Weekly Links - 25/02/2008

One of the big upcoming environmental and social struggles in the UK will be the battle against the opening of a new wave of incinerators run by the big waste transnationals. In line with other measly targets influenced by corporate lobbying the government is setting a very unambitious long term target for waste reduction, re-use and recycling and is allowing local authorities to hand highly lucrative 25-year-plus waste contracts for the waste giants to build a new generation of incinerators. This amounts to a license to pollute and waste valuable resources that could be put to better use - very few of the planned incinerators will have even the figleaf of CHP (Combined Heat and Power) and will just extract a relatively small amount of energy from waste in the form of electricity. One particularly glaring example of this madness is the incinerator planned by Veolia for the Nottinghamshire Waste PFI at Rainworth near Mansfield. This is in the heart of Sherwood Forest, on the edge of the planned Regional Park and on a former colliery site that had restoration conditions written into its development (and so should not be counted as "brownfield".) The local protest group is called PAIN (People Against Incineration) and they are doing a great job mobilising for the Environment Agency's Pollution Prevention and Control License consultation and the local authority's planning proposal process.
More on Waste from Friends of The Earth here.

Various interesting articles to link to on the Guardian CIF site over the last week or so including Peter Tatchell on Greens and the Unions, John McDonnell on Northern Rock, Tony Juniper on Branson's aero-biofuel lark, and Theo Hobson on Disestablishment.

On the Green front, London Mayoral candidate Sian Berry has become a patron of the Fair Pay Network. It seems that Channel Four have been censoring her. Green Party Male Principal Speaker Derek Wall has been unwell - get well soon Derek!

In blogs of interest, I came across this Merrick Godhaven post from last year about the pilot's union, BALPA and climate change. Merrick's blog is hosted on the interesting ukwatch.net site.
Jim reflected on the number 500 for his 500th post last Friday. The Socialist Unity Blog had an interesting post from John Nicholson on a "Convention Of The Left" planned for Manchester in September. Noel at the Green Room has been looking into the current Jersey Care Home story with the help of the blog of Jersey Green Senator Stuart Syvret.

Finally, the media is covering the forthcoming formal opening later this week of the Svalbard seed bank that I mentioned in a blog post last year.