw power station

Thirteen people have been arrested for aggravated trespass after a protest at Wales' biggest power station. Climate change activists blocked roads and chained themselves together outside coal-fired Aberthaw, Vale of Glamorgan. The protest was to highlight the environmental impact of fossil fuel. Police said it caused traffic tailbacks. The power plant said its output was not affected but work on new environmental technology had been interrupted.

Protesters blocked the access road to the power station, run by the energy supplier Npower, and attached themselves to heavy objects there. The climate activists, the Bristol Rising Tide, said they wanted to "stop normal work at Wales' biggest polluter". In response, a power station spokesman said: "Aberthaw does produce more carbon dioxide than any other single place in Wales - but it is the biggest power station in Wales. 'Dirty dinosaur' "We have to keep some coal-fired power stations to keep the lights on. "We are building carbon capture and storage test plant at Aberthaw - to capture CO2 from emissions and store them. Aberthaw is at the centre of trying to improve burning coal. It is a massive investor in cleaner gas." He said the protest had not affected operations as day shift workers had used another entrance. Station manager Clive Smith said: "We've been able to keep the power flowing." He added the protest had interrupted work to install the technology to reduce sulphur emissions, described as "a £100m project that has been going on for some time". Gordon James, director of Friends of the Earth Cymru, described the power station as a "dirty dinosaur" that should not be allowed to stay open in its present form. Barry and Vale group coordinator Keith Stockdale said the blockade had come after attempts to use "official channels" for objection had proved ineffective. Traffic tailbacks He said: "We find the authorities are exempting Aberthaw from making real efforts to reduce their coal emissions. "The plans to use wood-fuel instead of 300,000 tonnes of coal are hardly progressing." Police said the protest led to traffic tailbacks for a mile-and-a-half back to Llantwit Major and towards Cardiff Airport in the other direction and motorists were advised to avoid the area if possible. A police presence remained at the scene after the protest as a precautionary measure. The protest came after activists protested at Ffos-y-Fran opencast mine in Merthyr Tydfil on Tuesday

Peter H

 

 

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