Rebirth of British wind energy manufacturing starts in Wales

• £38 million investment for wind tower factory
• 240 jobs to be created in Chepstow
• But ‘green collar’ jobs must be backed by deployment

BWEA Cymru has welcomed the announcement by engineering firm Mabey Bridge to invest £38 million in a Chepstow-based factory to build and paint wind turbine towers. The investment is expected to create 240 new skilled jobs in Monmouthshire.

However, BWEA Cymru warned that the success of renewable technology manufacturing in Wales depends on onshore wind farms gaining planning permission.

Welcoming the announcement Head of BWEA Cymru, Llywelyn Rhys said: “This is exactly what the renewable energy industry and the Welsh Assembly Government have been hoping for – our own manufacturing plant that supplies the materials needed to drive the green energy revolution. This is wholly in line with the Welsh Government’s intention of creating a low carbon economy and generating green jobs. It is very good news for the Welsh manufacturing sector which has struggled during the economic downturn.”

BWEA Cymru has, however, warned that Wales must not squander the golden opportunity to establish wind energy manufacturing by continuing to frustrate planning consents for onshore wind farms. A recent study showed that the rate of planning determination for wind farms in Wales is slow, while the approval rate is patchy. During the last four years developers have had to wait an average of 21 months for decisions on planning applications. Wales is only 17% on its way to achieving its 2010 onshore wind energy targets.

BWEA Cymru Chairman John Woodruff said: “We need to see some consents for onshore projects in Wales in order to give the new factory a full order book and help Wales keep as much of the investment as possible. Wales has a growing pool of expertise which is already generating income from overseas and now we can add the Welsh talent for heavy industry into the mix. It is crucial that Wales grasps the planning nettle and starts a pipeline of consented wind farm projects feeding through to this fledgling manufacturing capability. Renewables can lead the way out of the credit crunch and create real jobs and energy security, as well as huge green benefits if planners get things moving.”

Maria McCaffery, BWEA Chief Executive said: “This factory heralds the rebirth of British wind energy manufacturing, and we are delighted that Wales is leading the way. BWEA hopes that this factory and the significant investment it represents will firmly establish the link between jobs, economic benefits and wind energy deployment in Wales . We have seen from our European neighbours that employment follows not just on the back of ambitious renewable energy targets, but on actual turbine installation rates. Wales has a tremendous wind resource and is uniquely poised to establish its own supply of renewable energy, securing thousands of ‘green collar’ jobs in the process. But, policy and decision makers must ensure that these two tasks unfold at the same time.”

<>

A Surrey primary school brightens up the school day

On Tuesday 26th January 2010, 150 children from Merstham Primary School, in Surrey, wore the brightest clothes they could find, to create a sea of rainbow and neon colours, as they walked or cycled to school for a ‘Brighten Up Yourself’ day.

Sustainable transport charity, Sustrans, challenged pupils to travel to school wearing as many bright clothes as possible, to highlight the importance of wearing bright colours whilst walking or cycling to school in the dark winter months. Prizes, including cycle helmets, bike lights and luminous bags, were given to the children who had made the most effort.

The school’s Sustrans Bike It Officer, Gayle Rowson comments, “We had a brilliant turn out for the ‘Brighten Up Yourself’ day; children from all ages throughout the school joined in.

“It’s vital that children understand the importance of being seen while they walk or ride to and from school. I would urge all pupils to be bright, be seen and ultimately be safe.”

Merstham Primary is one of 18 Sustrans Bike It schools in Surrey . The school has been working with Sustrans, in partnership with Reigate and Banstead Borough Council, since September 2009 and is looking forward to the arrival of some new cycle storage this term.

Further information about Sustrans and Bike It, including other news releases, is available through our website: www.sustrans.org.uk

<>

International panel of experts conclude sound from wind turbines has no harmful effect on human health

Multidisciplinary panel conducts most extensive study of its kind to date

An international panel of experts on December 15, 2009 released a report based on a review of a large body of scientific literature on sound and health effects, and specifically with regard to sound produced by wind turbines. After extensive review, analysis and discussion, the panel has concluded that sounds or vibrations emitted from wind turbines have no adverse effect on human health.

