Hello and welcome to the April update on the Five Estuaries Offshore Wind Farm.
As we near the end of our second stage of consultation, I want to give a big thank you to everyone that has attended one of our events or has provided feedback. It has been a very useful opportunity for us to meet with the local community to discuss the Project in more detail, understand your views and answer any questions.
During this consultation we have held ten drop-in public information days across Essex, the Suffolk coast and in Kent, as well as two online webinars. In total we have met with over 450 people.
A recorded version of the webinar presentation, covering both onshore and offshore elements of the project, is now available online for those who wish to view it. Click here to watch the webinar.
This Stage 2 Consultation closes on 12 May 2023. Your views are important to us and will help the development of our plans. Understanding people’s views and local knowledge will help us to create to the best project possible for the area.
You can respond through the following channels:
- Completing our online feedback form
- Emailing your feedback to us at fiveestuaries@rwe.com. Please include ‘FEEDBACK’ in the subject line
- Feedback forms or written feedback can be sent to us at the following Freepost address: Freepost FIVE ESTUARIES (no stamp or further address information is required). If you require a hard copy feedback form, please email us with your postal information to request this.
The deadline for responses is 11.59pm on 12 May 2023.
Onshore Surveys
Ground investigation works continue to take place at select locations across the proposed onshore cable route until mid-May.
Due to the recent wet weather the programme for the works has been extended to allow for track matting to be used on the access routes across fields to minimise rutting to the soft ground. These are joint ground investigations between Five Estuaries and North Falls to inform the development of plans and are taking place on private land in agreement with landowners.
Some traffic management may be required to help the track matting vehicle turn off the road. Measures used will include a stop/go board staffed by an individual and be kept as short as possible, avoiding morning and afternoon peak times.
Five Estuaries and North Falls are also jointly undertaking archaeological trial trenching within private land to better understand the potential for buried archaeology, this will begin with the projects’ proposed substation search areas and will take place from early May on private land.
Publication of draft Report to Inform Appropriate Assessment (RIAA)
A draft Report to Inform Appropriate Assessment (RIAA) and supporting documents for the Five Estuaries project have been prepared to support the Habitats Regulations Assessment (HRA) of the Project which will ultimately be carried out by the Secretary of State as the decision-maker for the Development Consent Order application. The draft RIAA has been prepared and published for comment and feedback from interested stakeholders on a non-statutory basis and does not form part of the Stage 2 Consultation which is currently ongoing.
The draft RIAA builds on the HRA Screening Report published previously and assesses the impact of the Project, both alone and in-combination with other plans and projects, on the European sites (special protection areas and special areas of conservation) and Ramsar sites which were ‘screened in’ to the appropriate assessment stage of the HRA process.
Click below to find out more and read the documentation.
Land Information Questionnaires
Land Information Questionnaires (LIQs) have been distributed by our land agents Dalcour Maclaren. The LIQs will help to identify people who may have an interest in land associated with the project. If you have received a LIQ, we encourage you to complete and return this as soon as possible, to help us make sure we communicate with the right people with an interest in land relevant to our proposals.
If you have any questions about the LIQ, the Dalcour Maclaren team can be contacted on 01869 352 725 or ve-nf@dalcourmaclaren.com
Get in Touch
If you have any questions about the Project, you can email us at fiveestuaries@rwe.com or call us on 0333 880 5306.