News

Howard's Way.... a weekly column from the Rt. Hon. Michael Howard QC. MP. 

6 December 2007

The Momentous possibilities for the future of our area continue apace.

Last week we had the opening of the Bouverie Place Shopping Development in Folkestone. The opening of the University Centre is not far away. Work is continuing on the redevelopment of the Harbour. And now Dungeness has been earmarked as one of the potential sites for replacement nuclear power stations.

The Government is to decide on the future of nuclear power early next year. I have always believed that if the large questions of cost and the disposal of waste can be answered nuclear power can have an important part to play in meeting out future energy needs. Indeed if we are to meet those needs while complying with our targets on carbon emissions it is very difficult to see how we can do without nuclear power.

But of course that does not necessarily mean that Dungeness is the right place for it.

British Energy has published a review of the engineering needs to protect Dungeness and their other sites from the possible longer term impact of climate change. This review found that, at Dungeness, the station structures would need to be stepped back to accommodate future coastal erosion, with appropriate flood defences also set back to absorb the increasing erosive force.

Expert studies are also being commissioned to underpin comprehensive and robust environmental impact assessments from any replacement build. These will include examination of flora and fauna; fisheries and other marine ecology; landscape and visual amenity; hydrodynamics and coastal geomorphology; geology, hydrogeology, hydrology and soils; cultural, architectural and archaeological heritage; traffic and transport; human beings; and noise and air quality.

I hope there is no significance in the fact that this list – which is in the order supplied by British Energy – puts human beings last but one!

What is clear is that there will be many factors that will need to be examined in detail before a decision to proceed can be taken. But the start of the process will be welcomed by many.