Cable project 'an act of vandalism' – campaigner

A campaigner has described the government's decision to approve a new undersea electricity cable project as "an act of environmental vandalism and community vandalism".

The Sea Link project involves a nearly 90-mile (144km) cable linking the Suffolk coast between Thorpeness and Aldeburgh with Pegwell Bay in Kent, carrying electricity from offshore windfarms, interconnectors and nuclear power stations

Fiona Gilmore, from Suffolk Energy Action Solutions (SEAS), said it would lead to "years of devastation, disruption, loss of tranquillity, loss of the beauty of this landscape, and loss of our tourism industry".

National Grid said it took its environmental responsibilities "very seriously".

It said the scheme would enable it to meet rising energy demands, and that it had consulted on it for three years.

The scheme includes a substation at Friston, near Leiston. Gilmore said: "They have chosen this perfect little village by the coast of Suffolk for this extraordinary industrial zone - and that is where it all went wrong.

"We have fought very hard for eight years to present better solutions at sea and they have not been listened to at all."

She said £3.2bn could be saved for taxpayers if the scheme was scrapped, while it would cost about £300m to upgrade existing pylon corridors instead.

Conservationists in Kent have also raised concerns that the plans could impact wildlife, sensitive coastal habitats and the wider landscape.

Suffolk County Council said it was "extremely upsetting" that residents faced years of disruption and concerns had been ignored.

It said it had made objections to the Planning Inspectorate and submitted detailed evidence about Sea Link's potential impact on local communities, infrastructure and the environment.

Tristan Gale, Reform UK cabinet member for planning, said: "We are deeply disappointed that the voices of local residents, parish councils and local authorities have ultimately been disregarded.

"Our focus will now be on holding National Grid to every commitment made during the examination process and ensuring local communities receive the protections, mitigation and accountability they were promised."

National Grid said the scheme would be capable of carrying enough electricity to power the equivalent of two million homes.

It is designed to transport up to 2GW of low-carbon electricity from where it is generated to homes and businesses elsewhere in the country.

The government said the scheme would help ease pressure on the electricity network.

It said the project would support efforts to improve energy security and cut reliance on fossil fuels.

When asked by the BBC how much the scheme would cost, Adrian Morris, National Grid's deputy project director for Sea Link, refused to say, adding that this was being assessed by Ofgem.

But he said the scheme would be vital to the national infrastructure.

"We're all using more energy and more power to power our homes, businesses and schools," he said.

"If we want to meet that demand we need to build more projects like Sea Link, which is part of the Great Grid Upgrade, and it is going to enable us to carry more clean, secure homegrown power from where it is generated to where we need it most."

Construction on the project is expected to start next year.

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