How about Green France Day?

17 June 2010

Today is apparently 'Green Britain Day', a day brought to you by EDF, or Électricité de France, the big French state-owned nuclear energy company.
 
Together with Greenpeace we’re challenging EDF to “put their money where their mouth is” and cut its own nuclear waste output and polluting coal emissions. After all, EDF is the world’s largest corporate producer of radioactive nuclear waste and one of Europe’s biggest importers of coal for burning in power stations. 
 
At Ecotricity, we could generate enough green electricity for thousands of homes with the millions EDF spent marketing ‘Green Britain Day’ last year. And EDF Energy has spent less than a fiver a year per customer actually building any new sources of green energy here in the UK, compared with our investment of £387*. How green is that?
 
Greenpeace says Green Britain Day is, “a shameless advertising campaign” and “little more than an attempt play the British public for fools. There’s absolutely no way it’s a green company”. We couldn’t agree more.
 
A truly green Britain is only going to happen with action, not empty stunts and gimmicks like this. So come on EDF, how about spending more time and money investing more in real renewable energy sources, and less taking out adverts and paying celebrities?
 
And how about leading by example at home by holding a ‘Green France Day’ soon too? Apres vous, as they say in France.
 
Dale Vince, founder and MD, Ecotricity 

• EDF operates 8 nuclear power stations in the UK, and are the world's largest corporate producer of toxic nuclear waste, behind the US and Canada.
   
• 1% of EDF's generation capacity in the UK comes from Renewables (Nuclear = 66%, Coal = 28%, Gas = 5%)
   
• EDF's electricity generated from their coal fired power stations is responsible for over 20m tonnes of CO2 emissions.
   
• Over the last 6 years, EDF have spent a yearly average of £4.98 per customer building new green energy sources - this puts them in 5th place amongst the 'Big 6'.
   
• EDF have claimed Green Britain Day as their own for the last two years.

*EDF Energy spent £4.98 per UK customer, per year on average 2003-2009, compared with £387.93 by Ecotricity during same period. Zut alors! Source: www.whichgreen.org