Shutterstock
The Court of Appeal has dismissed efforts by environmental campaigners to block the construction of upcoming nuclear power station Sizewell C.
Together Against Sizewell C (TASC) appealed against the government’s decision to grant a development consent order (DCO) last year because it believed it did not assess the environmental impact of its proposals for a water supply.
In November, Sizewell C operator EDF Energy announced plans to construct a temporary desalination plant to provide the project with the water it needs until a connection to the main supply can be secured in the early 2030s.
The project, which is jointly owned by the UK government and EDF, is continuing its discussions with the region’s water companies about building a mains pipeline to provide the power station with a permanent water supply.
On Wednesday, the court rejected the arguments put forward by TASC for the third time, with the judges saying that the government’s approach was “legally impeccable” and that the approach taken by the body could produce “sclerosis in the planning system”.
It has been campaigning since 2013 to stop the construction of two EPR nuclear reactors on Suffolk’s Heritage Coast.
“Sizewell C and all its supporting infrastructure will devastate untold acres of the wildlife-rich Suffolk Coast and Heaths AONB [area of outstanding national beauty] and its SSSI [site of special scientific interest], as well as irreparably damaging RSPB Minsmere. The area, a 30-mile radius around the site, will change from rural tranquillity to brutal industrialisation,” TASC said.
A Sizewell C spokesperson said it welcomed the court judgment and it was now considering the next steps for the project.
“Sizewell C will play a key role in Britain’s clean energy future, and this judgment comes at an exciting phase in the project’s development: following excellent progress of pre-commencement work this year, we’re now looking forward to beginning the construction phase in 2024,” they said.
“Once built, Sizewell C will meet 7 per cent of the UK’s energy needs for at least 60 years, strengthening Britain’s energy security, lowering bills and creating thousands of jobs locally and across Britain.”
Sizewell C has proposed a series of measures to reduce carbon emissions during and after construction of the power station. These include operating a fleet of hydrogen buses to transport workers to the site and the development of a direct air capture facility in Lowestoft, which will extract carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.