The study is the most thorough of its kind ever produced by a group of medical or scientific professionals. The seven-member panel includes experts in the fields of medicine, audiology, acoustics, environmental and public health from Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom and Denmark.

“The panel’s multidisciplinary approach helped to fully explore the many published scientific reports related to the potential impact of wind turbines on people’s health,” said Dr. Robert J. McCunney, one of the authors of the study and an occupational/environmental medicine physician and research scientist at Massachusetts Institute of Technology. “There is no evidence that the sounds, nor the sub-audible vibrations, emitted by wind turbines have any direct adverse physiological effects on humans.”

The study’s panel was jointly established by the American Wind Energy Association and the Canadian Wind Energy Association to conduct a review of all current peer-reviewed scientific literature available on the issue of perceived health effects of wind turbines. The objective of the panel was to provide an authoritative reference document for those making legislative and regulatory decisions about wind turbine developments.

“The Canadian Wind Energy Association supports the responsible and sustainable development of wind energy in Canada,” said CanWEA president Robert Hornung. “This study will go a long way in addressing people’s concerns and answering their questions about the effects of wind turbines. Canada’s wind energy industry will continue to take a proactive role in ensuring wind energy developments are good neighbours to the communities that have embraced wind energy.”

The Canadian Wind Energy Association (CanWEA) is the voice of Canada’s wind energy industry, actively promoting the responsible and sustainable growth of wind energy on behalf of its more than 450 members. A national non-profit association, CanWEA serves as Canada’s leading source of credible information about wind energy and its social, economic and environmental benefits. To join other global leaders in the wind energy industry, CanWEA believes Canada can and must reach its target of producing 20 per cent or more of the country’s electricity from wind by 2025. The document Wind Vision 2025 – Powering Canada’s Future is available at www.canwea.ca.

<>

Korean Companies Anchor Ontario's Green Economy

CAD$7-Billion (£4.12 Billion) Investment Means Green Energy and 16,000 New Jobs For Ontario, Canada

January 2010 - The Ontario government has signed an agreement that will bring more green energy and new jobs to Ontario, Canada.

A consortium led by Samsung C&T Corporation and the Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO) will invest CAD$7 billion (£4.12 Billion) to generate 2,500 megawatts of wind and solar power. These projects will triple Ontario 's output from renewable wind and solar sources and provide clean electricity to more than 580,000 households.

The investment will also lead to more than 16,000 new green energy jobs to build, install and operate the renewable generation projects.

The Korean consortium will also work with major partners to attract four manufacturing plants. This will lead to the creation of 1,440 manufacturing and related jobs building wind and solar technology for use in Ontario and export across North America.

The consortium fully intends to use Ontario-made steel in its renewable energy projects, such as constructing its wind turbine towers.

This is the single-largest investment in renewable energy in provincial history. The consortium chose Ontario because the province’s Green Energy Act guarantees stable rates for renewable energy.

"Thanks to today's announcement, we will be delivering more green energy for Ontarians to use -- and more green energy products for North America to buy. With this step, Ontario is becoming the place to be for green energy manufacturing in North America ," said Dalton McGuinty, Premier of Ontario.

"We commend Ontario for creating a welcoming climate for green energy investment. Samsung takes pride in its global efforts to support a more sustainable future and looks forward to working with Ontario residents and businesses to create clean, green power," said Sung-Ha Chi, President and CEO, Samsung C&T Corporation.

"This is an exciting opportunity to help create new manufacturing facilities and be on the cutting edge of an emerging renewable energy supply sector in Ontario ," said Chan-Ki Jung, Executive Vice-President, Korea Electric Power Corporation.

Source: NeonDrum Ltd.

