Tag Archives: Avonmouth

ARE COUNCIL BOSSES BARRA MAC RUAIRI AND ANGELO CALABRESI BENT? (SLIGHT RETURN)

NOW ‘ADVICE’ TO A CHAIR OF A PLANNING COMMITTEE HAS BEEN ‘DISAPPEARED’!

Until around the 20 October, Bristol City Council planning officer ANGELO “KING PRAWN” CALABRESE was set to make an unconstitutional delegated decision to give planning permission to the Nexterra/Balfour Beatty AVONMOUTH BIOMASS PLANT.

However, a major u-turn ensued after an outcry from an unholy coalition of The BRISTOLIAN, members of the public, MPs, prospective parliamentary candidates and councillors of all parties demanding that this decision went to a planning committee as the King Prawn’s OWN GUIDELINES demanded.

The BRISTOLIAN has already remarked that KING PRAWN‘s conduct and – by association – his boss BARRA MAC“ NUGGET” RUAIRI‘s conduct of this process looks extremely dubious.

So to further explore what had been going on, a Freedom of Information request was put in:

Dear Bristol City Council,

The above planning application is to be decided by officers under
delegated powers.

1. Please can you provide me with any information held in any form
by Bristol City Council as to why this application can be
considered under delegated powers.

2. Please can you provide me with any information held in any form
by Bristol City Council and provided to the chair of the relevant
planning committee, Cllr Alex Woodman, by city council officers as
to why this application can be considered under delegated powers.

Yours faithfully,

And back, in a matter of days, came a reply from someone called Steve Knight, masquerading under the minimalist job title, ‘Place’:

This application is being determined at committee level on 5^th November
2014 rather than under delegated powers. As the information is not held,
we are therefore unable to have that information communicated to you.
The application details are available via the council’s Planning online
facility
[1]http://planningonline.bristol.gov.uk/onl…
. The details of the committee meeting will be available a week before the
committee meeting via
[2]https://www.bristol.gov.uk/CommitteeMeet…

“The information is not held”. How strange. Because on 18 October, the chair of the planning committee, Alex Woodman, announced on Twitter:

How, one wonders, did councillor Woodman offer his opinion about something for which no information exists?

Of course this information exists. How could King Prawn have possibly formed any opinion, communicated it to a variety of third parties and got to within two days of making a decision otherwise?

So what’s happened to this information? Has it been lost? Mislaid? Shredded? Rest assured The BRISTOLIAN will be chasing this.

And we’ve said it once – and we’ll say it again – this whole planning process needs to be HALTED and Bristol City Council needs to start an immediate investigation into King Prawn and McNugget for potential breaches of THE BRIBERY AND CORRUPTION ACT.

Something doesn’t add up. There’s something rotten in Denmark.

KNOWLE NOISE ANNOYS?

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>> HOPKINS, THE “TRAINED EAR” AND THE GREAT LANDVEST MYSTERY

‘Meat Zeppelin’, Councillor Gary Hopkins, watercolours, 2013, @guriben

BRISTOL City Council boss, Senior Environmental Health Officer, MARK ‘BUNGLE’ CURTIS displays an interesting approach to his enforcement work.

Up in leafy Knowle he’s been showing zero tolerance to noise pollution, slapping a noise abatement notice on the so-called TOWN HOUSE, a business hiring out a large house for family gatherings. They also run the GOTHIC MANSION on Redcatch Road, which has recently been refused retrospective planning permission because of just one verified complaint and lots and lots of hearsay evidence.

Indeed, so enthusiastic is Bungle to prevent pollution in the leafy south Bristol suburb many neighbours of the Town House and the Gothic Mansion claim to have never heard any noise from either place at all!

However this hasn’t stopped the local councillor, GARY ‘FUCKBUCKET’ HOPKINS, who resides a long way from either house on the other side of Redcatch Park, from running a one man campaign against the business via his regular excruciating assault on the English language, the Lib Dem Focus leaflet for Knowle.

The few local supporters FUCKBUCKET has managed to recruit to his campaign also display similar signs of mental disorder towards both the Town House and the Gothic Mansion. One neighbour, when visited by the owners of the nearby mansion to discuss any problems, opened his door and announced, “I have dealings with LANDVEST,” and promptly shut the door again.

Why would anyone care if this neighbour has dealings with Landvest? A PROPERTY DEVELOPMENT COMPANY registered in the Isle of Man, presumably for tax reasons, who recently built a load of executive homes on land next to the Gothic Mansion on the site of the old St Peters cancer hospice.

