It's official -- wind power is cheaper than ever.
Not only is it more sustainable and safer than nuclear, but it's now cost effective too. Two new wind farms given the green light are providing electricity for £57.50 per megawatt hour -- compared to a whopping £92.50 for the planned Hinkley Point C nuclear power plant.
But despite that, instead of investing in wind, the government are ignoring the facts. Not only is Hinkley Point C going ahead, But even more expensive, unsafe nuclear power plants are planned to be built too.
And to add insult to injury, it's ordinary customers who will pick up the tab -- with higher energy bills funding the decision.
Simply put, the nuclear option is now indefensible. Safe, sustainable and now cheap, wind power could be the answer to our energy crisis -- and create more jobs too.
Theresa May -- drop plans for new nuclear plans in the UK and invest in renewable energy.
Hinkley Point C isn’t just a disaster for safety -- even the National Audit Office described it as “risky and expensive.”
And not only are offshore wind farms cheaper than ever, but now onshore wind farms are plummeting in cost too. What’s more, the government knows it -- energy ministers Richard Harrington and Claire Perry have both spoken about their potential.
Despite nuclear being a mature technology and a joint venture between the two huge energy corporations EDF and CGN, they won’t be covering the cost and the risk. Instead, the tab will be picked up by ordinary people -- by adding a levy onto every household bill.
The government have also defended their nuclear obsession by pointing to jobs -- but renewable energy creates three times as many jobs as nuclear power for every £1m invested.
Despite all these problems, the government plans to build additional plants in Suffolk, Essex and Wales. But investors are moving away from nuclear power -- as one market expert in the Financial Times says, “Nobody outside the [nuclear] industry now thinks the future of electricity generation is nuclear fission.”
SumOfUs members have always been effective when we’ve come together to stand up for the environment. Hundreds of thousands of us have been campaigning to get dangerous bee-harming pesticides banned across the world, and we’ve also been instrumental in forcing an EU probe into the nightmare pharmaceutical merger of Bayer and Monsanto. Now, it’s time to raise our voices to achieve the same impact here in the UK.
The tide of opinion is turning -- we just need to let the government know that we won't stand for this dangerous waste of money.
More information
The Telegraph. 4 October 2017.
The New Statesman. 12 September 2017.
The Guardian. 11 September 2017.