<>

Malaysia and China Sign US$11bn Power Deal That Involves the Displacement of 608,000 Borneo Natives

Sarawak Energy’s Norwegian CEO Torstein Dale Sjøtveit asked to step down over his role in the controversial plans

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia, January 2010 – Malaysia and China have signed a deal to carry out a highly controversial energy masterplan in the Malaysian part of Borneo that involves the displacement of thousands of Borneo natives. According to the Financial Times, the plan involves the construction of several mega-dams and mining of large coal deposits and is likely to require the relocation of some 608,000 natives who live in the East Malaysian state’s rainforest-covered interior.

The deal was signed last Monday in Kuala Lumpur between the Malaysian Government and the China State Grid Corporation and was witnessed by the Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak and Sarawak Chief Minister Abdul Taib Mahmud. According to the Malaysian government, the plan could result in projects worth 11 billion US dollars of Chinese investment.

Sarawak’s controversial energy masterplan is being developed under a cloud of secrecy despite its far-reaching impact on a significant part of Sarawak’s population. The plan is labelled Sarawak Corridor of Renewable Energy (SCORE) but involves the exploitation of 1.46 billion US dollars of coal reserves and 41,000 billion cubic feet of natural gas.

It would be more appropriate to label the Sarawak Chief Minister’s favourite project the “Sarawak Corridor of Corruption”. Construction companies linked to the Chief Minister Taib Mahmud’s family interests will be among the main beneficiaries of the new energy development plans. Earlier this week, Sarawak opposition politician Baru Bian had labelled the as yet incomplete multi-billion dollar Bakun dam a ”monument of corruption” and said he viewed the new dam plans as a “pretext for extuingishing native rights in the name of a public purpose.”

The large-scale energy plans will be implemented by state-owned power producer Sarawak Energy that has recently appointed Norwegian national Torstein Dale Siøtveit as its CEO. Siøtveit, who will be paid an annual salary of US$ 1.2 million, has come under fire in the Norwegian media for his controversial role in the Borneo dam projects. The Bruno Manser Fund asks Mr. Siøtveit to step down as his position is incompatible with being a responsible citizen.

Source: Bruno Manser Fund,

www.bmf.ch

<>

Navy Installations Getting Greener

Low-Impact Development Leads to Cleaner Environment, Improved Water Quality

ARLINGTON, VA, January 2010 – Step onto any of the United States Navy's 40 installations in the Chesapeake Bay watershed, and you'll see green. The Department of the Navy has implemented a national policy mandating the use of low-impact development techniques, which has made installations more environmentally and economically efficient to construct, operate, and maintain.

New construction activity at Navy installations presents challenges and opportunities for sustaining ecosystems, including the Chesapeake Bay. Typically, new construction decreases natural vegetation cover and drainage capacity and increases impervious surfaces (roofs, lawns, driveways, roads, parking lots and other hard surfaces). These changes can alter an area's hydrology and result in higher peak flows and greater volumes of stormwater runoff, as well as higher sediment and nutrient loadings in nearby waterways.

Development in the Chesapeake Bay watershed is increasing the quantity of impervious surfaces at a rate four times greater than the rate of population growth. These factors have made urban and suburban stormwater runoff the fastest growing source of pollution to the Bay, and the only type of pollution that continues to increase.

In a global effort to reduce impacts to water quality, the Department of the Navy developed a low-impact development policy to maintain or restore predevelopment hydrology. Low-impact development mitigates the adverse effects of construction projects on water quality by cost-effectively reducing the volume and pollutant loading of stormwater before it reaches the receiving water bodies. Low-impact development makes use of innovative methods to capture stormwater using a combination of retention devices and vegetation. Stormwater is retained and managed at the source, rather than releasing stormwater nutrients and sediment downstream.

A bioswale facility between two parking lots treats runoff at Little Creek Amphibious Base in Norfolk.

The overall goal of the low-impact development policy is no net increase in stormwater volume and sediment or nutrient loading from major renovation and construction projects. To support this goal, as well as reduce reliance on conventional stormwater collection system and treatment options, the policy directs Navy installations to consider low-impact development in the design for all projects that have a stormwater management component.

