PRESS RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
10 January 2008
CEL DELIVERS LETTER AND SYMBOLS TO 10
DOWNING STREET
IN RESPONSE TO PLANS FOR NEW NUCLEAR BUILD
(Also See report, written straight afterwards)
At 12 noon on Thursday 10th January, at No. 10 Downing Street, Christian
Ecology Link members Ruth Jarman, Eleanor Orr and Jonathan Essex will
enact
a symbolic act of resistance to the Government's recent announcement to
build a new generation of nuclear power plants.
The three C.E.L. members
will present the Prime Minister with a solar powered torch and a sample of
insulation material as symbols of the energy we can generate from the sun,
wind and waves, and the importance of the need for a drastic reduction in
our use of energy (respectively). They will also give the P.M. a letter
outlining their requests for a non-nuclear future and a copy of Faith and
Power, the C.E.L. report which proposes energy reduction and investment in
renewable energy forms, rather than new nuclear power stations, as the way
forward. Ruth Jarman of C.E.L. and a strong advocate for moderating our consumption
of energy, said,
"There is no scientific consensus about the safety of
nuclear power. Ethical questions concerning radiation risks and the
transportation and disposal of nuclear waste are major causes of concern
which have not been fully addressed. As Christians, we seek an energy
strategy which reflects love of the Creator, expresses care for the whole
Creation, and is informed by Christian principles of care, peacemaking,
justice and love for our neighbours".
C.E.L. maintains that a new generation of nuclear power stations will not
significantly reduce CO2 emissions, and yet will cost (including
development
and decontamination) at least £100 billion and deliver too late.
Investment
in energy reduction and conservation, and renewable forms of energy
(solar,
wind and wave power) would deliver far greater reductions in CO2
emissions,
far sooner.
C.E.L. is requesting that the Government use its legislative power to
urgently drive down energy consumption, for example, by immediately
banning
the manufacture of standby buttons in all electrical goods, thus saving 8%
of the domestic electricity currently used. Furthermore, a ban on the
manufacture of inefficient light bulbs would save the same amount of
energy
per year as would be produced by two nuclear power plants.
C.E.L. is also urging that the Government's current paltry nvestment in
renewables be escalated to a level that will not only fulfil our nation's
duty to the Earth in terms of our contribution to climate change, but will
also lead the world towards a truly sustainable way of living
ENDS
See report
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