This is a significant blow to local communities and the natural environment, especially following last year’s Valued Landscape Assessment, a report jointly commissioned by Norfolk County Council and Suffolk County Council.
The report concluded that “the length of the Waveney Valley expresses many special qualities, and in the context of Suffolk and Norfolk, it is considered to be a valued landscape. Conserving and enhancing the special qualities articulated in this report is a key aspiration of existing planning policy.”
Councillor Richard Rout, Suffolk County Council’s Deputy Cabinet Member for Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects, said:
“This decision not to underground any of the proposed pylons through the Waveney Valley, is nothing short of contemptible. The study we commissioned saw the area recognised as a valued landscape and National Grid’s plans will wreak untold damage on it. There was a clear alternative to this and they’ve chosen not to take it.
“What I find particularly flagrant - if this what National Grid will press ahead with - is a lack of any suggestion of mitigation or compensation package for the local area.
“This council has engaged fully with discussions and consultations on Norwich to Tilbury, providing additional evidence to help protect the affected communities and environment in the Waveney Valley. We have worked closely and in good faith with National Grid, and yet they have not delivered a fair deal for the local area. There is nothing on the table from them, or Ofgem, to soften this blow.
“Yet again, I see this as more evidence of the government’s short-sighted and rushed mission to decarbonise the grid by 2030. Their influence is pushing through the cheapest and fastest options, with no consideration for local residents, businesses or the environment – we are still to see any progress from them on community benefit schemes, to support situations just like this.
“As a council, we still maintain that the opportunity to underground the whole pylon run between Norwich and Tilbury, using HVDC cables, has not been properly explored. Revisiting the 2030 decarbonisation target and pausing the project would allow that to happen."
Councillor Kay Mason Billig, leader of Norfolk County Council, said:
“The decision by National Grid to plough on with the destruction of our countryside is disgraceful. There seems to be a determination to create an energy wasteland across Norfolk and Suffolk, with no regard for the local impact.
“The Waveney Valley is well known for its unspoilt rural tranquillity, historic buildings and rich natural habitats. National Grid have clearly disregarded local views and seem determined to cover the landscape with miles of pylons.
“We recognise the need to create a secure and clean energy system, but this can’t come at the unmitigated expense our communities and natural environment.
“National Grid have not provided any benefits for local communities or businesses associated with their current plans to upgrade the transmission network. There is no clear plan to upgrade the existing energy infrastructure in Norfolk needed to deliver new homes and jobs. National Grid’s current plans will simply see electricity generated from offshore wind passing through the county with no tangible benefits for Norfolk as a whole.”
The councils will now look to take up their concerns with National Grid and discuss the issue further.
