FANTASTIC NEWS – DERBYSHIRE COUNTY COUNCIL VOTES TO OPPOSE PEAK CLUSTER.
Thank you to Independent Whaley Bridge Councillor Ruth George who proposed the motion.
This marks another significant step in the fight against Peak Cluster. Although the final decision rests with the Government — specifically Ed Miliband and the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero — this is now the second council, alongside Wirral Borough Council, to formally register its opposition. Their stance sends a clear and powerful message: communities do not want this damaging project forced upon them, and we stand united in resisting it.
The Council voted overwhelmingly 41 to 4 (with 7 abstentions) to in favour of the motion part of which read:
“Low-lying communities such as parts of Whaley Bridge and Peak Forest and busy places such as Chapel-en-le-Frith High School and Tesco superstore in Whaley Bridge are directly below the route of the proposed pipeline.
Any rupture could fill these areas with CO2 which is deadly at a concentration of 4% or higher. The Health & Safety Executive is currently working with academics and industry on Project Skylark to research CO2 dispersal in valleys and propose regulations for CO2 pipelines in hilly terrain.
Their report is due in 2028 and any further legislation would then need to be enacted. However, Peak Cluster is looking to proceed at speed to gain planning consent and begin building in early 2029 – before the full regulatory framework.
Until Project Skylark and further regulations are complete, DCC cannot fulfil our duty to require plans to comply with necessary regulations and to plan a safe emergency response. We cannot support a project where people may be endangered and first responders immobilized.”
You can read the full motion here:
Watch the debate and vote on Youtube from 2hrs 14 min 40 secs https://www.youtube.com/live/GqqXdMJALnc?si=cJ6O27q0eFGvKPVF
Together we are Stronger! Thanks for all your support.