Minister for the Environment Svandís Svavarsdóttir told Vísir that she
doesn’t think it would be wise for Iceland to produce more aluminum.
Svavarsdóttir has recently received a great deal of media attention for speaking out against certain voices within parliament advocating heavy industry. When chairman of the UN Climate Change Committee Dr. Rajendra Pachauri expressed the opinion, during his visit here some weeks ago, that Icelanders should feel proud of their use of green, renewable energy such as geothermal power and hydrodams to power their industries, Svavarsdóttir was asked if her position is not in contradiction to what Pachauri expressed some weeks ago.
To this she replied that if one looks at what Pachauri actually said, he says that if Icelanders have no other choice but to produce aluminum, then they should at least feel good about being able to use green energy to do so. Furthermore, she added, no country should put all their eggs in one basket, and if one wants a country with a green and sustainable future, then aluminum smelters and heavy industry would not be the way to go.
(Photo: verkis.is)