If it is up to the Meppel Nature Conservation Watch, the expansion plans from the port to Oevers S will be brushed aside. According to secretary Geert Starre, it will not do Meppel any good if the plans are continued. He is already preparing for the legal time. “We are going to litigate anyway.” Politicians are not yet convinced.
For Starre, there are two arguments against expanding the port to the Oevers S. First, he fears nitrogen emissions during the construction of the port sites and the subsequent use of the site. “Oevers S is an area opposite the Weerribben-Wieden Natura2000 area,” says Starre. “That is already heavily overloaded. There is no more room for emissions. And because a port is not clean in use, it does not stop at construction. Biting through the sour apple is not an option. It is a continuous pollution that you adds.”
He also points to the green belt in the area, between Oevers S and the Berggierslanden residential area. According to Starre, this is a wonderful place for breeding birds and wild plants. “That will be greatly disrupted if you start building port companies here. The bird exchanges with the Weerribben will also change. It is therefore very undesirable for nature. And because judges increasingly agree with nature organizations, it also becomes legally impossible.”
diesel ships
Starre is well aware of the arguments for expanding the port. “They call it a circular port, but I think that is a marketing slogan. Circular means that you handle those materials well and give them a second life. But they are still sailed this way with diesel ships. now what they do there is circular or not. That won’t hold up in court.”
“You also hear a lot of economic arguments,” the activist continues. “It would add employment and prosperity. That is a bad Dutch habit. As soon as someone calls out jobs, everything is fantastic and everyone stops thinking. Nobody looks at nature anymore. That is shortsighted, because there are serious nitrogen and CO2 problems “That is why you should let the industry shrink, instead of giving it more space. Let Meppel look at clean jobs to increase prosperity. Not at these types of companies. If nature is damaged, I will litigate.”
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