Demand for nuclear power led by consumers, says bishop

|PIC1|The Bishop of Shrewsbury, the Rt Rev Dr Alan Smith, said earlier this week that the decision to open up a whole new generation of nuclear power plants had been taken out of politicians' hands because of the massive demand for energy within society.

The Government gave the green light for more nuclear power plants on Thursday as a means to securing the future of the UK's energy supply in a "safe and affordable" way, according to Business Secretary John Hutton.

Speaking ahead of Thursday's announcement, Bishop Smith said the Government's decision was inevitable because of the high demand for energy from ordinary consumers and the onus lay on individuals to prevent the creation of more nuclear power plants.

"If you ask most people whether they support nuclear power most people would say no," he said. "But the rate we continue to use energy - despite all the warnings about global warming, carbon footprints, and dwindling supplies of coal, oil and gas - then the Government has no choice but to give the go ahead for new nuclear power stations if they are to secure energy supplies in the years ahead.

"But the demand isn't being led by government; it's being led by consumers," he said, pointing to the responsibility of the individual to make environmentally friendly changes to their lifestyle.

According to the Bishop, if every household in the West Midlands replaced just one old fashioned incandescent light bulb with an energy-saving bulb, CO2 emissions could be reduced by 70,300 tonnes every year, whilst enough energy could be saved to switch off a nuclear power station if every house in the UK were to do this.

Switching off TVs, DVDs, VCRs, set-top boxes, digital recorders and PC monitors, meanwhile, could all reduce CO2 emissions by 3.1 million tones, he added.

"How many of us still fill our kettles when making a drink instead of boiling just the amount of water we need for our cups?" he asked.

"It's a good-news double-whammy. By reducing energy consumption we reduce the need for energy production and reduce CO2 emissions at the same time."

The Bishop spent Thursday afternoon inspecting low-energy light bulbs at Lichfield Cathedral, which have helped cathedral and diocesan offices slash their carbon emissions by 18 tonnes a year - enough to fill 108 double-decker buses.

The Bishops of Lichfield, Shrewsbury, Stafford and Wolverhampton have put together the 'A Heart of Creation' guidebook which lists switching to low-energy bulbs as just one of many steps that individuals can take to do their bit for the environment.

The bishops are challenging the 50,000 churchgoers in the diocese to go one better than simply talking about climate change and to actually do something practical each day that will help bring down their carbon footprints.

Bishop Smith explained: "This isn't about beating ourselves over the heads and saying how naughty we've been; it's about equipping all of us to see that we can make a difference.

"If people don't want nuclear power stations we need to welcome alternative forms of energy production - such as wind power, but we also need to reduce our energy consumption. 'A Heart For Creation' will help people do this," he said.

'A Heart for Creation' can be downloaded free of charge from www.lichfield.anglican.org/lent/ This year Lent runs from 6 February until 22 March.