Eden feels the heat over wood-fired power plant

Sydney Morning Herald
Monday 26/4/2010 Page: 5

Eden, on the state's south coast, is set to be the first Australian town to be powered by a woodfired electricity plant, despite concerns that burning trees could generate more greenhouse gas emissions than burning coal. The woodchip company behind the plant, which is being considered by the NSW government, describes it as a renewable energy project that will make practical use of offcuts and sawdust from its existing mill. But it faces fierce opposition from sections of the local community which believe the plan will entrench logging in native forests and promote demand for woodchips.

Although the plant's developer, South East Fibre Exports, plans to phase in plantation wood, the majority of the 51,000 tonnes of fuel will still come from logging in native forests. When the role of the living trees as carbon sinks is factored in, emissions from the plant soar to up to four times that of a coal plant, campaigners argue. "There is a huge amount of lies and misinformation floating around about the emissions." said a South East Fibre Exports spokesman, Vince Phillips. "If the government wants figures on all emissions, we will supply them."

Mr Phillips said the proposal had been beset by "manic hatred" from the environment movement, including the creation of a prominent fake website twisting the company's line. "They've just got a mindset that says there shouldn't be logging in native forests at all, but were confident the government will see through that." Yet the power station plans suffered a serious blow last year when electricity retailers decided not to recognise it as an accredited supplier of renewable power.

"Setting aside the issue of carbon emissions, the more we log the forests, the more it affects the hydrology of our region, the less rainfall we have, which leads to fewer trees." said Prue Acton, a spokeswoman for South East Region Conservation Alliance, one of several groups campaigning against the plant. The NSW Greens MP John Kaye said the power station was simply a way to sustain the south coast logging industry, which sometimes operates at a loss.

"Even after allowing for the forests to regrow to capture some of this CO2, the power station has a carbon footprint that is four times the size of a coal powered generator," he said. "When the entire fuel cycle is considered, this is a carbon dirty proposal. The applicant has neatly sidestepped the real greenhouse implications of burning forestry materials." The campaigners delivered 2000 letters from residents opposing the plan to the NSW Premier, Kristina Keneally, last week.