World Environment Day (WED) on 5th June

Is it not somewhat ironic that as we celebrated World Environment Day (WED) yesterday (5th June) the JCS calls for the construction of the NDR as the “most critical” piece of infrastructure?

Indeed Policy 1 of the JCS is ‘Addressing climate change and protecting environmental assets’.  Without apparent embarrassment, the GNDP proclaim this Policy 1, despite the fact that the ‘most critical’ piece of infrastructure for the JCS is the proposed Northern Distributor Road (NDR).  This is modelled by the Council themselves to produce 25,000 tonnes of CO2 per year in addition to current levels – equivalent to 6% of Norwich’s current transport emissions. There couldn’t be a clearer carbon disbenefit working against Policy 1.

As a layman I have always found it bizarre that a so called Eco town would need a 12 mile dual carriageway to support it!  Can anyone explain that one?


6 comments:

  1. If we go for what the majority of people want - the vast majority want the NDR.

    If we go for what has absolutely no detriment to the environment whatsoever, then I suggest that you get out of your cars, stop eating imported food etc etc. And make everyone else do the same.

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  2. That's not a bad idea anon. 14:12. What do we really want for the future? More of the same, ie: heading for total ecologial collapse when we've consumed and contaminated so much of the Earth's resources the turning point is reached and nothing can be done to get things back into some kind of functional order? Or, pause for a moment and consider where the path we're all on is leading us, and change the way we think act as necessary?

    Go on - come back with a 'I suppose you'd want us to all live in mud huts' or 'I suppose you think we should turn to communism' etc stupid reposte.

    What's happening (or planned to happen) around north-east Norwich isn't something unique or isolated - it's a microcosmic example of what's going on in the world as a whole. Build more, produce more, consume more and the poor will benefit from the trickle-down effect. It would work fine if the world was infinite, but it isn't. This lie has been peddled for decades, yet still people fall for it. Until we all wake up and see that this is the road to hell, there is little hope.

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  3. edith crowther8 June 2011 at 13:06

    How do we know what the majority want? I went to a hearing yesterday about a huge electricity substation (the largest in the country) proposed for Little Dunham, to connect to the offshore wind "farm" to be built off Cromer and Wells. The East West line of pylons will have to be "upgraded" too (some say this means it will simply be doubled). All this to cater for all the new households coming into Norfolk and also arriving around Cambridge, Peterborough, and North London. Every single house in Little Dunham has at least one poster saying "NO SUBSTATION" in red and black. They want it in a field in the middle of nowhere - this is not right either, but would be better. What they don't realise is, that even in a field, the extra electricity is to bring at least a hundred thousand more cars onto the roads in Norfolk because it is for a quarter of a million adult incomers and their new houses. The substation is for the new houses, that is why an SEA is mandatory, because the small project links in (as usual) to a much wider development plan.

    And even in a field, low frequency electrical waves have a sinister effect on the health of humans, and for this reason their effect on all species has to be monitored. After all it could be this, amongst other things, that is upsetting the pollinator species. Many farmers in Yorkshire have developed cancers due to living next to pylons all their lives. http://www.revolt.co.uk/new/position.php

    In short, we need masses more electricity because of population growth, which is ridiculous when the existing population is not rising and is even declining in some areas of Britain. But you cannot make LOTS of money in a declining population, only modest amounts of money.

    The windfarm company say that the majority of Norfolk voted in favour of the substation. But in fact, they voted in favour of the OFFSHORE windarm (which sounds lovely and clean of course) and 65 per cent voted in favour of something called "onshore electrical connection" for the windfarm. This is why a proper SEA has to be done and updated continuously for each project as it moves forward and new stages of it come into focus. It is breaking the law not to do it - and of course developers/councils are not doing it properly because it is almost impossible. You have to monitor all the flora and all the fauna and all soil, that's thousands of species and it is only 3 out of 13 categories that have to be continuously monitored under 10 separate headings. The companies are taking the mickey, they check out a handful of species on the Red List, put a picture of a Great Crested Newt in the brochure and say they have "taken care" (?????) of it - they are having a laugh at our expense and the expense of the natural world. And themselves, if they did but know it.

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  4. Goodness me Edith did you type all that or copy and paste it ?

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  5. Sadly this is all about GREED and PROFIT for the developers and little to do with housing or transport. When will the bureaucrats ever learn.

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