It’s also reputed that Landvest got the land despite bidding £150k less for it than a local consortium headed by that old friend of The BRISTOLIAN, Bristol Labour leader HRH Helen of Holland.

So far, so murky. But now we hear that pollution control man BUNGLE, having issued the paperwork to get the Town House in court and fine them in the region of £140k for noise is now backing out and getting the council’s legal team to settle out-of-court.

Why would that be? Does Bungle not want these local witnesses with “dealings with Landvest” and his ‘evidence’ – all of which is based on his ‘trained ear’ rather than from certified audio reports from the calibrated equipment he has access to – cross-examined in court?

This is a strange – and expensive – turn of events when you consider the council will happily settle the case if the defendants agree to cover their own legal costs. Thus dumping us, the council taxpayer, with a large bill for the legal costs BUNGLE and FUCKBUCKET have run up over their weird Knowle NOISE OBSESSION.

Meanwhile, over in the working class suburb of AVONMOUTH, we find Bungle taking a very different approach to enforcement when there’s no obsessive Lib Dem councillor with an agenda; no shady property firm in the background; lots of certified audio reports from calibrated equipment and a set of very credible witnesses able to back up their claims and itching for action.

The SIMS METAL plant at Avonmouth docks has been, since at least 2010, the subject of literally hundreds of RECORDED COMPLAINTS for noise and dust pollution. While whistleblowers have come forward and stated that noise and dust suppression equipment has not been used at the plant for years, apparently with the full knowledge of the plant’s regulators Bristol City Council and the Environment Agency.

However, the council boss responsible, BUNGLE, has done NOTHING whatsoever about the plant. It seems, in this case, Bungle popping down for a friendly chat over a cuppa and a slice of cake every now and then with the wealthy businessmen in charge is all that’s needed.

This informal, light-touch approach seems to be backed by BUNGLE’s employers, Avonmouth Tory councillors WAYNE “DEE” HARVEY and MATTHEW “DUM” MELIAS who are happy to tell any complainants crap such as, “it’s none of your business you’ve only lived here four years” and our favourite response to this major public health threat – “you just have to put up with it”.

It’s enough to make you wonder what drives and influences Bungle’s regulatory decisions isn’t it? It’s not witnesses or evidence that’s for sure.

AVONMOUTH BIO-MESS: IT’S A KNOCKOUT!

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It isn’t, actually. But it’s a solid win on points!

News comes in that the Balfour Beatty/Nexterra BIOMASS POISON PLANT planning application for Avonmouth will now be going to a planning committee after all, rather than being decided behind closed doors by unaccountable planning bosses. This proves – yet again- that corporate-friendly city council management wankers like ANGELO “KING PRAWN” CALABRESI and BARRA MAC“ NUGGET” RUAIRI don’t like it up ‘em.

Avonmouth Tory Councillor, WAYNE “DUM” HARVEY today stepped into the planning row and agreed to “call-in” the controversial application so that it will be decided by a committee of councillors as the council’s constitution clearly requires rather than by the dodgy duo.

This is a very messily executed 180 degree U-TURN by Harvey. He originally accepted King Prawn Calabresi and MacNugget’s bullshit corporate-friendly “advice” and did not demand the application be heard by a planning committee when he had the opportunity to request this during the official ‘call-in’ period. Now the councillor has been forced to act very late – on the actual day his planning bosses’ decision was due in fact!

But why the last minute change of plan? Was it that overwhelming STENCH OF CORRUPTION emanating out of every pore of King Prawn and MacNugget’s inexplicable corporate-friendly decision? Or was it the PRICEY JUDICIAL REVIEW that would inevitably follow any secret management decision to approve planning permission for the poison plant, which would then have delayed their CORPORATE FRIENDS’ development for about a year and cost us council tax payers a packet?

Who knows? But we’ll chalk it down as a small victory. And watch out KING PRAWN and MACNUGGET … We’ve got your cards well and truly marked now you little pair of shits. And yes, it’s personal. If you wanna trash our communities then we’re gonna trash you.

Seconds out, round two …

ARE COUNCIL BOSSES BARRA MAC RUAIRI AND ANGELO CALABRESI BENT?

