Residents in a Suffolk village known for its celebrity connections are being given another chance to make their feelings known on plans for underground electricity cables.
National Grid’s LionLink project would see cables connect the UK and the Netherlands’ electricity grids and an offshore windfarm. It could power 2.5 million homes in the UK.
But villagers have questioned whether Walberswick in Suffolk is the right place for the cables to come out of the sea.
The new consultation will look at suggestions such as moving where they emerge to a different part of the village.
The village is home to film director Richard Curtis and his broadcaster wife Emma Freud. Many other celebrities including Ed Sheeran and Keira Knightley have been spotted in the village over the years.
Phil Smith, from the campaign group Walberswick Against LionLink, said the cables would still be too close to “a lot of housing”.
What has been happening with LionLink and Walberswick?
Earlier this year, a statutory consultation was held giving residents the chance to share their views about the project, which would see cables reaching land at Walberswick and a converter station built near Saxmundham, connecting to a substation at Friston.
Around 900 pieces of feedback were received, and the new targeted consultation will focus on specific details.
Concerns were raised about drilling noise and the overall effect on locals.
National Grid Ventures, which is in charge of the project, will hold the consultation from 7 July until 5 August.
Views will be sought over localised changes rather than the full project, giving the public the chance to say what they think ahead of the submission for the development consent order application.
The proposed changes to the plans include:
A different location for landfall (where the cables come out) at Walberswick, positioned further from the village to reduce the effect on residents, public footpaths, recreational areas and the local environment
Updates to the construction area at Lymballs Lane, near Darsham, including a new site for a temporary road to reduce effects on nearby homes and the local ecology
Inclusion of Benhall Railway Bridge within the project boundary to allow potential restoration or support works for large construction deliveries
A series of refinements to access points and project boundaries along the route to improve construction access, safety and environmental mitigation
How do campaigners feel?
Smith said there were still concerns over where the cables would come out in the village, even if the location was moved.
“From what we understand from the limited detail made available [on Wednesday] the moving of the landfall is about 200m west, so it’s still very much in the middle of the village and it’s very close to a lot of housing in the village,” he said.
“So from our perspective at this stage, absent of detail that we’re going to see on 7 July, it doesn’t seem to address any of the concerns that we’ve been raising since the beginning.
“This is their third attempt to choose Walberswick for landfall, and a third attempt just proves how unviable a landfall site at Walberswick is.”
The site where the original LionLink plans had stated where the cables will make landfall near Walberswick [Vikki Irwin/BBC]
Part of the project was expected to run through the bottom of Smith’s garden.
He said the campaign group had concerns about proposals for several days of continuous drilling, while there were other concerns over the impact on the environment and the local community.
Smith also questioned why the next consultation was taking place during the summer when people could be away.
“I am completely in favour of green energy and we do need to address consumption of fossil fuel derived energy,” he continued.
“But the obvious place to go would be an existing brownfield site that could accommodate the project without disrupting the life of local residents or the habitats that would be impacted if it was Walberswick or anywhere else on the Suffolk coast.”
What do National Grid say?
G3 highlights the newly proposed landfall location at Walberswick, positioned further from the village and original landfall location marked G2 [National Grid]
National Grid said it was also looking to reduce proposed construction working hours, with Sunday and bank holiday works no longer routine and taking place only where necessary.
National Grid said the project would help reduce the UK’s reliance on fossil fuels and support the government’s objectives “to create a secure, reliable and affordable energy supply for UK households”.
Alex Marsh, project director, said the earlier feedback had “played an important role in shaping these proposed updates”.
“This targeted consultation is an opportunity to share more detail on the changes we are proposing and to hear further views from communities and stakeholders directly impacted,” he said.
“We are committed to continuing to refine our plans in a way that carefully considers local feedback alongside technical and environmental considerations.”
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