Open Letter: 75 Environmental Groups Call on Government to Abandon Drax Gas Plans

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Environmentalists are urging the government to withhold support for what would be the UKโ€™s largest gasย plant.

A coalition of 75ย groups hasย sent an open letter (published below) to the Planning Inspectorate and Energy Secretary Greg Clark, calling on the government to refuse to subsidise theย plans.

Signatories include the Green Party, Friends of the Earth, and several Frack Free campaignย groups.

Energy company Drax has submitted a planning application to replace its coal burning plants at a power station in Yorkshire with gas-fired units. The proposal was submitted after the government announced it would phase out all coal power generation by 2025. Drax is seeking government subsidy for the project. Today is the final day of consultation on theย plans.

The groups are concerned the project would increase the UKโ€™s greenhouse gas emissions and lead to a rise in demand for fracked gas, which is opposed by local communities across the UK. Drax has previously been criticised over its use of biomass from wood in its power plants, which campaigners claim has significant environmentalย impacts.


Openย Letter

The undersigned organisations are deeply concerned about the climate and environmental impacts of Drax Repowerโ€™s proposal to replace its two remaining coal-fired units with much larger ones to burnย gas.

Drax is already the U.K.โ€™s single largest emitter of carbon dioxide. Its power station causes serious harm to the climate and the environment by burning more coal than any other UK plant and more wood than any other plant in the world. Much of the wood comes from the clearcutting of carbon rich forests in the southern US which lie at the heart of a global biodiversityย hotspot.

With the UK government demanding a coal phase-out by 2025, Drax now wants to build the UKโ€™s largest ever gas power units and is asking for substantial new subsidies, in addition to the ยฃ2 million a day it is already receiving for burningย wood.

Drax itself admits in its Preliminary Environmental Information Report that its gas plans will: โ€œrepresent a significant net increase in greenhouse gas emissions and have therefore negative climateย impacts.โ€

In order to meet the goal of the Paris Climate Agreement, it is vital for the UK to phase out carbon emissions from fossil fuels and high-carbon biomass, not increase them. Permitting power stations such as Drax to burn large quantities of natural gas will push us beyond the 1.5 degree limit and prevent the UK from meeting its international climate change commitments. As the recent Oil Change International report states: โ€œOpening new fossil gas fields is inconsistent with the Paris climateย goals.โ€

Draxโ€™s plan to replace coal with another fossil fuel will hamper rather than help the U.K.โ€™s transition to low carbon energy, particularly since Drax has said that repurposing two coal units to burn gas will โ€œextend their operation into the 2030s.โ€ As the ecosystem scientist, Professor Robert W Howarth, from Cornell University, states: โ€œThere is no bridge fuel and switching from coal to shale gas is accelerating rather than slowing globalย warming.โ€

A further concern is that Draxโ€™s proposal comes at a time when greater reliance on gas would require either increased Russian imports or dependence on unconventional gas, especially fracking and horizontal drilling. In spite of huge local and national opposition to fracking, the recent government proposal to transfer decisions on fracking from a local to a national level is increasing fears about a threat to local democracy from unconventional gasย exploration.

According to Drill or Drop, there are already 3 active shale gas sites in the UK, with the UKโ€™s first commercial scale fracking expected to start at Cuadrillaโ€™s Preston New Road site in Lancashire imminently. A Freedom of Information request has revealed that the government expects there to be approximately 17 sites by 2020 and around 30 to 35 sites byย 2022.

All gas production and transport is associated with leakage of the potent greenhouse gas methane, but unconventional gas comes with far greater methane emissions. Methane leakage in the production of gas for Drax would therefore greatly increase carbon emissions over and above the smokestackย emissions.

Finally, we are concerned that Drax has stated that the project will need substantial funding from tax payers, in the form of Capacity Market Payment subsidies over a 15 yearย period.

The future of Drax power station may hinge on it receiving planning consent and these subsidies for new gas. Without them, the power station may no longer be profitable and have to close. This would reduce the UKโ€™s carbon emissions, save biodiverse forests and protect communities from air pollution. It would also help the UK to meet its climate goals by creating a strong incentive to expand low-carbon renewable energy and investment in energy efficiency andย conservation.

Therefore, we urge youย to:

a) Refuse planning permission for the Drax Repower proposal because it is not a sustainable development and cannot be part of a transition to a low carbonย economy;

b) Ensure that Drax cannot bid for Capacity Market payment subsidies for the proposed gas powerย units;

c) Focus support on genuinely renewable wind, wave and solar energy as well as on energy efficiency and conservation which can help us to meet our climateย targets.

List ofย Signatories

UK

A Greenerย Hawick

Biofuelwatch

BP or not BP?

Breaking Theย Frame

Brighton Action Againstย Fracking

Campaign Against Climateย Change

Climate Friendly Bradford onย Avon

Climateย Revolution

Coal Actionย Network

Colombia Solidarityย Campaign

Cornerย House

Cumbria Action Forย Sustainability

Divestย Hackney

Divestย Parliament

Econexus UK

Energy Poverty Researchย Initiative

Frack Awareย Barnsley

Frack Free Exmoor, Quantocks andย Sedgemoor

Frack Freeย Leeds

Frack Freeย Ryedale

Frack Freeย Scarborough

Frack Freeย Surrey

Frack Freeย Sussex

Frack Freeย United

Frack Free Wakefield andย District

Frack Offย London

Frackwatchย Glasgow

Friends of the Earth England, Wales and Northernย Ireland

Friends of the Earth Glasgowย group

Friends of the Earth Glastonburyย group

Friends of the Earth Harrogateย group

Friends of the Earth Newburyย group

Friends of the Earthย Torbay

Fuel Povertyย Action

Global Justice Now Glasgowย group

Green House Thinkย Tank

Hereford Greenย Party

Initiative for Carbon Accounting (ICARB)

Kirklees Campaign against Climateย Change

Landworkersย Alliance

London Miningย Network

Lowย Impact

New Economyย Law

New Putneyย Debates

Occupy Environment Working Group (EEE)

Operationย Noah

People andย Planet

Reclaim Theย Power

Residents Action on Fyldeย Fracking

Roundhay Environmental Actionย Project

Sheffield Againstย Fracking

Sheffield Climateย Alliance

Sustainable Pill andย District

The C.H.E.E.S.E Project (The Cold Homes Energy Efficiency Survey Expertsย Project)

The Frack Free Foodย Alliance

Transitionย Falmouth

Treesponsiblity: Climate Action inย Calderdale

UK Tar Sandsย Network

UK Youth Climateย Coalition

UK Without Incinerationย Network

UK Greenย Party

Weald Actionย Group

Europe /ย International

Australian Forests and Climate Allianceย (Australia)

Dogwood Alliance (USA)

Estonian Forestย Aid

Food and Waterย Europe

Friends of the Earth US (USA)

Gastivists

Global Forestย Coalition

Healthy Forest Coalitionย (Canada)

Noah โ€“ Friends of the Earthย Denmark

Partnership for Policy Integrity (USA)

Real Democracy Movement (USA)

Skydda Skogan (Protect The Forest)ย (Sweden)

Upper Valley Affinity Group (USA)

Image: CorporateWatch/BioFuelWatch. Updated 29/08/2018: More signatories were added and the headline and text were updated to reflectย this.

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