Letter on radioactive waste

11.02.10

Dear Editor,

The Conservative Council continues to adopt a strategy of denying everything and not letting the cat out the bag when it comes to the incinerator. In spite of this, it is reassuring that they recognise that radioactive waste has no place in a waste burner. Yet, it still doesn’t explain why “radioactive waste” appears with “hazardous waste” on the procurement contract issued by the London Borough of Croydon on behalf of the South London Waste Partnership (SLWP).

Equally, their response is somewhat different to their Liberal Democrat counterparts in Sutton, who are also part of the SLWP. At a recent meeting in Beddington Village, the Lib Dem cabinet member for the Environment was not as forthright with regard to radioactive waste not being part of the mix. When asked about the prospect of radioactive waste from decommissioned nuclear reactors being sent to this new South London site, he simply couldn’t say one way or the other.

One assumes that New Forest District Council also denied any possibility of radioactive waste from nuclear reactors ever ending up at their incinerator in Fawley. Nevertheless, contaminated lubricants and oils from the Sellafield Nuclear facility could now arrive in truckloads as early as the spring.

Influential nuclear lobbying firms, with strong connections with former Labour ministers, are pressing hard to lower the levels of safety for radioactive waste from power stations. For example, presently there are 80,000 tonnes of contaminated or irradiated graphite in the UK. Power and waste companies will instinctively look to dispose of this type of waste in the most profitable way possible, and burning this material is ‘win/win’ as far they are concerned.

What it all boils down to is this: can local people trust the authorities to take decisions that place the health of people before profits?

Yours sincerely

Shasha Khan

Croydon Green Party

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Candidates in 'anti gay' spat

Gordon Ross' report on the Croydon Area Gay Society hustings has caused a bit of a stir, at least with UKIP candidate Ralph Atkinson. A Croydon Advertiser reporter contacted us saying their paper had received a letter from Mr Atkinson. In the letter he stated that we (Croydon Green Party) were calling him "anti gay". As a result of the reporter's investigation, this piece appeared in the Croydon Advertiser. Gordon is absolutely right, we have nothing to apologise for.

A clarification: Bernice Golberg is the candidate for Croydon Central. Gordon is standing in Croydon South.

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Members coming, and the odd one going

Membership in terms of numbers for the Croydon Green Party has gone from strength to strength - we are now at record levels. That's why we were a little puzzled to hear that the Tories in Norbury had put out a leaflet noting a Green Party council candidate had defected. After a little investigating we found out the member who has jumped ship is the Crystal Palace based Karen Moran, and she is based in Bromley.....NOT CROYDON! Clearly the Conservatives in Croydon see us as a threat otherwise why put out such a leaflet??

Her reason for leaving the Green Party was:

"Frustration in Green Party being unable to afford to put out regular local leaflets."

Occasionally it may be difficult to fund campaigns in the Green Party because unlike other parties we don't accept donations from corporates. Not only that, the ethical and environmental background of all our donors is screened. This is why the Green Party is not in the pockets of big business. Given the Tories are bankrolled by the likes of Lord Ashcroft - he of non dom status for tax purposes - I guess Karen may now have a bit more money for campaigning in Crystal Palace. I wish her well.

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Gordon Ross selected for Croydon South

Croydon Advertiser and Croydon Guardian

press release here

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Bottled water served at council meetings

Local Green Party candidate Chris Sciberras asked a cuddly yet interesting question at the last full council meeting. It certainly tickled the writer of 'The Insider' column in the Croydon Advertiser.

The question asked was:

'Would Croydon Council set an example of sustainable practice by replacing bottled water with tap water at all council meetings and other events?'

The cabinet member for 'resources and customer services' replied by saying that it wasn't possible because glasses of water are more easily spilt on electrical equipment. Hmmm.

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Croydon Advertiser: The Big Debate

Link to online version of story.

Finally, Shasha Khan will be fielding questions on behalf of the Green Party.

He said: "I feel that the main three parties in this country represent a very narrow choice and having the Greens on the panel gives voters a genuine alternative to grey politicians who have run out of ideas."

NB. The 19 candidates that Croydon Green Party put up in 2006 really made a difference. We polled over 10,000 votes and hence earned our right to sit on this panel.

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Radioactive waste: two bits of coverage and two responses

Croydon Council have responded to my concerns about radioactive waste from decommissioned nuclear reactors being shipped to the proposed South London Incinerator in the usual manner. Conservative Councillor Phil Thomas' response is somewhat different to his Lib Dem counterpart in Sutton, Councillor Colin Hall, who conceded that radioactive waste was part of the waste stream at the recent Beddington Village Hall meeting. In fact, Councillor Hall could not say for certain that waste from future decommissioned nuclear reactors would not be part of the mix.
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Incinerator meeting at Beddington Village Hall

Sutton Lib Dems: Councillor Colin Hall and Tom Brake MP

Sutton Lib Dems called a meeting with the residents of Beddington Village yesterday. The local Tories, who sat at the back of the hall, have positioned themselves as defenders of the Beddington village community, and used yesterday as an opportunity to attack the Lib Dem panel: Tom Brake MP and Councillor Colin Hall (Environment), on the incinerator issue. They kept on asking why the Lib Dem ward councillors were absent from the meeting and how Brake and Hall should convey the residents anger to their "counterparts"; at which point I couldn't control my frustration and asked the Tories to speak to their "counterparts" in Croydon for accusing me of scaremongering every time I raised awareness of this crucial issue in Croydon.

This whole incinerator contravesry is another example of how the main three parties are void of any principle. Opposition Lib Dem, Tory and Labour politicians position themselves as against the South London Waste Plan, whilst just a few hundred yards across the borough boundary, their elected counterparts are in favour of it!

Some key points made:

1. Rising landfill tax - a stick being used by the government that faces massive EU fines if the percentage of waste sent to landfill is not "reduced to 35% by 2020" - was given as the main reason why an alternative solution was needed.
2. Councillor Hall suggested that gasification was "similar as incineration"
3. The four contractors on the shortlist for are:

• Resources from Waste - which seems to be a front for John Laing
  
• Veolia - Croydon's present contractor
• Viridor - Sutton's present contractor
• Waste Recycling Group - a Spanish operator.

4. The only technology not on the table is an "old fashioned mass burn incinerator"
5. An additional consultation has now commenced which covers 8 new sites, including Wimbledon Greyhound Stadium. These have been suggested via the second consultation. However, Tom Brake MP all but said this was just a legal requirement so that a future challenge was not made to the South London Waste Partnership.
6. Councillor Hall said that radioactive waste was part of the mix but from memory referred to "microwaves and televisions". When I asked him about waste from future decommissioned nuclear reactors, he could not say one way or the other.

Latest consultation

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