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Senior Bristol City Council planning officer ANGELO “KING PRAWN” CALABRESI along with his boss, head of planning and place, BARRA MAC “NUGGET” RUAIRI have decided that planning permission for a 10MW BIOMASS INCINERATOR in Avonmouth can be decided by themselves, behind closed doors, on Tuesday.

How have they reached this bizarre anti-democratic decision not to put this application in front of a planning committee? Their written guidance clearly states:

(a) Delegated officers must refer matters to the relevant committee as
they consider appropriate having regard to the following factors:-

i) whether the matter would have such an effect on communities, businesses or individuals such as the matter ought to be considered/determined by councillors;

How can anyone seriously believe burning 60,000 tonnes of waste wood a year near a residential area will not have an effect on “communities, businesses or individuals”?

Their decision is perverse. Moreover, why have they not attempted to publicise this application to the community? And why haven’t they displayed notices at or near the proposed site as required by law?

There’s two reasonable explanations for the pair’s conduct:

1. They’re thick and incompetent and simply do not have the basic reading and comprehension skills required to do the jobs they’re handsomely paid to do.

2. They’re bent and in the pockets of biomass corporations.

While there’s considerable circumstantial evidence – judging by his lack of performance in post over his nine months in Bristol – that BARRA MAC “NUGGET” RUAIRI is a posh, thick incompetent who ain’t up to the job, we also think other avenues need to be explored.

We therefore believe that Bristol City Council needs to start an immediate investigation into this pair for potential breaches of THE BRIBERY AND CORRUPTION ACT.

We also think the city council should inform the police with a view to having the pair’s bank accounts searched for any unusual payments.

Can’t do any harm can it?

THEY ARE SHAFTING AVONMOUTH ON TUESDAY

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On Tuesday October 21 October, Bristol City Council planning officer, ANGELO CALABRESI will rubber stamp under delegated powers a planning application for Balfour Beatty and Nexterra Systems Corp (NXT) to build a 10MW wood burning (BIOMASS) incinerator opposite the old Phil Black Site.

This means that this application WILL NOT even go before a planning committee. Only councillors can now call this decision in to put before a planning committee.

Lib Dem councillor in Lawrence Weston, TIM LEAMAN, has been seeking the assistance of Avonmouth councillors Wayne “DEE” Harvey and Matthew “DUM” Melias. And guess what? They’re dragging their heels.

An Avonmouth resident said, “we need to make the summer protests look like a garden party. Once again we need to wake up the people who think it’s ok to play RUSSIAN ROULETTE with our health and wellbeing and that of future generations.”

The planning application is here. And you can make a comment here. Reasons to oppose the plant include:

· Carcinogenic dust hazard

The plant is stated to burn 60,000 tonnes per annum of waste wood. Boomeco, with whom this plant is stated to operate, at present exports about half this figure from Avonmouth docks. The dust created by the stacking and loading of this current quantity of waste wood already causes significant nuisance and health hazards in Avonmouth. These have already been widely reported in the Press. Wood dust is classified by the World Health Orginisation as a grade 1 carcinogen (causing cancer of the nasal passages.) The proposed handling of double the quantities of wood would continue in the open air, causing a serious, possibly illegal, health hazard.

· Toxic Wood Fuel

The Atkins EIA states (3.2) that the waste wood will not include Grade D waste categorized as hazardous waste and including all grades of wood including treated material such as fencing. Anybody who has visited Days Road or the other Council domestic wood waste reclamation sites – which will provide the fuel – can see that decking, fencing, lead-painted wood etc. containing heavy metals is a standard component. This is not separated out and thus will be included in the fuel. If burnt, these toxic materials will pass through to the ash and flue emissions of the plant. As PM2.5s and nano-particles they can disperse poison over the whole city.

· Source of Fuel too dispersed

This will be trucked from as far afield as Oxford, Wiltshire and Hereford. Wood has a low specific energy content as a fuel – it is bulky for the amount of heat delivered – So transport emissions of greenhouse gases will be high.

· Competition for waste wood Fuel

The Mayor of Bristol has proposed local district heating schemes using waste biomass as fuel. These would compete with Boomeco for the fuel. Other waste-wood plants are proposed and the source of supply may be threatened.

· Greenhouse gas consequences of inadequate supply of waste wood.

