It is estimated that 11 billion fish lives will be lost in the 60 years that Hinkley C will be operational if EDF are successful in their second attempt to shirk their commitment to fit an Acoustic Fish Deterrent (AFD). The AFD would play a significant part in protecting the marine life of the Severn Estuary, its nine great rivers and all their precious tributaries where many fish species go to breed. Whether larvae, fry, or fish on their way to and from breeding grounds in these amazing rivers, they will all have to survive the journey past these giant cooling water intake heads.
The first time EDF tried to remove this commitment, due to cost, they were instructed in 2022 by the Planning Inspectorate and the Secretary of State for DEFRA that they had to install Acoustic Fish Deterrents. Now EDF are applying again to avoid installing the AFDs.
We have just seen EDF’s posting in the local paper this weekend of their Application to make a material change to the Hinkley C Development Consent Order. They are again trying to remove the requirement for AFDs to be fitted to the HPC huge cooling water system intake heads
This application confirms that EDF appear to have got the decision on the AFDs transferred from Defra to Department for Energy Security & Net Zero (DESNZ). They have succeeded in running rings around the planning process and environmental protection safeguards.
We doubt DESNZ had any knowledge of or involvement in the AFD Public Enquiry of 2021 or the SoS for Defra’s final decision in October 2022.
We believe that EDF’s lawyers identified a loophole in which government agency was responsible for regulating the HPC Cooling system. They now say the Marine Management Organisation (MMO) is responsible for the open sea intakes and the EA for the outflow onshore, thus splitting the environmental regulation of the cooling system between two agencies. Both are part of Defra and I would suggest that DESNZ and EDF are concerned that Defra will again support the enforcement of the installation of the AFDs.
This means that any appeal to honour the decision of the former SoS for Defra, George Eustice, and the Planning Inspectorate in October 2022, to enforce the use of the AFDs, will now fall on deaf ears.
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