Bjork smoulders at smelting plan

After touring from 18 months Bjork was expecting some well earned rest and relaxation at home in Iceland but the global economic crisis, which has hit Iceland particularly hard, has put paid to that. Bjork, who had earlier in the year performed at a concert in her home country to raise awareness of local environmental issues, started to contact people all over the island to find out how new and greener ways of working were being promoted - only to discover that Iceland’s government was planning to allow two more giant aluminium smelters to be built on the island, in addition to the three already there. Writing in the Times (28/10/08) Bjork passionately argues against the new smelters, economic woe or no economic woe, andding that it seems ludicrous that ‘those responsible for putting Icelanders in this situation are now the ones trying to get us out of it’. Iceland had introduced legislation to ensure environmental impact assessments for new smelting plants or dams, but many MPs are now calling for the legislation to be lifted and this horrifies Bjork who says its hard enough living with the three existing smelters (and trying to get them ‘greener’) without becoming world’s biggest aluminium smelter and points out that a economy wholly based on smelting one metal is as risky as one built on borrowing! Bjork calls out a clarion cry “Lets use the economic crisis to become totally sustainable.  Teach the world all we know about geothermal power plants. Support Icelandic seed companies. Support grass roots. It may take longer to build and deliver profits but it is solid and stable and something that will stand independently of the rollercoaster rides rides of Wall Street and volatile aluminium prices. And it will help Iceland to remain what it is best at: being a gorgeous untouched force of nature.

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