The extension to the power plant has also been challenged by the Federated States of Micronesia.
FSM said the climate impact of the project has not been assessed, adding that the expansion plan should be dropped.
Greenpeace and the Czech advocacy group Environmental Law Service have also raised numerous objections to the project’s adverse environmental impact.
Williams, who had gone to Prunerov to support this action, said “Pacific nations are endangered by the rising sea levels and rising sea temperatures. Our homes are threatened and the marine ecosystems on which we depend are being damaged. The very existence of whole nations and cultures is at stake.”
He added, “If industrialized countries like the Czech Republic continue to fuel climate change, we Pacific Islanders are doomed. Prunerov is one of Europe’s largest sources of CO2. Extending its life for more than a quarter of century with obsolete technology would be a global shame.”
Greenpeace spokesman Lagi Toribau said major CO2 emitters have to stop living under the impression that their carbon addiction does not have consequence.
“Coal burned on one side of the world is threatening the very existence of countries like FSM and other nations in the Pacific, and it’s not simply a butterfly effect but a direct consequence,” he said.
Coal is the most climate polluting fuel with an almost 80 percent higher CO2 emissions factor than natural gas.
Jan Srytr of the Czech NGO Environmental Law Service commented: “This is the first time a country vulnerable to climate change has taken steps to address the emissions of a coal-fired power plant in an industrialized country…. Other countries should watch the process carefully.”
The action follows the resignation of Czech Environment Minister Jan Dusik, who refused to approve the 25-year extension.
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