Environmentalists to appeal Sellafield ruling
Environmental groups Friends of the Earth and Greenpeace will return to the courts in London later today to appeal against a High Court ruling allowing the operation of a mixed oxide (MOX) fuel facility at the Sellafield nuclear plant.
The two groups will argue their case before three judges in the Court of Appeal. Their case against Sellafield centres on the economic viability of the new MOX facility.
They have argued that the British government has failed to prove its economic benefits, something they are obliged to do before opening a plant that could harm the environment and people’s health.
In the High Court case taken by Friends of the Earth and Greenpeace, the judge ruled that the British government had made no error in law by granting permission for the MOX plant to operate.
He said the British government was correct to write off the £470m it cost to construct the plant when carrying out an assessment of the economic benefits.
This has angered the environmental groups, who claim that these capital costs far outweigh any potential profit the MOX facility could make.
Irish MEP, Nuala Ahern, has said the British government’s decision to write off its £470m investment essentially amounts to state aid, which is banned under EU competition law.
