the ‘News and Events’ category

A meeting between North Somerset Council’s Planning and Reglatory Committee and National Grid took place on Wednesday (16th) at the Town Hall, Weston-super-Mare.

Following the meeting deputy leader Councillor Elfan Ap Rees was quoted as saying “People are very distrustful. They are convinced that National Grid has made its mind up. North Somerset Council is determined it wants the route either under water or underground.

“We believe over the lifetime of the project the extra cost is minimal. Last year we refused to sign an agreement with National Grid because we thought that would give the wrong message.”

Reported by thisissomerset.co.uk here: http://www.thisissomerset.co.uk/news/Council-stands-firm-company-s-countryside-pylons-plan/article-3347381-detail/article.html

North Somerset Council are holding a meeting on March 16th 11.am. at the New Council Chamber, Town Hall, Walliscote Grove Rd, Weston. BS23 1UJ

The council will be putting questions to a senior member of National Grid.

The public can attend AS OBSERVERS ONLY. If attending you should arrive by 10.45.

It would be great to get a good number from each of the campaign groups through Somerset and show National Grid we have not gone away.

Directly quoted from National Grid website:

“The public consultation on our approach to undergrounding began in December 2010 and was due to close in March 2011.
“We have decided to extend the response deadline for the undergrounding consultation so that people have the opportunity to see the independent report on the costs of undergrounding, being prepared by the consultancy KEMA and by the Institution of Engineering and Technology, before the consultation closes. We had originally expected KEMA’s and IET’s report to be published in early 2011. We will announce a new response deadline once the KEMA/IET report has been published.
“Once the consultation is completed, we will carefully consider all the responses received. The feedback gained throughout this consultation will be used to inform our new approach to undergrounding, which we plan to publish later in the year.”

http://www.nationalgrid.com/uk/Electricity/UndergroundingConsultation/

A senior member of the National Grid team is to attend a meeting of North Somerset’s planning and regulatory committee at 11am on March 16. The meeting will be open to the public who will be able to listen to the debate although will not be able to take part.

Concerned about the proposal to cover 37 miles of countryside near Bristol with giant pylons, councillors wrote to National Grid last year asking for a face-to-face meeting to discuss the matter.

Council chiefs claim no response was ever received and wrote again demanding a meeting.

Story reported here: http://www.thisisbristol.co.uk/news/National-Grid-bosses-face-grilling-power-line-plan/article-3273548-detail/article.html

We appreciate that it’s been quiet from us for a few months now…there is lots going on behind the scenes and in the upper echelons of the powers that be, but things have been pretty quiet at a local level. With a new consultation period soon to commence, we need your support more than ever – please do keep in touch with the campaign and if you would like to get more involved in any way, we would love to have you on board.

Actions you can take NOW:

• Cast your vote on the 38 degrees petition website to put powerlines underground/subsea: http://38degrees.uservoice.com/forums/78585-campaign-suggestions/suggestions/1464787-put-power-lines-underground?ref=title
• Lobby your councillor – local elections are coming up in May – find out where your local/district councillor stands on putting giant pylons through North Somerset.

Finally on a lighter note…we are planning a Spring Walk along the Strawberry Line to celebrate all that is wonderful about where we live – our community, our countryside and the wildlife all around us. Please get in touch if you are able to help us organise/plan the walk – if you have any ideas or want to get involved in anyway, please let us know.

Campaigners fighting against proposals for giant pylons across the Somerset countryside are urging people to support a national online campaign to get the cables buried…

Please vote now: http://38degrees.uservoice.com/forums/78585-campaign-suggestions/suggestions/1464787-put-power-lines-underground?ref=title

Full story here: thisissomerset.co.uk here: http://www.thisissomerset.co.uk/news/Pylon-campaign-boost/article-3234371-detail/article.html

In the past few weeks, National Grid have been contacting residents with an update on their consultation process. Document available here:

The key points to note are:

• Undergrounding Consultation – two studies are currently being carried out – the first by NG is a review of their approach to undergrounding; as part of this review NG are carrying out a national public consultation into their approach to undergrounding.
• You must have your say by 16th March 2011 – details of how are in the leaflet (see attached). Questionnaire can be found at: www.nationalgridundergrounding.com or you can write or phone: 0800 319 6175.
• KEMA/IET Study – this is an ‘independent review’ (part funded by NG…) looking at the alternative and comparative costs of placing high voltage electricity lines underground/undersea. We expect the Report to be published in April.
• Preferred connection will be announced in the Spring, followed by a 12 month period of public consultation to ‘agree’ most appropriate method for the connection and the route it will take.
• Community Forums will be set up with ‘thematic’ groups to discuss approach to environmental impact assessment…although still no mention that the health impact is on the agenda.

A report on the latest news on the campaign by Nailsea’s Save Our Valley group is available here: http://www.nailseapeople.co.uk/news/Nailsea-pylon-protest-latest-news/story-10700309-detail/story.html

National Grid has announced a new public consultation into its approach to ‘Undergrounding’ http://www.nationalgridundergrounding.com

This is a huge step forward and comes as a result of your huge response to the last consultation. It shows that all the letter writing and campaigning by individuals can make a real difference.

Now we need your help again please. To make a difference please submit your comments on line via the National Grid online form, found here: http://work.consense.co.uk/nationalgrid/C08990-Undergrounding/login.aspx?ReturnUrl=%2fnationalgrid%2fC08990-Undergrounding%2fquestionnaire.aspx – you will need to register online first.

The government have today (Monday) responded to a public petition against National Grid’s proposed overland pylon connection between Hinkley Point and Avonmouth. The response outlines plans to abolish the Infrastructure Planning Commission (IPC) quango in favour of a more accountable Major Infrastructure Planning Unit (MIPU) whereby final decisions will be taken by Ministers based on recommendations from the MIPU.

The full response can be found here: http://www.hmg.gov.uk/epetition-responses/petition-view.aspx?epref=HinkleyConnction