Cornwall's Eden Project is under  sustained fire for supporting the French energy giant EDF Energy.  EDF is promoting something called Team  Green Britain Day, an annual event to promote a more sustainable lifestyle. 

The project is being promoted in  association with the Eden Project to the surprise of environmentalists.

EDF Energy is the  largest producer of nuclear energy after the  US and Canada and is  determined to saddle the  UK with more  reactors under the cloak of low carbon energy whilst asking the Government to  cut its renewables targets.

What's more, EDF Trading, which is based in  London, advertises itself as "one of  the largest participants in the global coal market" .

"Hardly the stuff  of sound environmental credentials", Mike Rigby of anti-nuclear campaign group  Stop Hinkley said.  "It really is very  rich forEDF, the biggest global corporate producer of nuclear waste and one of  the worst carbon polluters in the world, to be lecturing the  UK on how to  save energy while demanding a reduction in  UK wind power  targets."

The Eden Project  has established itself as a first class environmental attraction and it is  therefore bizarre that it has chosen to provide EDF with a green figleaf for its  climate sins.

Jim Duffy (pictured),  coordinator of Stop Hinkley was shocked to see  Eden's name associated with EDF and  its rhetoric in today's Times.   "EDF Energy is about as far from green  as it's possible to get".  he  said.  "They would do better to get  out of coal and stop trying to foist new nuclear on us in the UK, than trying  to paint themselves in green colours.  The British people are not stupid and will see through this facade." 

The Eden Project has been inundated with  messages of protest from disappointed individuals, environmental campaigners and  pressure groups such as Parents Concerned About Hinkley 

Further irony is  heaped on Eden' s decision to support  EDF by the fact that a Cornish site only five miles from  Eden was actively considered for the siting of a nuclear power plant, a plan that was ultimately rejected after the celebrated Battle of Luxulyan. 

"I wonder how the Eden Project would feel about EDF if such a plan were  resurrected?" questioned  Duffy.

After a little  delving into the structure of the Eden Project, its support for EDF is perhaps  less surprising.  Of the five Trustees,  ywo are Rolls Royce's Chairman and its Chief Executive.  Rolls Royce has made no secret of its  desire to get involved with any programme of new nuclear build in the UK. 

On top of that Eden's Board includes  a Director of Sir Robert McAlpine, a construction company that lists major  projects at Sellafield
Nuclear Waste Reprocessing Facility and Hinkley Point  nuclear power station in Somerset amongst its "achievements". 

Yet another Eden Board Member was previously Chief Executive of the South West Development Agency (SWRDA) a body embroiled in the controversial donation of £1.9m of taxpayers money to a nuclear skills education project in  Somerset, an act that has been  reported to the Audit Commission by Stop Hinkley.

"The Eden Project  looks to have been thoroughly infiltrated by nuclear industry supporters so  perhaps it's no surprise that they are supporting EDF, the world's largest  generator of nuclear power"  said Duffy.

He added: "In order to protect its  reputation, the Eden Project needs to urgently rethink its support for EDF  Energy.  It should also clarify its  position on nuclear energy. Does it, like the Sustainable Development  Commission, see it as unnecessary or like the employers of many of those on its  Board see nuclear energy as a good business opportunity?"

In a separate  development, green electricity generator Ecotricity has threatened legal action  against EDF over use of the Green Union
Flag as part of its Team Green  Britain campaign.  The image has  long been used by Ecotricity in its marketing campaigns for three years. 

 EDF's apparent appropriation of the  image has erroneously led some Ecotricity customers to Eden Projectbelieve that they too  were supporting EDF greenwash.

For Radiation Free Lakeland, Marianne Birkby said: "This advert is blatent propaganda by EDF whose PR man is the Prime
Minister's brother Andrew Brown.  Britain is not France and nuclear is not 'green'  Write  to the Advertising Standards Agency  at
http://www.asa.org.uk/ to object to this nasty nuclear confidence trick."

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