Campaigners have vowed to continue their fight against the "monstrous" Sizewell C nuclear power station on the Suffolk coast despite losing a legal challenge against the plans.
The High Court announced on Thursday that the judicial review brought by Together Against Sizewell C (TASC) had been rejected as being 'totally without merit'.
READ MORE: Campaigners launch legal challenge against Sizewell C planning decision
TASC had launched the review over the environmental impact of the project, particularly the disposal of nuclear waste and the provision of a water supply to the station.
Consent for the £25billion dual reactor project was granted by then business secretary Kwasi Kwarteng in July 2022.
However, the campaigners are now considering whether to appeal against the decision.
READ MORE: Decisions on Sizewell C and wind farms 'could take months'
TASC chair Jenny Kirtley said: "Naturally, TASC is disappointed, but this verdict does not signal the end of our efforts.
"Together with our lawyers we are examining all possible options open to us and can promise our supporters that in one form or another, this campaign will continue.
"The Suffolk Heritage Coast cannot be sacrificed for such an unnecessary and inappropriate development and we will examine every avenue of opposition until all are exhausted".
Representatives of other campaign groups opposed to Sizewell C also spoke of their disappointment.
Paul Collins, chair of Stop Sizewell C, said: "Despite this outcome, Sizewell C is still the wrong project in the wrong place.
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"With investors already wary of Sizewell C's cost and risk, the government should cut its losses, focus on energy efficiency, renewables and storage and make sure the protected habitats of East Suffolk are safe forever."
Rachel Fulcher, from Suffolk Coastal Friends of the Earth, said: “Despite our disappointment, Suffolk Coastal Friends of the Earth will continue to support TASC wholeheartedly in deciding what the next steps should be.
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"Meanwhile, we will continue to focus on saving what we can of East Suffolk's precious wildlife and our beautiful Heritage Coast.”
However, union Prospect, which represents 155,000 public and private sector workers, including in the energy industry, welcomed the news that the High Court had thrown out the legal challenge.
Sue Ferns, the union's senior deputy general secretary, responded to the High Court finding the Sizewell C approval 'lawful'.
She said: “This is a welcome ruling which removes one of the blocks to getting Sizewell C started.
“Nuclear must play an important role in our energy mix as we race to net zero. We now need to get on with building Sizewell C, and secure the jobs, economic benefits and clean reliable energy it will bring.”
The provision of fresh water to the Sizewell C site was one of the key issues raised by the Planning Inspectorate when considering the plans.
At the time of launching the legal challenge in August 2022, TASC chair Pete Wilkinson described the plans as a 'scandalous attack on the Suffolk environment'.
He added: “The case against Sizewell C is overwhelming, as has been carefully documented throughout the inquiry stage and was found by the Planning Inspector to have merit.
“Even to consider building a £20bn+ nuclear power plant without first securing a water supply is a measure of the fixation this government has for nuclear power and its panic in making progress towards an energy policy which is as unachievable as it is inappropriate for the 21st-century challenges we face.”
However, a spokesperson for Sizewell C said for the first nine to 12 months, water would be supplied using water tankers, then a desalination plant drawing its water from the North Sea.
A spokesperson for Sizewell C said: "We are pleased with this judgement, which firmly dismisses the challenge and underlines the confidence the people of East Suffolk can take in our plans for Sizewell C.
"While the project has strong local support, we will continue to listen to the views of all East Suffolk residents as we have done for more than a decade.
"We are as determined as ever that this project will deliver as much long-term benefit as possible to the local area.
"Work at our site will continue to prepare for full construction, which will unlock major benefits for Suffolk and the rest of Britain.
"As well as creating huge numbers of jobs, apprenticeships and investment, the project will lower energy costs for consumers and build a stronger home-grown low carbon electricity system."
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