Worrying that the Government pledges £1.7bn public to new nuclear plant!

Hi everyone.

Thank you for your concern regarding RSPB Minsmere and Sizewell C. We want to start by saying that we, united with Suffolk Wildlife Trust, are in a position against Sizewell C given our ongoing environmental concerns.

Whilst the government have committed £1.7 billion to Sizewell C, we feel it is important to explain that the project has not yet been approved. The project is currently going through a Development Consent Order process which you can read more about here: infrastructure.planninginspectorate.gov.uk/.../. The Examination concluded on the 14 October 2021, and the Planning Inspectorate will be reporting with recommendations to the Secretary of State over the next couple of months, then Secretary of State will then have a further three months to look at the evidence presented by the Planning Inspectorate and make a final decision. We expect that decision to happen by 14 April 2022.

The RSPB has been engaged with the Sizewell C application for over a decade. EDF have held five public consultations from 2012 to 2020 on their proposals for Sizewell C. The RSPB were heavily involved in each consultation stating our concerns for nature.

In 2019 we launched our #LoveMinsmere campaign which saw an incredible 20,419 people take action and write to EDF stating why they Love Minsmere and why the reserve must be protected. Support was seen again at the #LoveMinsmere Festival which saw over 1,000 people gather on Whin Hill, site of the BBC Springwatch studio, to form an outline of the #LoveMinsmere love heart with Sizewell in the background. This sent a visual message to EDF that the reserve must be protected.

Then, in November 2020 Chris Packham and Megan McCubbin launched the RSPB’s and Suffolk Wildlife Trust’s new #LoveMinsmere e-action during a live online event, #LoveMinsmere Live. We called on supporters to take make nature’s voice stronger in the planning process. On February 15 the e-action closed. An amazing 104,836 people stepped up and signed our e-action, demonstrating to the Planning Inspectorate how many people share our concerns for nature and Love Minsmere.

We presented this number to the Planning Inspectorate during the Examination to show the number of people who shared our concerns, and represented Suffolk’s wildlife during the six month Examination putting across our concerns. Following the close of that Examination (on 14 October) we released the following position statement:

“The RSPB and Suffolk Wildlife Trust have spent a gruelling six months engaging in the Sizewell C examination. If Sizewell C is built, it would sit slap bang on the border of RSPB Minsmere nature reserve, home to over 6000 types of animals, plants and fungi; potentially detrimentally impacting the wildlife at this nationally and internationally important nature reserve, as well as at Sizewell Marshes SSSI, and the wider Suffolk coast and beyond.

Our charities, alongside other interested parties, and the 104,836 people who supported our Love Minsmere campaign, have strengthened nature’s voice in the planning process. Through this support and pressure, we feel we have made some positive progress with EDF Energy regarding some of our environmental concerns. For example, rare natterjack toads will have greater protection, as will the special birds like the stone curlew which nest on the heathland at Minsmere.

However, there remain significant concerns and our organisations believe that if the build goes ahead, there could be serious detrimental impacts on wildlife. EDF Energy are still proposing to destroy an area the size of eight football pitches at protected wildlife site, Sizewell Marshes SSSI. Due to the rare nature of the habitat, it is extremely difficult to recreate. Any attempts to replace these special habitats such as fen meadow, even if eventually successful, will not be available to the wildlife that calls it home for many years, when it is too late, and the damage has already been done. There is also a significant risk that the development will change the amount of high-quality water available for rare plants, meaning they may die out over time.

We also remain worried that the power station’s cooling water system could cause millions of fish and other small marine creatures to die each year, which would also reduce food supplies for sea birds. The noise and visual impacts over the ten or more years of construction of Sizewell C could impact ducks and geese, like gadwall and shoveler who choose Minsmere and Sizewell Marshes to raise their families and are joined by white-fronted geese to spend the winter there.

With so many questions remaining unanswered, and due to a very high likelihood the environment will be harmed, the RSPB and Suffolk Wildlife Trust remain united against Sizewell C.”

We hope this provides reassurance that Sizewell C is not a done deal, and that we are doing all we can to protect nature at RSPB Minsmere, Sizewell Marshes SSSI and the wider Suffolk coast. In future you can keep up to date with the campaign at loveminsmere.org (please note we will be updating the web pages with the above information imminently).

