Representation by East Lindsey District Council (East Lindsey District Council)
- Date submitted
- 12 January 2024
- Submitted by
- Local authorities
Planning & Strategic Infrastructure at East Lindsey District Council, The Hub, Mareham Road, Horncastle, Lincolnshire, LN9 6PH. S56 Notification – Relevant Representation – Summary Viking CCS Immingham – Theddlethorpe Reference No. EN070008 We have been engaged with the applicant’s team over a significant period of time and have responded to the previous consultations within which we have identified a number of issues which are relevant to the Council. We have undertaken a review of the submitted documents and would like to make the following comments: • East Lindsey District Council is broadly supportive of the proposals for a variety of reasons including but not limited to: o The proposed use would lead to employment within an area. o The proposal would bring investment and create opportunities for improvement in skills and employment during the construction phase. o The proposals would see carbon dioxide captured and stored in an underground storage facility in the North Sea. Helping the UK Government to achieve Net Zero target by 2050. • East Lindsey District Council does however believe there are a series of issues which require further detail, clarification, analysis or discussion, these include but are not limited to: o Landscape and Visuals; o Archaeology and Heritage; o Environmental considerations including landscape, dust, climate change, waste, ecology and biodiversity; o Noise and Vibration; o Highways and Sustainable Transport; o Public Rights of Way, Recreation and Tourism; o Community impact and maximising opportunities to create a positive legacy for the villages and towns impacted; o Socio-economic benefits. • We provided initial comments on the Statement of Community Involvement and the draft DCO, and its schedules, and have suggested some initial changes. We appreciate that the DCO may need to evolve throughout the DCO process as the applicant seeks to respond to any issues raised. We remain committed to engaging with the process and will seek to work proactively with the applicants to seek agreement on as many matters as possible during the next stages of the process. We hope therefore we can agree Statements of Common Ground and Local Impact Reports which will address these areas of focus. There will no doubt be other issues which arise throughout the examination processes, including feedback from other relevant statutory and non-statutory bodies, as well as partner organisations and local stakeholders. The Council reserves the right to amend its position or comments following analysis of such comments. As a general position statement, the Council remains broadly supportive of the development, and believes that it can have a significant positive impact for the area, subject to any adverse impacts being appropriately eliminated or mitigated. We therefore remain committed to engaging with the NSIP process and would seek to work proactively with the Inspector, the applicants, and wider partners/stakeholders in connection with this project. PREPARED BY – Lindsey Stuart – Principal Planning Officer AGREED BY – Mike Gildersleeves – Assistant Director DATE 12/01/2024