Hundreds join march against Derbyshire carbon capture pipeline scheme
Campaigners walked the pipeline's proposed 128-mile route from the High Peak to the Wirral
Derbyshire campaigners joined hundreds of protesters marching against the controversial Peak Cluster carbon capture scheme, citing safety and environmental fears.
Peak Cluster, made up of cement and lime producers in Derbyshire and Staffordshire, plans to capture carbon dioxide from four plants in Buxton, the Hope Valley and near Cauldon, transporting it via an underground pipeline.
Action Against Carbon Capture Storage organised the "PipeWalk" relay on 27th September, tracing the pipeline's proposed 128-mile route from the High Peak to the Wirral.
Derbyshire County Councillor Ruth George, who represents Whaley Bridge and Chapel-en-le-Frith, said people turned out because "they care about something much bigger - our environment, our ecology, our wildlife".
"Despite corporate assurances, major questions remain unanswered regarding the long-term environmental impacts and financial risks of the Peak Cluster project to the public purse," Cllr George said.
The scheme would carry CO2 from cement and lime plants through Derbyshire, Staffordshire, Cheshire and Merseyside, to a storage site beneath the Irish Sea.
Peak Cluster says the project will secure jobs and Britain's cement industry, while preventing more than three million tonnes of CO2 entering the atmosphere each year.
But campaigners have raised concerns over pipeline safety, ecological damage, and the impact of large above-ground installations planned for Dove Holes and Chapel-en-le-Frith.
Organisers said nearly 1,000 residents across five counties took part, travelling on foot, by bike, in a tractor convoy, and even with a rocking horse.
Peak Cluster CEO David Parkin said pipelines have safely transported gas and liquids in the UK for more than a century, and that the scheme will be robustly regulated.
The government has pledged £28.6 million towards the £59.6 million project, with Peak Cluster aiming to submit a Development Consent Order application in 2027.
Further consultations on route changes are planned for November and January.