Representation by Butley, Wantisden & Capel St Andrew Parish Council (Butley, Wantisden & Capel St Andrew Parish Council)
- Date submitted
- 11 September 2020
- Submitted by
- Parish councils
Dear Sirs, RE: THE CONSTRUCTION OF SIZEWELL C The Butley, Capel St Andrew and Wantisden Parish Council has debated the issue of building a significant nuclear power station within eight miles of our villages and has agreed unanimously that we oppose the building of this expensive nuclear installation. We can see few positive attributes for this but many negatives. The reasons are : POOR ECONOMIC RETURN/UNCERTAIN COST CONTROL Economically speaking, the cost of the construction and units of electricity and the aftermath of the nuclear installation will all be much higher. SINCE THE IDEA WAS FIRST FLOATED THERE HAS BEEN A MASSIVE REDUCTION IN THE COST OF RENEWABLE SOURCES OF ENERGY. The proposed cost per unit is high and if the over-run in costs as experienced from previous French constructions has to be added in then the costs will be higher still. Nuclear plants built by the French system have an average life of only fifty-six years! The plant then cannot be touched for several centuries so future generations are stuck with this white elephant for years. You will I am sure have seen the recent damning report by the French auditors report on EDF and their various attempts to construct nuclear power stations to any form of accurate budget and timescale in either their country or ours. Surely the last thing we need is them to destroy the fabric of the Suffolk Heritage Coast by embarking on another Hinckley Point? Suffolk is already benefiting from the success of large scale off-shore wind farms in a vastly more cost effective and efficient way of producing electricity. Furthermore, as a country we need to become more aware of the ever increasing influence of China who are also involved with these energy projects: look at the recent Huawei U turn. THE LOCAL ENVIRONMENT The last thing we need is to destroy the fabric of the Suffolk Heritage Coast by embarking on another Hinckley Point. Suffolk is already benefiting from the success of large scale off-shore wind farms which are a vastly more cost effective and an efficient way of producing electricity. Following the Huawei episode and the exposing of the vulnerability of this country to unwelcome pressures, we need to become more aware of the ever increasing influence of China, who is a partner in this design and construction. The damage to our fragile Heritage Coast with massive movements of vehicles together with the building of a large number of properties for construction staff will be immense and will profoundly affect the tourism industry. Of course, we also have concerns about the size of the roads. At a time when we are seeking to reduce emissions of CO2 it seems absurd to significantly increase the number of traffic movements for ten years. However, with wind farms being a more positive option, they could be serviced from the ports of Great Yarmouth and Lowestoft greatly increasing business opportunities in an area of low economic value but not diminishing the tourism industry, while not clogging our ill-equipped roads with massive lorries, delivery trucks and commuting workers with the inherent pollution. VULNERABILITY OF OUR COASTLINE The coastline and countryside of East Anglia are very important to us all. It is a very vulnerable coastline and has seen massive changes over the past centuries and even decades. The disappearance of Dunwich and the flooding of 1953 are all relevant. Even now we see Orford Lighthouse, only a few miles from Sizewell and for centuries considered safe, is about to fall into the sea and is having to be rescued and moved inland. You would not be able to do the same to a live fusion plant which will be active for centuries during its cooling down phase. What safeguards do we have to avoid such a catastrophe? THE FUTURE INHERITANCE Future generations looking back will consider any decision to go ahead with such a questionable project as totally wrong. They will have as a consequence of this decision a nuclear plant sitting on a vulnerable coastline which they cannot touch for 200 years, producing highly expensive energy with little direct benefit to the locality when there were better alternatives. They will question why it was allowed to happen to Suffolk and who was responsible. So, we would implore you on our behalf, and that of future generations, to raise your voice to call for the end of the idea of building such a terrible installation with all its attendant negatives in such a wonderful place. Yours sincerely, Cllr David McGinity on behalf of Butley, Capel St Andrew and Wantisden Parish Council.