Sizewell C commits £25m to A12 flood defence work

A flood defence and drainage scheme around the A12 could go ahead after a proposed nuclear power plant committed £25m towards it, Suffolk County Council said.

The authority said funding from Sizewell C meant work on the £59m Benacre and Kessingland Managed Realignment Scheme could be fully completed.

The proposed 3.2GW electricity plant has been granted a nuclear site licence, but is still awaiting a final investment decision by the Labour government.

The council said the defences would "protect the A12, dozens of local homes, hundreds of acres of farmland and give security to the local economy and tourism", while the road would also be one of the main delivery routes for the power station.

The flood project includes the construction of two new pumping stations, drains and embankments between the A12 and the coast.

It would also include the creation of an 80-hectare (200-acre) saltmarsh, providing a habitat for fish, invertebrates, wading birds and other wildlife. Local waterways would also be protected from sea water.

Provisional work has started, with construction due to commence next spring. It is due to be completed by autumn 2029.

The £59m cost would be met by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and other organisations. A commitment of £2m from the county council is due to be put to its cabinet on Tuesday, 8 October.

The Conservative-run council said if the project did not progress, the economic impact could run into "hundreds of millions of pounds, just from the flooding of the A12 alone".

Richard Rout, the council's deputy cabinet member for nationally significant infrastructure projects, said: "If this scheme did not go ahead, the impacts would be genuinely catastrophic.

"The A12 would flood up to twice a day with the tides, essentially cutting the east of the county in two."

Sizewell C said without the works, in a worst-case scenario there could be between 100 to 150 days of flooding on the road every year.

Julia Pyke and Nigel Cann, Sizewell C joint managing directors, said: "We really appreciate the importance of this major coastal protection work and we're delighted to be a part of the long-term solution."

The work would be delivered by the Waveney, Lower Yare and Lothingland Internal Drainage Board.

Various campaign groups have long argued against the construction of the power plant, next to the operating Sizewell B, with concerns over its impact on the environment and other matters.

Follow Suffolk news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.