EU targets ‘will force Ironbridge power station to close’
Monday 17th January 2011, 12:30PM GMT.
Shropshire’s only power station will be forced to close its doors in less than four years because of EU emissions targets, it was claimed today.
Daniel Kawczynski, MP for Shrewsbury and Atcham, said Buildwas Power Station in Ironbridge had until 2015, to convert to clean-coal technology or biomass.
After a meeting with the plant’s directors Mr Kawczynski said he would being asking Prime Minister David Cameron for more incentives for power station operators to stop using coal.
“Unless the power station converts to biomass by the end of 2015 the turbines will be turned off,” said Mr Kawczynski.
“I will be explaining to Mr Cameron that it is very important we give a clear steer on what the government can do to help the power plants.
“I believe there are only around 20 of these types of power stations left across the UK. It has a great impact on the area powering 750,000 homes and providing 200 jobs.”
EU legislation imposes tough new limits and demands power plants either convert to green technology or “clean” the use of fossil fuels by storing carbon emissions to prevent them entering the atmosphere.
Jonathan Smith, media relations manager for Eon, which runs the power plant, said: “The plant does not conform to certain EU emission.”
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Surely the site can be converted to a nuclear facility?
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I presume this is a joke. Hmmm would they allow a Nuclear power station to be built next door to a world heritage?…I think not
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“Mr Kawczynski said he would being (sic) asking Prime Minister David Cameron for more incentives for power station operators to stop using coal.”
The threat to close it sounds like a fairly big incentive.
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You’ve got to love Kawczynski, he fights tooth and nail against an energy from waste plant in Shrewsbury that could be operated at all times within legal limits but is quite happy for a giant power station to pump out its toxins all over Telford. The only reason it can remain within its limits at the moment is by only operating on a certain amount of days before it closes permanently.
I will miss the cooling towers when they are demolished though.
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Kawczynski = NIMBY
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The closure of ccoal-fired power stations under the Large Combustion Plant legistlation has been known about for the last five years or more.
How come this MP has onljust noticed?
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Because his head is buried in the sand
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The Ironbridge power station is the bigggest rate payer Shrewsbury council have got, so if it closes the loss of revenue will have to be found from the rest of the rate payers, thats you and me, so I say lets keep it going.
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The EU targets are being brought in to protect our health.
Isn’t anyone in Shropshire capable of examining health data
in Shropshire to determine what adverse effect the power station emissions have been having on health?
What makes Daniel Kawczynski think that biomass emissions are less harmful than those from coal?
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The power station is German owned and the fuel
[foreign?]is transported by a German owned railway company. Our local bus and passenger train companies are also German owned.
Doesn’t the MP for Shrewsbury think that further subsidies to mainly German shareholders would be a little over the top?
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