Representation by John Richmond
- Date submitted
- 12 September 2020
- Submitted by
- Members of the public/businesses
my representation will include the following areas of concern General - this power station is too large for the national Grid to cope with - EdF have not yet demonstrated a working EPR and are badly placed financially to deliver this project which was borne out of a time when the future looked different - EdF's consultation was not high profile and the final plans were submitted during the pandemic, they never even planned a meeting in Aldeburgh - Chinese investment is questionable at this time -. EdF admits this project is not carbon neutral until 6 years of operation,2041 at earliest and this depends on it opening on time which none of its EPR have done. - EdF do not have the capability to finance this and no decision should be taken until that plan is put together. The RAB model proposed hits consumers with yet another tax where the payback is not for atLeast 15 years. This power station is too big and will take too much investment away from other projects that could see payback in much less time. Given our perilous financial state and with a likely oncoming set of costly restrictions to fight a second wave, this is too expensive and too many question marks exist over it to plan such a lot of money on this. Ukconsumers will be paying for the pandemic dearly and won't need this tax hike to pay for this esoecially with a very high strike price agreed for the energy produced. - we do not know yet what our energy needs will be come 2035 and given the downturn in demand that led to Sizewell B being turned off for the time being at great expense to the UK consumer this could be a white elephant. Site - the area chosen is on a volatile coastline suffering severe coastal erosion, it is literally next to RSPB Minsmere and sits on top of SSSIs with much varied and unique wildlife which are set to be destroyed by this site. RSPB call the plan catastrophic, - nuclear waste will be buried here until 2150 , on the eroding coastline which is being built so much higher than the existing power stations. The land behind it is low enough to result in this being an island during surge tides -. EdF have not revealed proper plans for mitigation of the environment or the industries destroyed by their construction site. -. Sizewell is now within the Suffolk Coast and Heaths Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. When the land is protected to the point I cannot erect a beehive on my 6.5 acre and are told how high I'm allowed to have my hedges, how can the government expect us to believe that AONB designation means anything at all if this project is given the go ahead, along with the other projects being planned in isolation for this section of coast. - the peace and tranquility of this land will be shattered. The residents will lose the clean air, dark skies and tranquility that this region currently gives them. Infrastructure - East Suffolk is not well enough served by infrastructure to enable this build to go ahead without any significant upgrading to the road and rail network. The preferred plan of upgrading the rail link is now not possible and the least best option that of transporting it all by road is what is left -. Adding 1100 hgvs and 700 buses will gridlock both the A12 and the A14 as well. this is in isolation of the substations for the windfarms being built In Friston at the same time and the remaining expansions of other windfarm substations in Leiston and interconnectors being proposed all during SZC build. - the only road changes are the proposed link road which will relieve the B1122 after two years of construction but will have no longer term future for the area once the build is complete, and the single carriageway bypass around two of the four villages after the dual carriageway at Wickham Market on the A12 narrows to single. This is presumably only because the hgvs cannot get around the Farnham bend and takes a route that is the worst option per the local residents of those villages. With six extra roundabouts the slow down of traffic will make it impossible for Suffolk Coastal residents to leave, trapped between the estuaries. Jobs. The positive Impact on jobs for East Suffolk has been vastly overplayed by EdF. The local jobs are defined as anyone within 90 minutes of Sizewell which covers the whole of East Anglia theSejobs will be low paid low skilled and unsustainable. Importing so many workers from Hinkley Point will Change the sociaL mix of the region and we are forecast to lose 29% of our tourism, the regions most important industry. EdF have not issued any detailed mitgation. Given how cash poor EdF are and how they have to rely on external sources of funding to build this, why do we think that they will ever come up with proper mitigation. Overall the Management of the future of East Suffolk is being left in the hands of the government at Westminster, leaving the local councils powerless to intervene in the area they should be custodians of. 8 NSIPs have the potential for utter devastation given the uncoordinated way in which they are being planned and one of the few truly rural areas of this country with its unique wildlife, geography and landscapes will be lost forever, The people making the decisions have very different motivation from the councils, who's job it is to protect us. Accepting this project as is will be a very sad thing for this country.