The Rivers Trust has launched a campaign to prevent water intake pipes at Hinkley Point C from sucking in and killing millions of fish from the Severn Estuary. The intake pipes, which draw up cooling water into the power station, will have a cross section the size of six double-decker buses. At present, Hinkley’s management is resisting pressure from environmental groups to install an Acoustic Fish Deterrent (AFD), citing ‘technical challenges’. When Hinkley’s discharge consent was granted in 2013, the AFD was one of the key clauses. They are now trying to dodge this obligation, despite the fact that a Public Inquiry and subsequent rulings by the Secretary of State have upheld the importance of the AFD.
Some of you will have heard Chris Binnie’s recent excellent lecture on the proposed tidal lagoon energy system, during which he displayed a map showing that the waters of the Severn Estuary are a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). The area is home to dozens of fish species, including the endangered Atlantic salmon, European eel, and twaite shad, species which spawn in freshwater and which play a crucial role in global ecosystems, supporting the food chain for tens of thousands of birds and other wildlife, including seals and cetaceans. Without the AFD, millions of fish will be killed annually, further impoverishing Britain’s coastal biodiversity.
I urge you to help boost this important campaign by signing the Acoustic Fish Deterrent petition. You can sign it by clicking here.
There’s lots more information about this campaign on the Rivers Trust webpage here.
Marion Jay
Wootton Courtenay 