GOING NUCLEAR!

WITH its calming waves and fishing boats nestled along sandy beaches, Sizewell has got to be one of the most beautifully peaceful and tranquil places in the world.

- By Andrew Papworth

Yet despite its relaxing atmosphere, this tiny Suffolk hamlet of fewer than 100 homes is rapidly becoming critical to the UK’s survival — as battle rages over building an enormous nuclear power station on its shores.

For years, furious residents fought tooth and nail to stop Sizewell C from ever being built next to its sister B station, which pumps out electricity next door.

At double the size of its neighbour, they feared it would become an ugly blot on the picturesque Suffolk landscape, destroy surrounding wildlife and cause traffic misery over at least 10 years of construction chaos.

But after Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine sparked a sudden shift in the need for homemade UK energy, the Government finally gave full approval in July for the controversial power station to be built.

Alison Downes, from campaign group Stop Sizewell C, says the decision is “devastating” for the station’s opponents, who do not agree that the economic boost of thousands more jobs and the bolstering of Britain’s energy future justify the project.

She argues that many of the grave warnings about Sizewell C are already coming true, as motorists get snarled up in traffic jams and nature lovers are left heartbroken by the destruction of 22,000 trees.

Julia Pyke, joint managing director of Sizewell C, says: “We recognise we bring detriment, but we aim to give more than we take, so that it’s net positive to have the power station for most people. We need Sizewell C because we need energy security in this country.

“We need abundant electricity. We also need energy prices to go down.”

She admits the argument that Sizewell C will save Britain money in the long run sounds counterintuitive, because nuclear power stations are extraordinarily expensive to build.

The projected cost of the station, which will power six million homes when operational, has already rocketed by £18billion in five years.