Low-impact development efforts by the Navy are an integral element of a broader Sustainable Infrastructure Program, currently being implemented throughout the Naval Facilities Engineering Command's Mid-Atlantic Region. The program integrates environmental stewardship into all asset management, capital improvements, public works management and energy programs. The integration of low-impact development practices is one main component of the Sustainable Infrastructure Program.

Twenty-seven major projects the Navy completed in 2009 financial year included low-impact development features. Recent projects include a parking lot at Naval Station Norfolk which capped a waste disposal area and now bio-filters most of its stormwater.

The Navy's policy requires implementation of low-impact development techniques on all major construction projects by 2011, with all efforts to incorporate LID practices in 2008 through 2010.

For more information on Navy environmental programs, visit http://www.navy.mil/oceans

<>

Weymouth bridges the gap!

Artist wants local people to help design new traffic-free bridge

Residents in Weymouth and Portland are being asked to get creative and come up with their design ideas for a new bridge in the Westham area. The bridge will form a key part of a new route for pedestrians and cyclists from Weymouth to Portland funded by sustainability charity, Sustrans and Dorset County Council. The route will use the local railway path and connect through the town centre to the esplanade thus providing a valuable link for everyday travel within the area.

Brighton-based artist Bruce Williams will be holding an open studio for the Newstead Road bridge design at Beechcroft St Pauls Primary School in Westham during the first week in February. The open studio will be open 1pm - 2.30pm and 3.15pm - 6pm from Monday 1 February to Friday 5 February. Since September 2009, Bruce has been working with a student group of 17 pupils from All Saints CE School and 15 pupils from Holy Trinity CE VC Primary School to develop conceptual ideas for the bridge. Pupils have been exploring basic engineering principals and looking at innovative bridge design from around the world to come up with their own creative responses. Weymouth College art students are also working on their own designs for the bridge which Bruce has been reviewing with them.

Sustrans is funding this route as part of their UK-wide 'Connect2' schemes to create networks for everyday journeys for people travelling by foot or by bike. These schemes - including the one through Weymouth - are being created using a £50 million Big Lottery Fund grant after the UK public voted the scheme the winner of The People's Millions Lottery contest in December 2007.

Kevin Humphreys, Sustrans Area Manager for Dorset, said, "We are thrilled that the bridge design plans will have so much input from the local community. Bruce is really looking for what will work for Weymouth . This scheme will make it easier for people in this area to get around without having to rely on their car which is not only better for their health but the environment too."

Artist, Bruce Williams said: "I am amazed by how positive, thoughtful and hardworking these young people have been. Almost without exception, everyone I am working with loves Weymouth . Their research has kept me busy with every new layer of history they reveal and their ideas for the bridge are bursting with optimism for the future. Now I want to meet some other people from the town. To hear stories about life in Weymouth, about the old bridge and the Rodwell trail, to see ideas, old photos and memories, to talk about the Olympics, about the wider future for Weymouth or simply to chat about how the new bridge will effect the town."

Cabinet member for Transport Col Geoffrey Brierley said: "The Newstead Road bridge will be a prominent structure in the heart of a lively community. Bruce's work with local students and residents will mean that the bridge will be more than just a stretch of metal, and that it will have significance to the people who will see it and use it everyday."

Work produced by All Saints, Holy Trinity and Beechcroft pupils and designs by Weymouth College students will be on display during the open studio. Bruce's work is being funded by Arts Council England South West, Weymouth and Portland Partnership, Weymouth and Portland Borough Council and Dorset County Council.

<>

On your bike Dumfries!

Community bike ride to show the smarter way to travel.

On Saturday 30th January, Dumfries residents will be getting on their bikes with two cycle rides through the town to show how easy it is for local people to leave their cars at home and travel in more sustainable ways for their everyday journeys.

National sustainable transport charity - Sustrans - is working alongside GoSMART -a South West of Scotland Partnership and Dumfries and Galloway Council initiative - and the CTC - the UK's National Cycling Organisation - to show local people how easy it is to get around without a car by doing a cycle ride out to the newly created pedestrian and cycle route on the Queen of the South Connect2 Viaduct which launched in 2008. The route will take in the picturesque former railway viaduct spanning 170 metres across the River Nith which has created a direct link between communities in the east and north-west of the town.

