Guernsey Press

Alderney - wave power in 10 years

ALDERNEY could be drawing electricity from the sea within a decade.

Published

ALDERNEY could be drawing electricity from the sea within a decade. The States was urged at last evening's meeting to be proactive and not let the project drop.

'I am extra-anxious that we do not put any obstacles in the way at the beginning of this project,' said General Services Committee member Richard Willmott.

'We must not waver on this and should take the first step.'

Offshore technology experts at Cranfield University had said that Alderney possessed some of the strongest tide-induced currents in the world and, if things moved forward within the States, the island could tap into this resource within the next 10 years.

The vote was postponed until next month's meeting to allow for further discussion and clarity.

'We must be absolutely sure about what we're doing as well as understand the multitude of legal issues that will arise with such a project and how they can be overcome,' said States President Sir Norman Browse.

'Then we can look towards taking advantage of this considerable resource that we have.'

Alderney could find itself isolated if it did not move quickly to renovate Braye Harbour in order to comply with maritime and port security regulations.

States members passed an ordinance to take the harbour out of the green belt so that crucial development work could begin.

'We must accept that we have to do what is needed as soon as possible,' said Building Development and Control Committee chairman Ralph Burridge.

'If we don't, we will get into a situation where we won't be able to send ships to Europe and other parts of the UK and we'll gradually be in a situation of isolation.'

In other matters, drivers are now banned from using a mobile phone while on the road.

'It is crucial that we do something to bring us in line with Guernsey and the UK,' said General Services member Barry Pengilley. 'To use a mobile phone while driving is irresponsible.'

Children's road safety is set to be improved after a law was passed that could see the installation of a pedestrian crossing near the junction of Newtown Road with Braye Road, by St Anne's School.

'We have spent a lot of time looking at what could be done to make that area safer for children and came to the conclusion that it would be a good place to install a pedestrian crossing,' said Richard Cox, who sits on General Services.

'I hope that particular crossing will be installed and at least this law will give us the power to do so.'

But Chris Main was against the proposal and argued that education was preferable.

'I think this will open up a can of worms. I think we should be working with the school in educating the children and encouraging them to use the bottom entrance of the school rather than messing around with Newtown Road.'

Mr Willmott called for further consultation before a decision is made.

'Before we install a pedestrian crossing, we need to consult more widely so that everyone has a say about something that's important to all.'

In a bid to crack down on smoking, the States passed a law banning the sale of cigarettes to under-18s.

'This has been brought forward for health reasons,' said Mr Pengilley.

'It's a step forward in educating children about the dangers of smoking. This will now make it an offence to purchase tobacco products for or by a minor.'

States members voted against an ordinance that would allow Nigel Roberts to go ahead with applying to change the use of 13b, Braye Road. Mr Roberts contended that the property had been wrongly designated on the land register.

'I believe that to approve this ordinance will not only effectively undermine the protection offered to prospective C-permit applicants, but will undoubtedly open the door to serious speculation,' said Mr Burridge.

'It is clear from the wording of the sale agreement that Mr Roberts was fully aware of the status of the property when he bought it.

'At the same time, he has also declared that it was his intention to seek to remove the self-catering restrictions associated with the property. The fact that Mr Roberts put his signature to such documents illustrates to me that it was always his intention to use his best efforts to attempt to manipulate the system for his own personal gain.'

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