Best wishes
The Love Minsmere team

Hi everyone.

Thank you for your concern regarding RSPB Minsmere and Sizewell C. We want to start by saying that we, united with Suffolk Wildlife Trust, are in a position against Sizewell C given our ongoing environmental concerns.

Whilst the government have committed £1.7 billion to Sizewell C, we feel it is important to explain that the project has not yet been approved. The project is currently going through a Development Consent Order process which you can read more about here: infrastructure.planninginspectorate.gov.uk/.../. The Examination concluded on the 14 October 2021, and the Planning Inspectorate will be reporting with recommendations to the Secretary of State over the next couple of months, then Secretary of State will then have a further three months to look at the evidence presented by the Planning Inspectorate and make a final decision. We expect that decision to happen by 14 April 2022.

The RSPB has been engaged with the Sizewell C application for over a decade. EDF have held five public consultations from 2012 to 2020 on their proposals for Sizewell C. The RSPB were heavily involved in each consultation stating our concerns for nature.

In 2019 we launched our #LoveMinsmere campaign which saw an incredible 20,419 people take action and write to EDF stating why they Love Minsmere and why the reserve must be protected. Support was seen again at the #LoveMinsmere Festival which saw over 1,000 people gather on Whin Hill, site of the BBC Springwatch studio, to form an outline of the #LoveMinsmere love heart with Sizewell in the background. This sent a visual message to EDF that the reserve must be protected.

Then, in November 2020 Chris Packham and Megan McCubbin launched the RSPB’s and Suffolk Wildlife Trust’s new #LoveMinsmere e-action during a live online event, #LoveMinsmere Live. We called on supporters to take make nature’s voice stronger in the planning process. On February 15 the e-action closed. An amazing 104,836 people stepped up and signed our e-action, demonstrating to the Planning Inspectorate how many people share our concerns for nature and Love Minsmere.

We presented this number to the Planning Inspectorate during the Examination to show the number of people who shared our concerns, and represented Suffolk’s wildlife during the six month Examination putting across our concerns. Following the close of that Examination (on 14 October) we released the following position statement:

“The RSPB and Suffolk Wildlife Trust have spent a gruelling six months engaging in the Sizewell C examination. If Sizewell C is built, it would sit slap bang on the border of RSPB Minsmere nature reserve, home to over 6000 types of animals, plants and fungi; potentially detrimentally impacting the wildlife at this nationally and internationally important nature reserve, as well as at Sizewell Marshes SSSI, and the wider Suffolk coast and beyond.

Our charities, alongside other interested parties, and the 104,836 people who supported our Love Minsmere campaign, have strengthened nature’s voice in the planning process. Through this support and pressure, we feel we have made some positive progress with EDF Energy regarding some of our environmental concerns. For example, rare natterjack toads will have greater protection, as will the special birds like the stone curlew which nest on the heathland at Minsmere.

However, there remain significant concerns and our organisations believe that if the build goes ahead, there could be serious detrimental impacts on wildlife. EDF Energy are still proposing to destroy an area the size of eight football pitches at protected wildlife site, Sizewell Marshes SSSI. Due to the rare nature of the habitat, it is extremely difficult to recreate. Any attempts to replace these special habitats such as fen meadow, even if eventually successful, will not be available to the wildlife that calls it home for many years, when it is too late, and the damage has already been done. There is also a significant risk that the development will change the amount of high-quality water available for rare plants, meaning they may die out over time.

We also remain worried that the power station’s cooling water system could cause millions of fish and other small marine creatures to die each year, which would also reduce food supplies for sea birds. The noise and visual impacts over the ten or more years of construction of Sizewell C could impact ducks and geese, like gadwall and shoveler who choose Minsmere and Sizewell Marshes to raise their families and are joined by white-fronted geese to spend the winter there.

With so many questions remaining unanswered, and due to a very high likelihood the environment will be harmed, the RSPB and Suffolk Wildlife Trust remain united against Sizewell C.”

We hope this provides reassurance that Sizewell C is not a done deal, and that we are doing all we can to protect nature at RSPB Minsmere, Sizewell Marshes SSSI and the wider Suffolk coast. In future you can keep up to date with the campaign at loveminsmere.org (please note we will be updating the web pages with the above information imminently).

Best wishes
The Love Minsmere team