Representation by Graeme Bloomfield (Graeme Bloomfield)
- Date submitted
- 27 January 2020
- Submitted by
- Members of the public/businesses
· The Landowners own land at (Redacted), lying to the west of Snape Road, Friston, Saxmundham. · The consequence of each DCO is that SPR is seeking to take some of their land at (redacted) to accommodate a temporary Haul Road, as well as requiring a permanent easement for underground cabling. In addition SPR is seeking other land for use for mitigation of the adverse environmental effects of its schemes. · The Landowners do not object to the principle of the provision of additional offshore wind farm capacity in the North Sea but do not accept that SPR has demonstrated an overriding public interest which justifies the taking and use of their land. · The Landowners contend that alternative routes and site options have not been considered properly. SPR’s proposals will result in unacceptable damage and destruction to a large areas of bio-diverse countryside which is of significant heritage value. The Landowners believe that the process for selecting sites and the route corridor is so seriously flawed that the DCOs should not proceed. SPR’s grounds for dismissing, in particular, the brownfield area at Sizewell adjacent to the cable landing point and National Grid extension are fundamentally unsound and that its rejection simply because of the difficulties in dealing with EDF is a wholly unsatisfactory basis on which proper planning for SPR’s projects should be allowed to proceed. The reality of an AONB designation should be better taken into account, namely existing blight and environmental damage by the car parking, sub-stations and inadequate previous mitigation attempts at the existing power stations. SPR’s initial time scale of 2 years for installation of cables was misleading and has now stretched to 13 years, resulting in a different magnitude of disruption for what is now the only haul route and the location of the largest construction compound. There needs to be a fundamental reappraisal of SPR’s plans. • SPR has not provided sufficient information about the scale of the Eastern Energy Hub nor for plans for future expansion. SPR is seeking the ability to pass rights to third parties which means that continued blight and/or expansion is in mind; this is unacceptable. In addition SPR has not provided sufficient information in consultation documents. National Grid’s major involvement in the scheme with its own substation and relocation of pylons is not noted anywhere in the DCO and has not been subject to proper accountability in the consultation process, which has been poorly managed. These failures must be considered as part of this DCO process. • Inadequate consideration has been given to the transport network, including locations where there are currently problems even for existing traffic (eg, on the A1094 at Friday Street railway bridge, Snape-Watering hill, approaching Wood Lane at Snape and the B1069 at Park Farm Cottages and Bulls Hall Cottages). The proposals will come at a considerable cost to the community by damage to agricultural and tourism industries which will be permanent and not off-set by employment for energy purposes. Compensation is an inadequate remedy for the harm caused to people’s property and livelihoods. · Without prejudice to the foregoing, SPR has failed to provide the Landowners with sufficient information, including in particular, likely timings for works to commence and complete, and depths of cables. This represents a failure to consult properly with and work with the owners of land affected by each DCO proposal. This has exacerbated more general failures in the consultation process, with inadequate information being given to affected individuals and communities. Indeed the consultation process has been so flawed that the DCO process should be stopped and SPR made to re-examine its proposals and then consult properly. · The right is reserved to expand, amend and revise the objection as the DCO processes proceed.