Jim Duffy of Stop Hinkley writes: A former Government advisor on nuclear waste will voice his concerns, at a public meeting in Watchet, over fears that all of the UK's legacy of toxic nuclear waste might be buried at Hinkley Point. Hinkley is a potential site and one of only three where stakeholders have been invited to meet and discuss preparations for the nation's Deep Geological Repository in which half a million cubic metres of the most toxic and long-lived waste could be buried. This follows a recommendation by the Committee on Radiological Waste Management (CoRWM) to bury the nation's most dangerous nuclear waste in a single one kilometre deep repository. Pete Wilkinson, who was a member of the Government's advisory committee for its three years' duration, is concerned that the committee's parallel recommendations to launch intensive research into safety, health and security issues have been ignored in the Government's rush to deal with the toxic nuclear waste and 'solve' the problem, paving the way for nuclear new build....A thorny issue for the Government is how to persuade local communities in Somerset, or anywhere in the country, to volunteer to take the waste given the evident risks involved. The question of cash incentives for local councils has already arisen with proposals to build a separate Low Level Waste site at Hinkley and may be applied to the much more dangerous High Level Waste currently stored in vaults and silos at Sellafield in Cumbria...Controversially, West Somerset and Sedgemoor Councils have begun discussing proposals to accept these cash incentives to compensate for the risk to local communities of a Low Level Waste facility. Full article

| All UK's n-waste coming to Somerset | www.stophinkley.org | Other Related News: Outrage at Licence for 'Dangerous' Hinkley | Hinkley Nuclear Waste Dump Threat | Interfaith Peace Walk Towards a Nuclear Free Future |

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Stop Hinkley writes: British Energy announced that their Chief Nuclear Officer has left with immediate effect. His role was to supervise the operations at Hinkley B and other nuclear power stations. In an extraordinary move the company's Chief Executive will take charge directly of all nuclear operations. The news comes on the tail of British Energy's Six Monthly Financial Report which warned investors that Hinkley Point B and Hunterston nuclear power stations will remain closed for weeks due to cracks in boiler tubes and when they restart will only operate at 70 per cent output. They could not confirm whether or when 100 per cent output could be achieved as this would depend on boiler lifetimes, station lifeimes and the acceptance of safety cases ... Jim Duffy, spokesman for Stop Hinkley said: "Chaos and disaster seem to be reigning at British Energy as they try and persuade their investors that all is well at Hinkley and other nuclear power stations. The magnitude of the work facing just Hinkley is extreme and must be performed in high radiation conditions. Even plans that will take twelve months or more to accomplish must be passed by the regulator before work begins and then before it is commissioned. And the regulators will not just abide by British Energy's finance-driven timetable. It's a glum outlook for Hinkley." Full Article

Hinkley owner's boss resigns following plant's multiple woes | www.stophinkley.org | Also Of Interest: Pipe Protest | Worked stopped on gas pipeline at Trebanos but illegal eviction happening this morning |

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Crash writes: Last week an awards ceremony was held in London to hand out gongs to those promoting renewables. Rolling out the red carpet for the stars (Bill Oddie), the British Renewable Energy Association proceeded to announce that British Renewable Energy Pioneer of the year was Somerset Biofuels Project -- a joint venture between Somerset County Council's transport chiefs and Ford Motor Company. If that unholy alliance sets alarm bells ringing, it's with good reason. Local government in Somerset hasn't exactly been known as at the forefront of climate science and energy policy (having recently refused a wind farm at Hinkley Point on the grounds that a rotor blade could come loose and hit the nearby nuclear power station). So it will come as no surprise to learn of a study by the University of Cornell that, biofuels require more fossil fuel energy to produce than they save. For example, producing 1 barrel of bioethanol from switch grass requires 1.57 barrels of fossil fuel to be used, in the form of fertilisers, pesticides, refining and so on. Full Article

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Update 2: The protest is still ongoing! With two new tesco Metro's poping up in the city centre in the last couple of months, boris writes; A digger that was going to push over a 200 year cedar tree yesterday morning was occupied by about 9 protesters, including four who locked on. At the same time, the tree which was to be felled was occupied by a another protester. It wasn't until after 5pm the tree was sadly taken down. Eventual defeat, yes, but in situations like this it's how much of a fight you put up. Full article (+pictures).

Update 1: Mainstream media are reporting that the site has been evicted. No confirmation from the protestors as yet...

chris boris reports from the anti-Tesco tree camp in Shepton Mallet: Baliffs attempted to evict the site today (saturday) and were only stopped by the police, who apparently had not been informed. People are needed desperately, as eviction could now go ahead tommorow. Full Article

| shepton mallet still going | day of action at shepton mallet | Shepton Mallet Eviction Alert | Tree Protest Camp established at Shepton Mallet, Somerset. People needed | Tescopoly | Interview with Joanna Blythman, author of 'The Shocking Power of British Supermarkets' |