Representation by Weston Longville Parish Council (Weston Longville Parish Council)
- Date submitted
- 13 November 2022
- Submitted by
- Parish councils
I wish to register Weston Longville Parish Council as an interested party as the planned cable route runs directly through the middle of the Weston Longville Parish. We are a small Parish and this major construction project will have a major impact on residents and the local environment. These include but are not limited to:- The impact of the heavy construction accessing the cable route on unsuitable single carriageway roads, including noise, damage to verges and hedgerows, and wildlife disturbance The volume of construction traffic increasing as it accesses the planned construction compound on the edge of the Parish. The increase in contractor traffic commuting to work at the compound by using the Parish road network which is already overloaded as a rat run from A47 to the Broadland Northway. Environmental damage to trees, hedgerows and wildlife in the Wensum valley SEC. All this at the same time as the New Western Link cuts through the Parish. In addition to the above concerns we also believe that not enough consideration has been given to this project alongside all the other planned and future cable requirements. The Orsted Hornsea 3 project also runs through our Parish on a similar but not parallel route, and initial work has already started. The combined effect of that project with this one will have a major impact on a large area of the Parish. We believe that there must be a coordinated approach of this and all future projects so that there is only one on shore cable route to connect to the National Grid. This can only be achieved by an off shore ring main. To that end we believe there has not been proper consideration by the applicant of an alternative more appropriate grid connection point. National Grid need to be required to attend the Hearings to be interrogated on their actions in the Examination process. It must be recognised in the examination process in relation to the work of the OTNR that SEP and DEP is not an “inflight” project. This project should include a cumulative impact assessment of the onshore impacts of SEP/DEP’s landfall, substation and cable corridor construction, when considered alongside the already consented Hornsea Three, Vanguard and Boreas projects. It should also include the cumulative impact of the possible future construction of large battery storage facilities to improve the economic viability of the project, as has happened with the Hornsea Three project.