Environmentalists oppose construction of a power plant

The proposal to build the LNG power plant in West Pennar has met resistance from two environmental groups. RWE N Power had submitted an application to the secretary of state for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform for the construction of a two gigawatt gas-fired power station worth eight hundred million pounds. The planning committee of Pembrokeshire County Council have raised no objection to the proposed plant.

On the other hand, the Countryside Council for Wales, which advises the government on matters pertaining to the sustenance of natural beauty and wildlife, officially rejected the proposal arguing that the power plant could negatively impact the environment around the Milford Haven Waterway site as well as the Pembrokeshire marine conservation area.

Countryside Council for Wales gave the reason for their opposition to the fact that the plant would utilise sea water for cooling purposes and this could have a negative effect on the ecosystem.

A spokesperson for Friends of the Earth predicted that the issues brought up by the Countryside Council for Wales would have to be addressed first before the project could proceed. Friends of the Earth are involved in a campaign where they are petitioning Members of Parliament over the power plant which they claim will produce too much carbon emissions and also release too much warm water into the sea.

The spokesperson added that they had calculated that more than fifty per cent of the energy content of the gas used would go to waste by converting it into electricity at the planned plant in Pembroke. The spokesperson further said that the heat squandered at the power station itself would be comparable to more than fifty per cent of the electricity consumed in Wales.

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