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Sizewell C: 1,500-strong petition delivered over plans

BBC The petition being handed overBBC
Anti-nuclear campaigners claimed Sizewell C would mean "crippling social and environmental disruption"

A 1,500-strong petition opposing plans for a new nuclear plant has been delivered to a county council leader.

EDF Energy hopes to build the £16bn Sizewell C on the Suffolk coast, next to the existing Sizewell B.

The petition was handed to Suffolk County Council's Conservative leader Matthew Hicks ahead of the authority's cabinet meeting.

Campaign group Together Against Sizewell C (TASC) said the case against the development was "overwhelming".

Chairman Pete Wilkinson said it would force "10 to 12 years of crippling social and environmental disruption on the county".

"It will fundamentally change the way of life in this region, cause people to lose their homes, destroy an area of outstanding natural beauty and leave us with another legacy of lethal radioactive waste," he said.

EDF Sizewell A, B and C modelEDF
A campaign group said the new plant would "fundamentally change the way of life" in the region
Matthew Hicks receives a petition against Sizewell C
The petition was handed to the Conservative leader of Suffolk County Council, Matthew Hicks

The county council and Suffolk Coastal District Council have said while they supported the plant in principle, they were disappointed at a lack of details.

A report which has gone to the county council's cabinet outlines what information the authorities say they need to fully commit to the scheme.

This includes details on how EDF aims to mitigate the effects of a large workforce, of up to 5,000 people at a time, living in the area during the construction of the plant and how it will monitor the impact of the power station on the coast.

Geograph/John Myers Sizewell BGeograph/John Myers
Sizewell C would be built north of the existing Sizewell B plant (blue) and the decommissioned Sizewell A plant (grey, in foreground)

The petition wording said the potential destruction of protected habitats and the plant's proximity to the "crumbling Suffolk coastline" was "totally unacceptable".

It said there should instead be a government-backed programme of energy saving and clean renewable energy which would combat climate change and "avoid the risks of a catastrophic accident, dangers to health and the storage of highly radioactive waste at Sizewell for many years to come".

EDF Energy has said it would continue to work with the local authorities and a wide range of partners to "maximise the economic benefit Sizewell C offers the region".