Work is about to start on £1.5 million of flood defences to replace a century-old structure on the North Promenade in Cleethorpes.

Nearly 12,000 tonnes of rock will be delivered from Norway for the work – each rock size being up to four tonnes in weight.

The Environment Agency has secured £1.5 million to replace the the timber breakwater at the northern end of the North Promenade, next to Wonderland.

The area was left devastated by floods in 1953, when storms battered the Lincolnshire coast, destroying 24,000 homes.

Wonderland and the promenade were left in tatters, with wooden structures turned into matchsticks by the fierce storm and the Arcadia swept away.

Work will now start on Monday, April 24, to replace the existing timber groyne with a Y-shaped groyne made from rocks.

Officials say this is the most effective shape for the tidal movements around the area and is the most cost-efficient in terms of long-term maintenance.

The new groyne will be half the length of the existing one, which will be refurbished as part of the scheme, and the work will take about 10 weeks to complete.

The groyne plays an important role in maintaining sand levels on the beach to reduce the impact of the waves on the sea walls, protecting this area of Cleethorpes from flooding.

Councillor Dave Watson, portfolio holder for the environment, said: “The 100-year-old groyne has come to the end of its natural life and is due for replacement.

“The new groyne is the most cost-efficient in terms of construction and on-going maintenance and additionally has been designed to re-establish the sand levels in this area.”

The remaining groynes between Wonderland and the Pier will also be partially refurbished as part of this project, with new timbers installed to prolong the groynes’ residual life.

(grimsbytelegraph)

The Swedish and Norwegian governments have come to an agreement allowing the former to extend its renewable energy target to 18TWh by 2030.

Norway and Sweden have been operating a common market for electricity certificates since 2012; however, this has caused somecomplaints of an uneven playing field.

Last year, Sweden’s political parties agreed a long-term strategy to develop a 100% renewable energy system by 2040. To do this, it proposed an increase in the renewable target, something Norway did not want to do.

This had caused uncertainty in the sector, which the Norwegian Wind Energy Association (NORWEA) said had affected energy prices in the country.

A new deal between the two countries has been reached, which will allow Sweden to increase its quota to 18TWh by 2030. Currently, the common market is targeting 28.4TWh of renewable energy by 2020, with Sweden aiming for 15.2TWh, and Norway providing 13.2TWh towards the target.

Norway will retain the target from the original agreement, even though Sweden is increasing its aim. In April 2016, the Norwegain government unveiled plans to end its certificate system from 2021, which NORWEA criticised as being “premature”.

Under the new agreement, Sweden will also devise a “stop mechanism” which will set a limit on when new projects can qualify for the scheme once the target has been reached.

“We have been through a period of great insecurity, which has reflected on prices in recent weeks. The provisions in today’s agreement as well as a constructive effort to enact the agreement, should ensure that we land on an even keel before summer,” said NORWEA.

Despite not increasing its target, Norway has pledged to increase support for renewable energy. In early April, the government proposed doubling funding to NOK 1 billion (€109.7 million) by 2019.

(windpowermonthly)

Recycling technology provider TOMRA celebrates its 45th anniversary. Since its launch on April 1, 1972, TOMRA has developed from a pioneer in automated recycling technology to a multi million Euro turnover company today offering a wide range of sensor based solutions.

Starting in a small shed in Asker, Norway, the brothers Petter and Tore Planke created a solution to a problem: a local grocer wanted an automated machine that could quickly and easily take back used, empty bottles for recycling, and so TOMRA was born. By the end of 1972, the company had installed 29 machines in Norway, and their successes quickly began to generate interest abroad.

During the first 30 years of its history, TOMRA focused on growing its reverse vending business in markets with deposit systems for beverage packaging. In the year 2000, the company began developing a more comprehensive business platform. Through a number of ‘strategic’ acquisitions during the past two decades, TOMRA has become a major provider of optical sorting technology for a broad range of materials.

In 2016, TOMRA noted record revenues of Euro 710 million. TOMRA’s sensor-based solutions are used today in reverse vending, recycling, mining and food sorting. Recycling applications include numerous waste streams and metals in which optical sorters support plant operators with recovery and sorting of valuable secondary resources.

‘Our growth is due in part to the growing understanding that the world needs to utilise its natural resources in a better way to ensure sustainability’, comments TOMRA’s ceo Stefan Ranstrand. ‘We are proud of the success our company has achieved so far, and look forward to building on this in the years ahead as we continue to develop cutting-edge solutions for helping our customers meet their business needs and contribute to a better and more sustainable future.’

(recycling international)

Norway has arrested a ship which had to be rescued as it fled to a notorious South Asian recycling yard following a tip off that it had been sold illegally.

The Norwegian environmental authorities have arrested a ship following a tip off that it had been sold illegally and was destined for breaking in a dirty and dangerous South Asian recycling facility.

NGO Shipbreaking Platform and its member organisation Bellona explained that the vessel, is not allowed to leave Norway unless it is to sail to a ship recycling destination in line with international and European hazardous waste laws. According to the Norwegian Environment Agency, it is the first arrest of a vessel in Norway for the illegal export of hazardous waste..

The Platform explained that it had been informed already during the summer of 2015 that the ship was sold for scrap.

Having been laid up for many years on the Norwegian west coast the Platform said that it immediately contacted the Norwegian owners, Eide Group, to make them aware of the laws governing end-of-life ships and that exporting the vessel to a South Asian beaching yard would be in breach of the European Waste Shipment Regulation and the UN Basel Convention. Eide Group was said to have denied then that the vessel would be scrapped.

According to Shipbreaking Platform on 22 February 2017 the vessel attempted to leave Norway under a new name, flag and registered owner.

