Ten held ahead of power station protest

Danielle Dwyer,Press Association
Saturday 17 October 2009 11:49 BST
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Ten people were arrested today near the site of one of Britain's biggest coal-fired power stations - hours before hundreds of climate change protesters were expected to converge at the plant.

Activists from three pressure groups - the Camp for Climate Action, Plane Stupid and Climate Rush - plan to meet this afternoon at Ratcliffe-on-Soar power station near Nottingham, having threatened to break into the site and close it down.

A spokeswoman for Nottinghamshire Police said: "Earlier this morning ten people were arrested near Ratcliffe-on-Soar power station, six men and four women, on suspicion of conspiracy to commit aggravated trespass at the power station.

"No further details are available at this time."

The 2,000MW coal-fired power station, which is owned by the energy company E.ON, is said to be one of the largest producers of carbon dioxide in Britain.

The activists, under the banner the Great Climate Swoop, chose to target Ratcliffe in an online vote following the Climate Camp held in London in August.

E.ON was granted a High Court injunction giving police the power to arrest anyone trying to enter the site.

A spokesman for the company said: "Ratcliffe power station plays a key role in ensuring we keep the lights on for millions of homes across the region and has undergone major investments that make Ratcliffe one of the cleanest power stations of its kind.

"We're already closing three of our other fossil-fired power stations and are pushing forward with lower carbon options that include developing new wind farms, gas plants, cleaner coal and nuclear that will allow us to tackle the threat of climate change while also ensuring security and affordability of energy supplies."

The demonstration is expected to start at 1pm.

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