Representation by Jonathan Josephs
- Date submitted
- 30 September 2020
- Submitted by
- Members of the public/businesses
I live in London and for many years have visited my elderly mother in Walberswick, which is a few miles North of Sizewell. I am very familiar with the marshes which run from Walberswick to Minsmere and Sizewell. I am concerned that the construction of Sizewell C will result in traffic congestion that will make it impossible for my mother to get to hospital in an emergency. EDF has predicted that 750 HGVs ,10,000 cars, 700 vans and 700 buses will drive down the A12 each day and that two thirds of these will cross the Orwell Bridge near Ipswich. The nearest hospitals are in Ipswich and Great Yarmouth. Has the impact of the Sizewell project on emergency services been adequately considered? I am also concerned that the tourism industry which is essential to the local community will be decimated by traffic congestion. I am surprised that EDF considers that tourism in EastSuffolk will only be reduced by 24% Has there been any independent verification of that claim? I am familiar with Minsmere and am concerned about its future. The threats that Minsmere faces from the proposal to build Sizewell C are enormous. The RSPB speaks with a measured voice, but if they say that the construction of Sizewell C “could be catastrophic” for the wildlife at Minsmere then I urge you to listen to that voice. The success of Minsmere depends on the water levels and the quality of water in the Minsmere and Sizewell Marshes. Migrant waders feed on the mud flats, rare plants, birds and dragonflies thrive in the marshes and the Minsmere River is home to Otters.EDF will extract vast quantities of water from these marshes, in order to make concrete for one of the largest building projects in the country. More water must be pumped out to keep dry a trench that will be 30 metres deep, and will surround an area the size of a football pitch, in order to provide foundations for the reactors. The construction of a causeway between the Sizewell and Minsmere Marshes is likely to raise water levels in the former and lower it in the latter. EDF has given no information on the dimensions of the sea defences. I am concerned about the long term safety of the site and particularly the lack of plans to store nuclear waste there for 140 years. As sea levels rise the site is likely to become an island at some point in the next 140 years. Shockingly, there is no plan for the long term safety of the site. I support Stop Sizewell C’s submission opposing this project. I consider this proposal too complicated for a digital review.