Mar 24 - GSD Urges Patience Over Lathbury Proposals
The GSD has today questioned whether the decision of the Government to seek expressions of interest to convert Lathbury Barracks Parade Ground into an industrial park is, at this stage, in the best interest of the community.
The GSD says that Lathbury Barracks is the natural alternative to the North Mole for the location of a power station and was the preferred site not only of the GSD Government but also of the Environmental Safety Group. It is therefore, says the Opposition, still a valid Plan B if the Government decides that the storage of LNG on either the North Mole or the Detached Mole represents an unacceptable risk to the community. The GSD says that the economic viability of an LNG powered power station will depend largely on how often LNG will need to be transported to the LNG installation sites either by land or by sea adding that the larger the installation, the less often that will happen. Conversely, says the party, the smaller the installation the more often and less economical. With this in mind, the Opposition says that this is one of the reasons why the Government is considering a bunkering installation of LNG.
A statement from the GSD continued: “If the relevant risk assessments and gas cloud models show that the consequences of an accident are so grave for the area that even with very low risk, it is not acceptable either to the Government or the community, then the Government may well end up with a dual fire power station that operates only on diesel. In those circumstances, the North Mole, just 300 metres from Waterport Terraces, will not be the best site from a pollution and noise point of view. We accept that bearing in mind the necessity of this project, the Government may decide to go ahead with it anyway but Government should not close the door on an alternative whilst these issues remain outstanding.
“We are also surprised that the Minister for the Environmental should support the proposed Industrial Park at Lathbury Barracks, when he was vehemently opposed to a power station on that site because of the effect on the Barbary Partridge. Surely the same concerns arise with an Industrial Park.”
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