These cycle rides are part of a wider Go SMART event being held in the town centre to encourage both residents and visitors to Dumfries to reduce their car use in favour of more sustainable modes of travel. The town centre will be divided into four areas for the big day - GoBike, GoWalk, GoShare and GoBus - to help give local people the information they want to travel in smarter ways. Sustrans will also have a stall at the Go Smart event with information about local and national pedestrian and cycling routes.

John Lauder, Sustrans National Director for Scotland, said "These cycle rides are a great way for anyone with any level of cycling experience to see how easy it now is to get around Dumfries by bike or by foot. Hopefully this event will help local people learn more about their travel options within Dumfries and how they can do their bit for the environment."

The Sustrans Connect2 scheme which includes the viaduct in Dumfries was the first of 79 walking and cycling routes to be completed using £50million from the Big Lottery Fund to create networks for people to travel everyday journeys by foot and by bike. Sustrans won the public TV vote in 2007 to bring the £50million from the Big Lottery Fund to local communities across the UK . More than 25,000 people live within a mile of the Dumfries scheme and are now able to walk or cycle to school, to work or the town centre - to the benefit of both their health and the environment.

GoSMART is the Dumfries Sustainable Travel Demonstration Town project funded by the Scottish Government Smarter Choices Smarter Places Programmes, SWestrans, Dumfries and Galloway Council and the European Structural Funds of the Lowlands and Uplands 2007-2013 programme.

A Spokesperson for GoSMART said, "The support provided by all our funding partners to create excellent cycling infrastructure in and around Dumfries will make it easier for residents to begin cycling and challenge themselves to GoBike. We look forward to Sustrans and CTC participation in the GoSmart Dumfries Programme. ".

<>

A Dangerous Spin on the Cancer Risks of a Sugar-Free Sweetener

The Cancer Prevention Coalition notes with alarm that on January 2, 2010, in a heavily advertised special health-theme issue of People Magazine, Kraft announced a new campaign on Crystal Light, a sugarless powdered drink mix which can easily be poured into tap and bottled water drinks.

Crystal Light's ingredients include the artificial sweetener aspartame, under the trademark names of NutraSweet and Equal, besides citric acid and sodium citrate.

Cancer Prevention Coalition Chairman Dr. Samuel S. Epstein warns that, based on scientific evidence published in peer-reviewed journals and presented to the U.S. Congress, aspartame is both toxic and carcinogenic. The coalition is calling upon the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to ban all dietary uses of aspartame.

Crystal Light was first marketed in 1982 to "make drinking water more enjoyable," and much less caloric than fruit juices. Aspartame, 200 times sweeter than sugar, is also widely used as a sweetener in tea and coffee, especially by the weight conscious.

Aspartame was synthesized by G.D. Searle in 1965 after its strong sweet taste was first noted.

Subsequent toxicology tests by Searle revealed brain damage in mice, and cancer in the liver, testes and thyroid of rats. However, the results of these tests were never published nor reported to the FDA.

After saccharin, aspartame is the second most widely used artificial sweetener in the world. It is found in more than 6,000 products including carbonated and powdered soft drinks, hot chocolate, chewing gum, candy, desserts, yogurt, and tabletop sweeteners, as well as some pharmaceutical products like vitamins and sugar-free cough drops.

Aspartame is consumed by over 200 million people worldwide and represents about 60% of the artificial sweetener market.

Aspartame provides manufacturers of food, soft drinks, candy and chewing gum with substantial cost savings compared to sugar, which is 200 times less sweet. Aspartame also is a sweetener without calories, which helps people control their weight.

In 1975, a FDA Task Force conducted a comprehensive review of the scientific literature on the toxicity of aspartame. This revealed gross abuse in Searle's claims which trivialized or suppressed evidence on the toxic and carcinogenic effects of aspartame.

