Campaigners fighting proposals for a new nuclear power station on the Suffolk coast claim drone footage of Hinkley Point shows what a “massive, life-changing, countryside-destroying intrusion” Sizewell C would be.
Together Against Sizewell C (TASC) says the film of work taking place on the £19.6billion project to build Britain’s first new nuclear plant for more than 20 years shows the dramatic scale and impact of the project.
TASC chair Pete Wilkinson said: “The actual scale and impact of the proposed development at Sizewell has never been fully explained to the public and they have never been asked if they support it or oppose it.
“It has always been disingenuously described by politicians as an inevitability which it is not: new nuclear is a choice not an imperative. We can and should say ‘no’ and be given the opportunity to tell our politicians that we reject this monstrous plan.
“This footage gives us the evidence on which to base an informed view about the Sizewell development and shows the fate that awaits this area if EDF get their way. This two minute film does what EDF and the government have been unwilling to do for five years – to show us just how Sizewell C will utterly devastate a huge area of Suffolk on a scale that we cannot even think about tolerating.
“TASC calls on every Suffolk resident to join the fight against Sizewell C, to write to their MP, to their elected local officials and to every newspaper and journal to express their refusal to submit our treasured countryside to the tyranny of EdF’s bulldozers for the purpose of building what will be a huge mistake, a carbuncle of a white elephant on our eroding Suffolk coast.
“We have to fight this development to protect the culture and the very soul of East Suffolk.’
The group said the film showed The footage shows clearly that Sizewell C is not something just happening ‘at Sizewell’, and neither will the effects be avoided by the creation of a relief road or a by-pass. It shows, on the contrary, what a massive, life-changing, countryside-destroying intrusion into the lives of thousands of Suffolk residents Sizewell C will bring, creating a fundamental shift towards industrialisation of a rural area which supports a highly lucrative tourist industry.
An EDF spokeswoman said: “The Sizewell C proposals are being developed with the highest regard for the environmental sensitivities of the local area. EDF Energy went through the same robust process for Hinkley Point C, which is a very different site in terms of landscape and size. It is therefore important that we continue the ongoing dialogue with local communities in Suffolk about how Sizewell C will be developed.
“EDF Energy continues to carry out survey work and consultation in the local area to understand environmental conditions and to identify potential effects of the Project and mitigation measures. Despite it being very early in the process and well ahead of a development consent to build Sizewell C, EDF Energy has already created a wildlife habitat to help compensate for some limited potential land-take from Sizewell Marshes SSSI should Sizewell C be developed. The company and its Essex based contractor CA Blackwells have turned 67 hectares of arable land, into a thriving wildlife habitat.
“EDF Energy’s Aldhurst Farm project won recognition in the national Considerate Construction awards scheme, with a bronze accolade for its safe construction working practices at Aldhurst Farm and the level of its engagement about the project with people in the Leiston area.
“We continue to meet with community leaders on this important site, with our community team updating Leiston Town Council next month.”
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here