Representation by Jan Packard
- Date submitted
- 9 December 2019
- Submitted by
- Members of the public/businesses
Siting of proposed substation at Friston to accommodate EA2 and EA1N wind farms will have a devasting effect on people’s lives, and countryside in Suffolk Large areas of AONB will be destroyed and will have devastating impact on tourism, our business included. No alternative long term employment will replace this. Already dangerous and overcrowded country roads will become impossible with an increase of up to 1500 vehicles per day. We understand this is the first of 7 proposed schemes for the area. PLEASE Pause all energy projects off the east coast whilst a cohesive plan is devised in the form of an offshore ring main to bring energy ashore and minimise damage to our beautiful coastline. As Interested Parties in the proposed Scottish Power EA1N and EA2 projects, we are writing again to highlight our grave concerns for the future of Coastal Suffolk and to add our support to the representations being made by SASES. As residents of Knodishall, whose property and holiday accommodation business is situated contiguous to a section of the cable route/haul road and in close proximity to a proposed site compound, the siting of the Friston sub-station is going to have a devasting effect on our lives and business. Our guests, along with the majority of visitors to the Suffolk Coast, choose our properties for their tranquil location with unspoilt views, dark skies and ease of access. All of this will disappear with the above project and the siting of the haul road and compound within metres of our boundary. Access to our property, will at times be closed off whilst initially constructing the haul road and subsequently very difficult with the continual movement of construction traffic. The impact to routes leading to our property and the Suffolk Coast will be catastrophic. The addition of 100 HGV movements a day along the already overloaded A1094 Aldeburgh Road will be dangerous and off-putting to visitors. Relative ease of access to the Suffolk Coast is a contributing factor to the area being chosen as a destination. Given that EA1N and EA2 are not the only projects proposed for the area, in what seems to be a disjointed and inefficient energy plan, the cumulative effect on people’s lives, tourism and the environment is going to blight our beautiful Suffolk Coast for many years. The location and timing of these and inevitable subsequent projects needs to be carefully considered. The hardships inflicted on the environment and the inhabitants of Coastal Suffolk can be mitigated and current projects must be paused whilst other alternatives, such as offshore ringmains, are considered. Lives in Coastal Suffolk should not be destroyed for the sake of the nation.