Posts
Amidst all the kerfuffle about Peter Hain's undeclared receipts, it was not noticed that the Welsh Secretary virtually confirmed that the government was committed to building the Severn Barrage. At Welsh Questions in the House of Commons last Wednesday, the following interchange took place:
Gregory Barker (Bexhill and Battle) (Con): What recent discussions he has had with the First Minister on the environment in Wales. [177789]
The Secretary of State for Wales (Mr. Peter Hain): I have regular discussions, for instance on our joint support for the Severn barrage, which will be by far the biggest renewable energy project in Britain.
Note the "will be".
This in spite of significant opposition, summarised here, and before the viability of tidal lagoon schemes, as proposed by Peter Black and supported by Jane Davidson, has been assessed.
3 comments:
Swansea Councillor Ioan Richards corrects us.
It was of course Tidal Electric who proposed this Tidal Lagoon.
It was never my intention to claim that tidal lagoons in the South Wales West region were an original ideal of the Liberal Democrats. I am sure that Peter Black would not wish to make that claim either.
The fault is in my careless use of language: I should have written "championed" rather than "proposed".
Frank Little
Swansea Councillor Ioan Richards corrects us.
It was of course Tidal Electric who proposed this Tidal Lagoon.
It was never my intention to claim that tidal lagoons in the South Wales West region were an original ideal of the Liberal Democrats. I am sure that Peter Black would not wish to make that claim either.
The fault is in my careless use of language: I should have written "championed" rather than "proposed".
Frank Little
We pressed Councillor Richard (note correct spelling!) on his views on the Severn Barrage, and he returned this very full reply:
This cannot be answered in one sentence. I’m not an Engineer or Conservationist. I worked half my life manually and technically in both the Coal & Steel industries. I then retrained as a Science Teacher of Chemistry and Physics with Subsidiary Mathematics. I’ve been in politics since first getting elected as a Community Councillor in 1976 and then on to the “big” Council in 1985. I don’t think that makes me qualified to give the best answer. However, not being a complete idiot or an innumerate airy fairy I think my heavy industry background and my limited knowledge of Maths and Science allows me to (1) POINT ONE - I can comprehend the truly VAST consumption of Energy this United Kingdom consumes. Most Politicians cannot grasp this concept! None of us can grasp the concept of the huge numbers in this issue of Billions of Kilowatts. (2) POINT TWO - this country needs BULK RELIABLE POWER / ENERGY sources that are as clean and sustainable as possible. All this airy fairy talk of Solar Power; Bio Fuels; Wind Power and Wave Power (note “Wave” power is not tidal – wave power is wind dependent – ask any surfer – whereas tidal is Moon Gravity dependent), is all an expensive time wasting distraction and utter nonsense to our VAST ENERGY NEEDS. (3) POINT THREE – bulk energy can only be got from the Fossil Fuel sources of Coal; Oil or Gas; and from Nuclear and Tidal and in some countries only - Hydro. We have to make serious decisions as to which of these, or what form of combinations of these, we are to use in order to survive as not only an environment but also as an economic nation. Fossil Fuels are not only Carbon emitters, but are being rapidly depleted except for “clean Coal”. We also have to wake up and snatch this debate back from the present control of ignorant innumerate pseudo “Green” Control freak fundamentalist politicians like those in the Green Party; Friends of the Earth; Greenpeace and the Al Gores of this world. Sadly a lot of opportunity was lost over the Severn Barrage when perhaps the Second Severn Crossing Bridge could have been a road on a barrage dam – they have such roads in Holland. So you want me to commit myself – OK - well let’s say I’d like to see our secure future bulk energy production in the UK coming from a combination of (a) Clean Coal AND (b) Tidal AND (c) Nuclear. There’s been far too much scaremongering about Nuclear – our next door neighbour FRANCE is full of modern Nuclear Power Stations – some closer to London than Neath is to London – so if a French reactor blows up we go up with it! As for the TIDAL, yes I am quite favourable to a Severn barrage – which will allow the water to go up and down to power the generators – unlike the stinking putrid stagnant waters in Cardiff Bay barrage! Don’t confuse a stagnant barrage with a tidally active barrage. I’d like to know more about a Severn Barrage from genuine SCIENTISTS and not amateur “Greenies”, but yes I am quite favourable to it.
Post a Comment