Throughout the UK waste-wood power-plants are being built and it is almost certain that the supply of waste wood will not be sufficient to guarantee long-term availability of this fuel source. The companies will be using the fall-back position that they can always import wood pellets/chips. Experience (eg. Drax power station) shows that this wood is likely to come from clear felling old-growth forests in the USA, or plantations that have displaced old-growth forests. DECC have stated that they expect 80 per cent of biomass to be burnt in the UK for power generation will have to be imported. DECC have published figures to show that this fuel is WORSE for greenhouse gas emissions than the current fossil fuel mix for electricity generation. http://www.foe.co.uk/blog/blind-carbon-burning

The sustainability of the fuel source IS a ‘material consideration’ for planning purposes.

· Alternative re-use of waste wood

Wood is a valuable resource. The Bristol Wood Recycling Project state that 25% of scrap wood can be reused. Waste wood can also be used for making chip and particle board. A technology that sees it only as fuel to burn, is an outdated technology that has no place alongside the ambition of Bristol as Green Capital 2015.

· Fire Hazard

The 2012 fire at Tilbury power station in the wood pellet store – which took three days to bring under control and destroyed the storage facility – shows the dangerous nature of storing wood chips/pellets. There are no plans to handle the fuel under an inert atmosphere.

· Dangerous Wood Dust disposal

The plant will not accept ‘fines’ from Boomeco. This is the wood dust which must be removed before the fuel is burnt. This is an explosive and carcinogenic substance. There are no details of how and where the fines will be disposed of by Boomeco.

· Toxic Ash disposal

The ash will contain heavy metals and other toxic substances from the waste wood burnt. There are no details of how and where this will be disposed of.

· The plant is in a flood zone

What precautions will be taken to stop wood fuel, toxic ash etc. from being scattered by a flood?

· Impact on Natura 2000 classified Severn Estuary wildlife refuge.

No figures are supplied modelling the deposition of nitrogen. The deposition already exceeds permitted levels on the reserve, which is less than a kilometre from the site. If the potential impact of the pollutants directly attributable to the installation exceeds 1% of the permitted level, the effect of background concentration, and also the potential effect of all other planned facilities that could contribute the same pollutants, must be assessed. This has not been done. Atkins admit (8.6.1.3)

‘there may be indirect impacts on the ecology and wildlife of the estuary’

· Untried technology.

The company behind this application, Nexterra, and the process they use, have been beset with serious problems, which go far beyond those of ‘conventional’ biomass plants. Recently, Nexterra were forced to close a similarly designed plant in Tennessee because within less than 18 months, the weak acids in the woodgas had corroded key components. Luckily it got shut down without a serious incident. Whereas their similar plant at the University of South Carolina exploded. Which is not an unusual record for this technology.

http://ubyssey.ca/features/ubc-biomass432/

GEORGE FERGUSON: THE LIE

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Here’s George Ferguson on 7 June 2014, just days after removing papers from his Mayor’s Forward Plan proposing to award a large contract to Avonmouth’s green industry polluters, BOOMECO.

“As far as I know we’re not giving any waste contracts to Boomeco.”

18 August 2014: lo and behold! Boomeco is given a new waste contract by Bristol City Council.

GEORGE FERGUSON: “A LIAR AND A CONMAN”

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Cabinet paper from George Ferguson’s ‘Forward Plan’ pulled from the council’s website just days before Ferguson claimed to have “no knowledge” of any plans to award polluters Boomeco any contracts.

By Stephen Norman

Today I had the opportunity to speak with George Ferguson live on a BBC Radio Bristol phone-in.

Once again I see that he is off on a jolly boys self-promotion tour. This time to Bordeaux at the expense, I assume, of the tax payer. During the course of this phone-in he was asked about the Avonmouth group legal action.

He stated it was nothing to do with him and there was only “a few people” involved. When challenged on this statement and how he had come to this conclusion, Ferguson called me “a loudmouth” and then rattled off a few names of Avonmouth residents who he believes are involved in the Avonmouth group action.

So not only is George a narcissistic nutcase but it would appear he is some sort of mystic who can see the future, which in George’s world seems to be fuck knows what.

George then went on to claim, “Only a few weeks ago I was in Avonmouth speaking with the Avonmouth Community Association and they are happy with the things that are being done.”

“But who the hell are Avonmouth Community Association? Nobody’s ever heard of them. There’s an organisation – Avonmouth Community Centre Association – with only THREE trustees that runs a community centre. Why are their views suddenly important?

I will now state again what I said to George Ferguson on the radio: YOU ARE A LIAR AND YOU SHOULD FIND A TYPEWRITER AND WRITE YOUR RESIGNATION.

