© Greenpeace
It's a chilly morning in Oxfordshire - and it was even colder at 5:30 am, where some of my friends and colleagues shut down one of Britain's dirtiest power stations - in a bid to stop climate chaos.
Thirty volunteers invaded the Didcot coal-fired power station immobilising the huge conveyor belts that carry coal into the plant, by hitting emergency stop buttons and attaching themselves to machinery. A second group climbed a 200 metre high chimney, setting up a climate camp at the top. Keeping reading, see the videos, and keep. It's now 10:24am, and the volunteers are all still in place. Keep reading to see videos and mobile phone images!
© Greenpeace
Didcot Power Station is the second most polluting power station in Britain, after Drax in Yorkshire, and was targeted because - like most of the Britain's power stations - two-thirds of the energy it generates is wasted, making a massive contribution to climate change. we're demanding that the government phases out these kind of coal fired power stations and instead backs localised - or "decentralised" - power generation, which is much more efficient.
- The use of coal for electricity generation has gone up from 47.3 to 52.5 million tonnes a year;
- Between the second quarters of 2005 and 2006 coal-burn for electricity rose by 10.5%
- UK Co2 eimissions have risen since 1997, from 549 million tonnes CO2 to 561.5 million tonnes of CO2. C02 emission in 2005 were only 5.5% below 1990 levels, way off the government's target of a 20% cut by 2010
Greenpeace UK's campaigns director Blake Lee-Harward explains why he's at Didcot power station
One of the team explains what's going on at Didcot Power Station this morning.
(Mobile phone image via moblog »)
(Mobile phone image via moblog »)
Full story on Greenpeace UK: Climate campaigners shut down one of UK's biggest power stations
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Posted by a moblog user: Website campaigning against the two remaining lakes in Radley being polluted by Didcot Power Station »