Former Minister for the Environment Thórunn Sveinbjarnardóttir, who is now the parliamentary group chair for the Social Democrats, said the new overall environment impact assessment rules out the construction of an aluminum smelter at Bakki near Húsavík in northeast Iceland.
From Húsavík. Photo by Páll Stefánsson.
The environment impact assessment of the planned smelter, Theistareykir power plant, a second Krafla power plant and a high voltage line concludes that the operations would cause significant and irreversible damage to the environment, ruv.is reports.
However, the assessment is only advisory and Bergur Elías Ágústsson, head of the Nordurthing district council, said there is nothing new in the assessment.
Sveinbjarnardóttir added that the National Planning Agency pointed out in the assessment that it is uncertain whether the energy resources in the area can power such a large smelter.
She decided when she was environment minister two years ago that an overall environment impact assessment should take place.
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