NGOs oppose plan to burn Namibian wood at German coal plant

February 22, 2021 |

In Germany, a project which would see large quantities of Namibian wood burned in German power stations, starting with the Tiefstack coal plant in Hamburg, has attracted international criticism, with 40 development, environmental and social justice groups as well as scientists having sent an Open Letter to Germany’s Minister for Economic Cooperation and Development, Dr Gerd Müller.

His ministry is financing a development project in Namibia called “Bush Control and Biomass Utilisation”, which involves developing policies and infrastructure for the large-scale removal of bushes and trees from an area of 30 million hectares of land and the export of most of that wood to be burned in German power plants. Signatories to the Open Letter warn that the proposal would lead to adverse effects on the climate as well as on employment in Namibia. They also warn that is based on a neo-colonial paradigm and that it risks worsening social injustices both globally and within Namibia.

Category: Fuels

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