Now called TIDE CARRIER, the ship was said to have swapped its flag to that of Comoros and was registered under an anonymous St. Kitts and Nevis based post-box company, Julia Shipping. The organisation said that these are all solid indications that a cash buyer, a scrap dealer specialised in the trading of end-of-life ships to the South Asian beaching yards, was involved.

Drama on the High Seas
The TIDE CARRIER however ran into difficulties as the engine stopped working outside the Norwegian coast of Jaeren. The coastguards were forced to trigger a salvage operation, complicated by way of the weather conditions, to avoid the risk of oil spill and grounding close to one of the most renowned beaches in Norway.

The rescue operation included the emergency evacuation of five crew members – one of which suffered from a broken shoulder – and the deployment of two tugboats to bring the ship to safety.

Norwegian authorities have since then been trying to trace the owner and insurer of the vessel, given that someone should be held accountable for the costs of the rescue operation incurred by the Norwegian state.

While the authorities investigated the ownership and condition of the vessel, it remained docked in Gismarvik, Norway.

“We immediately informed Norwegian authorities that the ship was most likely sold for scrapping in South Asia and also that there were suspicions that the ship had been used to store hazardous sludge,” said Ingvild Jenssen, director at the NGO Shipbreaking Platform.

The Platform added that on Monday 4 April the Environment Agency and the Police found evidence that the vessel was under a “break up voyage” insurance from Norway to Gadani, Pakistan. They were also said to have found unidentified and excessive amounts of sludge and fuel oils.

What’s in a Name?
According to the NGO the previous week, while the vessel was still in the dock, the TIDE CARRIER changed name to HARRIER and changed from Comoros to another popular end-of-life flag – Palau.

Consequently, it was said to have became clear that the repair contract from Oman which had been provided to the Norwegian authorities as a way to escape checks for the illegal export of the vessel was false. Revelations of the attempt of the ship’s illegal export and subsequent breaking on the Gadani beach resulted in the arrest of the ship.

Shipbreaking Platform warned that this is not the first time cash buyers have sought to circumvent environmental protection laws by providing fake contracts of repair or further operational use.

Recently the Norwegian owned CITY OF TOKYO was said to have been allowed to leave the port of Antwerp under the pretence of repair work in Dubai – instead it sailed directly to the infamous beaching yards in Bangladesh.

The FPSO NORTH SEA PRODUCER was also said to have been illegally exported from the UK to Bangladesh under the pretence of further operational use in Nigeria. Cash buyer GMS reportedly used grey- and black listed Paris MoU flags and established anonymous post box companies in both cases.

“The cash buyers of TIDE CARRIER will not only have to pay back the Norwegian authorities for the rescue operation, but will also have to answer for the fake repair documents which were used to let it sail in the first place,” said Jenssen.

Norwegian owner Eide will have to be held responsible for having sold to a cash buyer as this clearly indicates their complicity in the attempt to illegally export the ship and the potentially toxic excess sludges and fuels found on board,” she concluded.

NORWAY WAS JUST named the happiest country on earth by the United Nations World Happiness Report 2016 Update, which ranks 156 countries by their happiness levels.

This is the fourth Happiness Report and uses happiness, personal experience and general well-being as indicators of the quality of human development.

One of the main findings of the World Happiness Report is the people are happier living in societies where there is less inequality, and that inequality of well-being can increase inequalities in societies.

So, why are we so happy?

So what about Norway? Why are we so happy? On a personal level I feel very grateful to have been born in Norway.

Of course we are happy in Norway. We live in a peaceful and secure country with a strong and stable economy. But what makes Norway and the other Nordic countries unique is the equality and inclusiveness in our societies.

For example, we have dropped all the polite forms expressing hierarchy in language, and nobody would be addressed as “Sir” or “Madam” in Norway. This makes us all feel more equal.

More importantly, there is a consensus among all political parties to continue supporting a welfare system for all citizens with free education (including higher education), a free health service and a policy that promotes inclusiveness for all, including people with special needs.

When you don’t have to worry about what will happen if you get sick or you need childcare for your kids while you are working, you will have less stress in your life. Ultimately this will mean that you will be happier.

I think that happiness is very much connected with you feeling that you and your family are safe and will be taken care of. And Norwegians know that we can rely on our State to help us if things go wrong.

My life has been very much influenced by the Norwegian welfare system and the policy of gender equality. I have had long maternity leaves and my children have been in excellent kindergartens.

My husband and I have had the privilege of flexible working hours, so one of us could always drop the children to daycare in the morning and pick them up in the afternoon.

When the children were small I worked from home in the evenings, after they’d gone to bed. This was very demanding sometimes, but a job is so much more than just a salary. Having a job means that you have a strong sense of your own identity and a job gives you your own financial independence.

The strong focus on gender equality might be one of the main reasons behind Nordic happiness. Gender equality in Norway is not only about women’s rights, but increasingly about the position of men in the family and in broader society too.

The thinking in Norway is that women’s equality cannot be achieved without greater participation of men in childcare, and that fathers have a right to be present in their children’s upbringing. Fathers now have specific paternity leave when a baby is born. Shared custody between mother and father is the norm in Norway now too.

Norway isn’t perfect

Norway is not perfect. We have our own problems, even if they are less severe than the problems other countries have.

We do not boast and we never express our happiness openly. In fact we might be seen from the outside as being cold and a little boring.

But the Happiness Report clearly documents that happiness is not about the price of a pint of beer, going to fancy restaurants or buying yourself the latest fashion.

Happiness is about normal, everyday life, and how we are included and integrated in the society we live in. And I think that is the secret of happiness.

Else Berit Eikeland is the Ambassador of Norway to Ireland.

(thejournal)