In January 1976, then FDA Commissioner Alexander M. Schmidt testified before Congress that Hazleton Laboratories, under contract to Searle, had been charged with falsifying toxicological data on aspartame.

The FDA convened a Public Board of Inquiry to review concerns about the sweetener's carcinogenic effects in experimental animals. In 1980, the Board concluded that aspartame could "contribute to the development brain tumors." The FDA then recommended that, pending confirmation of these findings, the sweetener should no longer be used.

Evidence of these toxic effects was subsequently confirmed by leading independent U.S. scientists. Reacting to these concerns in 1976, Senator Edward Kennedy warned, "This extensive nature of the almost unbelievable range of abuses in several major Searle products is profoundly disturbing."

At invited 1979 testimony before the House Committee on the Judiciary, apart from other examples of corporate crime, Dr. Epstein detailed evidence on Searle's criminal denial of the carcinogenicity of aspartame. This evidence was subsequently posted in the Congressional Record.

In 1996, based on a comprehensive review of the scientific literature, Dr. John Olney, a leading independent U.S. scientist, confirmed that aspartame caused brain cancer when fed to rodents.

A decade later, Dr. Epstein points out, the prestigious Italian Ramazzini Foundation, based on large scale life-long feeding tests in large numbers of rats, commencing in infancy, confirmed that low levels of aspartame induced brain cancer and cancers at other sites.

The Ramazzini study was reported in the November 2005 issue of Environmental Health Perspectives, the peer-reviewed journal of the United States' National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences.

"Our study has shown that aspartame is a multi-potential carcinogenic compound whose carcinogenic effects are also evident at a daily dose less than the current acceptable daily intake for humans," the Ramazzini scientists warned.

Of further significance, these conclusions were endorsed by the Federal National Toxicology Program, says Dr. Epstein. "Nevertheless, and not surprisingly, Searle and its consultants still attempt to challenge these conclusions, and persist in their reckless claim that aspartame is safe."

"In view of the unequivocal scientific evidence of aspartame's carcinogenicity, besides the political gamesmanship that led to its original approval by the FDA," Dr. Epstein says, "it is anticipated that Dr. Margaret Hamburg, the new FDA Commissioner, will ban all dietary uses of aspartame."

Samuel S. Epstein, M.D. is professor emeritus of Environmental and Occupational Medicine at the University of Illinois at Chicago School of Public Health; Chairman of the Cancer Prevention Coalition; and a former President of the Rachel Carson Trust. His awards include the 1989 Right Livelihood Award and the 2005 Albert Schweitzer Golden Grand Medal for International Contributions to Cancer Prevention. Dr. Epstein has authored 270 scientific articles, and 15 books on the causes and prevention of cancer. These include the groundbreaking Politics of Cancer (1979), and most recently Toxic Beauty (2009, Benbella Books) about carcinogens and other toxic ingredients in cosmetics and personal care products.

<>

The BAGGEE is here – Product Review

This could just save you from tearing your hair out at the checkout

Review by Michael Smith (Veshengro)

Have you ever arrived at the shops cursing because you've forgotten your old plastic bags again! Ever finished putting the shopping away and not sure where to stuff the empty bags?

The BAGGEE is here to help solve those problems and more importantly help you to help save the Planet from Plastic Bags!

The BAGGEE is a flexible hollow rubber ball 55mm in diameter attached to a key chain. It has thumb-sized hole (very big thumb required to fill hole) allowing two or three plastic carrier bags, such as the ones from supermarkets, to be compressed and stored inside.

And for dog lovers the company also has The DOGGEE. This is a “device” similar to The BAGGEE and it can carry over 20 dog waste bags so you never have to be left stranded again.

While I have tried The BAGGEE I have not tried out The DOGGEE (no dog) so, therefore, cannot comment on latter.

As far as The BAGGEE is concerned the maximum that I can see getting into the ball is two standard size supermarket carrier bags and I would be hard-pressed to get a third one in.

Nevertheless this is at least two bags that you will have with you, reusing them, rather than needing to pick up yet another couple of new ones.

BAGGEE 'What do You Put in Yours?'

© 2010