I’m also happy to add to this statement: you are not only a LIAR but nothing more than a cheap CON MAN.

When Ferguson opened the wind farm in Avonmouth with his little gang of fake green hangers-on, he is on video tape stating that he had no knowledge of any contracts with the serial polluter BOOMECO and that the buck stops with him.

There were witnesses present when he made this statement. Six weeks after the statement, Boomeco were awarded a six figure contract.

George Ferguson I will say it again:

YOU ARE A LIAR. YOU HAVE LIED TO THE RESIDENTS OF AVONMOUTH AND YOU HAVE LIED TO THE CITIZENS OF BRISTOL AND YOU WERE LYING ON BBC RADIO TODAY.

I also extend to you, personally, the opportunity to SUE ME if this is not the case. You are a man with NO HONOUR and NO SHAME. Unlike you I AM PREPARED TO STAND BY WHAT I HAVE SAID.

Address For Service Of Court Papers:

Mr Stephen Norman
15 Antona Court
Antona Drive
Bristol BS11 9RL

BOOM! AVONMOUTH RISING: LEGAL CLASS ACTION TO SINK EUROPEAN GREEN CAPITALISTS?

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Residents in Avonmouth, sick of FEEBLE mayors, FAKE Green cabinet members, BENT council managers, BLIND regulators, GREEDY businessmen, UNACCOUNTABLE port owners, THICK councillors, ABSENT MPs, POINTLESS partnership meetings and the general PANOPOLY OF TOSS they’ve been subjected to while POLLUTING GREEN INDUSTRY wrecks their lives, homes and community are launching a legal CLASS ACTION due to the plague of flies this summer.

The BRISTOLIAN can confirm from its sources that at 11.30am this morning a number of Avonmouth residents obtained legal representation to investigate the possibility of bringing a group action to seek redress for the fly infestation which occurred over the summer months in Avonmouth and surrounding areas.

The BRISTOLIAN‘s source says, “this group action has the potential to grow in to a very large number of litigants and no stone will be left unturned in achieving redress.”

The BRISTOLIAN‘s also been told that “many, many thousands” of people will be able join this action, obtain financial redress and strike a blow for the community of Avonmouth.

A blow that the Mayor, the Cabinet, councillors, MPs, the local authority, regulators and the Bristol Port Company have refused to strike so they can protect VESTED INTERESTS and PROFITS for the few.

So where does this leave the GREEN CAPITAL OF EUROPE? A major legal action is now taking place against one of them for polluting one of their own communities!

An action started on the day it was revealed that useless Green Capital boss KRIS DONALDSON “DUCK” has been SACKED and PAID OFF with OUR public money while Mayor “UNCLE” GEORGE squeaks that as a Green Capital board member he has no knowledge of the amount of money DOLED OUT to Donaldson for failing.

We’ve had the farce; now let’s see the court room drama …

AVONMOUTH COMPOSTING FACILTY

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Another Evading Agency masterstroke of planning. Put thousands of tonnes of SHITE in the open air and mince it up ruining the amenity of thousands of homes and businesses.

When are the EA going to admit they are nothing but a QUANGO and have no experience in managing anything? How many more people’s lives must be RUINED before we collectively get rid of these parasites who do nothing but ponce about painting yellow fishes on drain covers while the country gets flooded with water and waste?

MORE POISONOUS DUST VENTED OVER AVONMOUTH RESIDENTS

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An as yet unidentified farming collective have again been tipping grain on the quayside at Avonmouth under the watchful eyes of the Quay Wall Safety Supervisor without using SUPPRESSION TECHNOLOGY that has taken many years of pressure by residents to actually get provided by the Port to its tenants.

A telephone call was made immediately to the Port Safety Manager who then telephoned an associated minion on the dock itself and you can see by the photos appended to the video that a sub-minion was then dispatched to plug a mister unit, which had not been used, into the water supply. Presumably to save money?

The Port has been contacted many times over this activity and the WILLFUL TRANSGRESSION of the law by the Port’s tenants. Will there be any firm public action by the Port to restore residents’ confidence?

WAYNE “DEE” HARVEY and MATT “DUMB” MELIAS, as elected councillors for Avonmouth also must take action. It is not acceptable to tell residents “to put up with it”; “it’s a dusty port” or “they have been doing it for years” or any of the other bollocks received when residents raise issues with them in regard to law breaking at the Port.