20 August 2007: for immediate release

The Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament today expressed support for activists blockading the main entrance to Sizewell A and B nuclear power stations as part of the ‘Camp for Climate Action’. The peaceful protest, which started at 7:45 this morning, is currently disrupting traffic going in to the main entrance of the Suffolk nuclear power stations, identified as a possible site for a third reactor.

The five activists chained themselves together across the access road to oppose the myth that nuclear power is carbon neutral. Banners displayed by the activists read “Nuclear Power is Not the Answer to Climate Chaos” and “Don't Nuke the Climate”. The Government Energy White Paper of May this year opened the way to the building of new nuclear power stations, claimed to be an answer to climate change.

Kate Hudson, Chair of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament, said, “Nuclear power is not the answer to climate change. The Government’s own Sustainable Development Commission says that even with a doubling of nuclear capacity carbon emissions would only drop by 8% compared with the 60% target set by Government. As uranium fuel becomes scarcer more energy is put into extracting it, so by 2050 nuclear is expected to generate as much CO2 per kilowatt as a gas-fired power station.” [see notes 3 and 4]

Mell Harrison, one of those taking part in the blockade and co-ordinator of Eastern Region CND said: “The construction of new nuclear power plants is not only incredibly costly, it’s also very short sighted. We would be able to produce a limited amount of electricity for a couple of generations, but the coming hundreds of generations will have to deal with the waste produced by the nuclear industry. There is also a risk of catastrophic nuclear accidents and an increased risk of nuclear weapons proliferation. Large areas are still affected by the radiation released by the disaster at Chernobyl, and now they are proposing building new nuclear power plants in an area that is at risk from sea level rise.”

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Notes to Editors:

1. For further information and interviews please contact Peter Lanyon on 01603 722 898 or Mell Harrison, taking part in the blockade on 07971 347549. You can also contact Ben Soffa, CND's Press & Communications Officer, on 0207 7002350 or 07968 420859.

2. Photos of the action, free from copyright can be obtained from http://fme.sincerethought.org/gallery/v/2007/climate

3. Sustainable Development Commission: http://www.sd-commission.org.uk/pages/060306.html, an 8% cut would be achieved by 2035, the 60% target is due to be met by 2050

4. Oxford Research Group report: http://www.oxfordresearchgroup.org.uk/publications/briefing_papers/pdf/secureenergy.pdf with Page 40 addressing the carbon impact of uranium extraction

5. The Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND) is one of Europe’s biggest single-issue peace campaigns, with over 35,000 members in the UK. CND campaigns for the abolition of all nuclear weapons everywhere. www.cnduk.org