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DAM-L Fwd: Norway to halt hydropower development (fwd)
----- Forwarded message from William_J_Braun@mennonitecc.ca -----
From William_J_Braun@mennonitecc.ca Fri Jan 5 13:42:43 2001
Date: Fri, 5 Jan 2001 12:47:06 -0600
Subject: Fwd: Norway to halt hydropower development
To: Dianne Murray
Date: 01/05/2001 12:46:02 PM
Subj: Fwd: Norway to halt hydropower development
--------------- Forwarded by wjb@mennonitecc.ca on 01/05/2001 12:46 PM
---------------
Originally Sent by Stephan Fuller <fuller@innu.ca> on 01/05/2001 07:10:27 AM
Originally Sent/Copied to INNU-L@YORKU.CA
Norway Turns Its Back on Hydropower
OSLO, Norway, January 4, 2001 (ENS) - Norwegian Prime Minister Jens
Stoltenberg has created a mini-sensation in Norway by declaring in his
traditional New Year's Eve national address that "the era of large-scale new
hydropower development is over" and that several big hydro projects are to be
abandoned.
Norwegian Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg (Photo courtesy government of
Norway)
The prime minister said construction of hydropower stations at Beiarn,
Bj_ll_ga and Melfjord in Nordland county would be halted. The futures of several
other projects are also in doubt.
"I know that this is a decision that will provoke controversy. But the
benefits of these development projects are not sufficiently great to justify
irreversible encroachment on the natural environment," Stoltenberg said.
Norway, one of the world's largest oil exporters, produces virtually all
of its electricity for domestic use from hydropower, averaging 115 terawatt
hours annually.
Last year, however, Stoltenberg's minority Labour government made clear
its intention of promoting natural gas technology for electricity production,
and approved the construction of two gas fired power stations at the west coast
sites of Kollsnes and K_rst_.
Dam inspection at Lake Elgsjo (Photo by Rolf Krogh courtesy Glommens og
Laagens Brukseierforening)
State owned power utility Statkraft, which was to have built the three new
hydropower installations, described the Prime Minister's announcement as
"frustrating."
On March 17, 2000, Stoltenberg was sworn in as Norway's prime minister in
the wake of an energy and environment controversy that prompted the preceding
prime minister's resignation. Former Prime Minister Kjell Magne Bondevik stepped
down after losing a parliamentary vote of confidence over his attempt to prevent
the construction of the two natural gas power plants.
In a related development, Norway's Nordic neighbor Denmark has just
released figures showing that wind energy now contributes 13 percent of national
energy consumption, the highest proportion of any country in the world. About
6,000 turbines were operating in 2000.
Further planned turbine installation is expected to take wind's proportion
of all energy to 15 percent by the end of this year.
The Danish Wind Turbine Owners' Association estimates that wind power
displaced four million tons of polluting emissions last year.
Danish wind turbines generated 4,500 gigawatt hours last year, the
equivalent of over 1.4 million tons of coal delivered in a train 590 kilometres
(366 miles) long.