Representation by Jennifer Kirtley
- Date submitted
- 28 September 2020
- Submitted by
- Members of the public/businesses
I am extremely concerned over the proposed building of Sizewell C. Many have responded to 4 EDF consultations and yet still, the DCO is full of unanswered questions. Given the time EDF has been working on SZC, critical issues should have been resolved and it shows many cannot. It is abundantly clear that no amount of compensation or mitigation, will save this unique part of the UK. Rural Suffolk is not Hinkley Point. Concerns. Site Selection: The chosen site is too small for the development. The site is identified on the Environment flood map as under threat. The build will be on an eroding coast. Site could become a nuclear island due to sea rise, a dangerous legacy for future generations. The impact on the AONB, both visually and environmentally will be catastrophic. The entrance to SZC is 2.63km inland from the site. Accommodation blocks. Local Impact Impact on the local community will be great. Leiston has few facilities to cope with a large influx of over 6,000 workers. During the construction of SZB, Leiston was often a no-go area, with far less workers on site. There will be added pressure on local housing. Rents will rise. Tourism may lose up to £40m a year and 400 jobs. A sector already under huge pressure from covid-19. Pressure on staffing for local businesses, especially in hospitality & the care sector in an area of low unemployment, staff & tradesmen hard to find. Roads The eye watering amounts of HGV movements, white van and worker’s journeys is unsustainable for the area. 5 new roundabouts planned for a 10mile stretch on A12, difficult to see how the road will cope, huge increase in holiday traffic in past few months to Southwold & Aldeburgh I live along the A1120. A designated tourist route, busy, winding, rural road already under pressure from the west. A local worry, will be rat runs to northern Park & ride, along roads no wider than a cart track. The B1122, main route for first two years. Small rural road, also used by the farming community, totally unsuitable for up to a 1000 HGV daily movements + vans & buses. Rail strategy Environment: We are blessed to have RSPB Minsmere on our doorstep. When visiting the reserve, it is obvious to see the impact, noise & light pollution will have, cannot be mitigated, or compensated for. The area is silent. Water extraction could alter the surrounding marshes, causing havoc for endangered species. Little detail on where the 2-3 million litres of potable water a day will come from, in driest part of UK. The calculations on fish intake make grim reading. Up to 3.4 tonnes of fish interred & killed in cooling system. Sea rise. EDF have submitted the DCO at a time when it will be impossible for public & relevant bodies to fully engage in the process. With so many unanswered questions it should be halted. DCO: many of the maps are difficult to read and much of the consultation lacks detail.