Public invited to comment on Sizewell C construction permits
The Environment Agency has opened 2 public consultations which close on 6 August 2024
Visual representation of the development at Sizewell C. Credit: Sizewell C Ltd
The Environment Agency is inviting local communities to have their say on permits for construction at Sizewell C nuclear power station in East Suffolk.
People from Leiston and surrounding areas will be able to feedback during the public consultation, which runs from 9 July – 6 August 2024.
Sizewell C Limited has applied for 2 environmental permits relating to the construction of the new nuclear power station:
- Construction Water Discharge Activity permit - to allow the company to remove water from its construction site. It is proposing 9 discharge points to remove groundwater from excavations and rainfall. The receiving environments (Sizewell Foreshore, the North Sea, Leiston Beck and surrounding tributaries) for the water discharges are provided in the permit application.
- Combustion Activity permit - to allow the company to operate diesel generators at the construction site. The static and mobile generators provide electricity to power tools and equipment needed for the construction of the power station. Mobile generators can be moved to different locations within the boundary of the permitted site, as required by the workforce.
Consultations are now open for the 2 permits on the Environment Agency’s website, where people can view the applications and submit their comments: Nuclear consultations - Environment Agency - Citizen Space (environment-agency.gov.uk)
The consultations close on 6 August 2024. After the consultation ends, the Environment Agency will carefully consider all comments made during the consultation before deciding whether to grant the environmental permits.
These 2 consultations are related only to construction activity on the Sizewell C site. They aren’t about the need for nuclear power, UK energy policy, the siting of nuclear power stations, nor the safety and security of the design.
The Environment Agency is responsible for regulating environmental protection at nuclear sites, ensuring that people and the environment are properly protected.
ENDS
Notes to editors
Sizewell C Limited needs environmental permits from the Environment Agency. These cover the work and the controls that it needs to put into place for construction, commissioning, operation and decommissioning of any new power station.
Construction phase permitted activities may include:
- Site investigation works such as drilling boreholes
- Discharging construction trade effluents and/or site drainage to either ground or surface waters, or the sea
- Taking water from the ground or a surface watercourse for use in construction
- Combustion emissions from static and mobile diesel electricity generators
- Dewatering from excavations – and associated discharges
- Works affecting watercourses, rivers and flood defences
- Waste management
Where appropriate, we will consult on the applications for these permits. We will make our decision once we have considered the comments we receive in the consultation.
Construction activities are not unique to nuclear developments and are time limited. We will deal with these permit applications as we would for other types of construction sites. This is a proportionate approach that will help us exercise the best regulatory control on rapidly changing construction activities.
The company has submitted reports to support its applications. The reports and the application details are hosted on our consultation website in the ‘Related’ documents section at the bottom of each page. We have provided a summary in ‘About this consultation’. The company has also provided a ‘non-technical summary’ as part of its application.
These 2 consultations do not relate to the Sizewell C UK EPR™ design. They aren’t about the need for nuclear power, UK energy policy, the siting of nuclear power stations, nor the safety and security of the design.
In the future we may receive applications for changes to these permits and for the 3 operational permits issued to the company in 2023. Where appropriate, we will consult on these.
Read about our work regulating Sizewell Sizewell: nuclear regulation - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)