Campaigners to march against controversial Portland incinerator plans today
March Against Incineration will protest in the Dorset town
Portland 4 the Planet are holding a protest against the controversial proposals to build a waste incinerator on Portland.
March Against Incineration starts at 10am today at Victoria Square roundabout on Portland.
Laura Baldwin, an Olympic Sailor, is organising the protest which will start with some short inspirational speeches on the green before the group march to the Portland Port entrance.
They’ll head back to the green for 11am for community conversation with the group.
If approved, Powerfuel Portland Waste Incinerator would create enough low-carbon energy to power up to 30,000 homes.
On their website Powerfuel Portland say:
"The proposed facility at Portland Port will use a refined, Refuse Derived Fuel (RDF) and will be capable of treating local waste arisings once recyclable materials such as glass, plastics and metals have been removed.
"The ERF that Powerfuel Portland is proposing can produce low carbon energy much more cleanly and efficiently than the consented scheme and much more cleanly than traditional fossil fuels such as coal and gas. The Portland ERF will be carbon neutral throughout its 30 year operating life."
Laura is a Portland resident living with her young son, on the hill right above the proposed site for a waste incinerator at Portland Port.
“Everyone should be outraged by this proposal, not just those living close enough to inhale the toxic emissions. The carbon emissions that would spew into our atmosphere each year would require more than a million trees to live for 100 years to offset the damage caused to our climate. Carbon offsetting should be banned as we are in a climate emergency right now, we don’t have time to wait for trees to grow to offset yet more emissions.
I care about the air my child breaths. Incinerator filters can not trap all the harmful particulates so they poison the air we breath and the land we use to grow food. I’ve put a huge amount of effort into establishing a community allotment at The Grove and that would have to be closed down if this incinerator goes ahead.
“90% of the waste burnt could be avoided, reused or recycled. The solution is to adopt a circular economy where there is no waste. Everything manufactured should be recyclable, reusable or compostable. And turn to renewables for energy provision such as wind, tide and solar.
“The latest United Nations IPCC (Inter-governmental panel on climate change) made up of 234 of the world’s leading climate scientists from 66 countries and passed by every government in the world, is a Code Red warning for humanity! We are already well past safe levels of atmospheric CO2 and every tonne emitted will make the climate crisis worse. This incinerator will pump approximately 202,000 tonnes per year into the atmosphere, enough to melt 606,000 m2 of Arctic Sea Ice. Areas of Portland and Weymouth are at risk from sea level rise.
“We have been campaigning for nearly 2 years against this application for a monster waste burner. We have signed petitions, submitted objections, written letters, been on a march, attended protests, put up banners, funded costly legal advice and yet Powerfuel and Portland Port are still trying to push this toxic project through!
Say NO tocontributing to climate catastrophe.”