11th March 2009

Yesterday Green party members from across the County joined Ricky Knight, the number one on the Green Party list for the European Election in the South-West, to collect signatures for the Friends of the Earth petition against a monster incinerator near Stonehouse.

This followed Green party District councillors signing petition outside Javelin Park last week - see here. Ricky then spoke last night at a lively public meeting in the evening in the function room at The Bell in Southgate asking: ‘Are all Politicians the Same?’

Euro candidate Ricky Knight said: "It was great to come again to Gloucester and share my enthusiasm for Green party policies to deal with the threats of climate change and global recession. Now more than ever we need these policies to be translated into actions. We have a real chance here in the South West to elect a Green Euro-MP on 4th June."

Ricky Knight, who has given up his job as a teacher for the last 30 years to campaign 24/7 to get elected, said: "I've found my natural home in the Green Party. The SW can be a hub for green energy creating green jobs. The very fact that a monster incinerator for Gloucestershire's waste is even being considered shows how out of touch some politicians are with issues of sustainability. There are much better ways of dealing with our waste and we need to be investing in these for ourselves and future generations."

Dr Carol Kambites, a Green party member who lives in Stonehouse and organised the public meeting said: "It is great that so far no decision has been taken on what technology will be used to deal with Gloucestershire’s waste. It is clear from the many people I met in Gloucester there is strong opposition to a large incinerator and an anger from many at the amount of waste produced in the first place like the excess packaging in supermarkets. I believe that when people really understand the need to recycle, there will be a willingness for many more to join those of us who recycle already. Then with what is left we should look to smaller decentralised units, using for example technologies like MBT and AD."

Bryan Meloy Coordinator of the Gloucester Green party who helped organise the evening event, said of the evening: "It was great to see so many new faces joining the lively discussion. It was a good sized crowd greeting Ricky Knight and hearing his powerful green vision for the future ahead of his campaign launch in Bristol this Friday."

Cllr Philip Booth, a Stroud District councillor who helped collect signatures and whose ward is not far from Javelin Park, said: "The answer to ‘real waste’ must be a series of flexible local solutions based on robust environmental audits, solutions which are able to cope with a changing and reducing waste stream. We call upon Conservative Administration at GCC to show some environmental and political back-bone and to make clear they intend to honour its manifesto commitment not to build a large-scale incinerator."

Greens have long opposed a monster incinerator at the site and have been working with other councillors in both District and County to ensure that alternatives to a monster incinerator are taken forward. See more details regarding Gloucestershire Green party waste policies at:
http://www.glosgreenparty.org.uk/content/view/2013/72/