Lincolnshire County Council has called for public meetings on a series of proposed pylons which could take six years to build.
National Grid has said the new infrastructure near Spalding needs to be built quickly in order to connect the new offshore Outer Dowsing windfarm, writes Local Democracy Reporter Jamie Waller.
Four old pylons would be removed and seven new ones would be constructed around Spalding Tee-Point, Surfleet Seas End, and Moulton Seas End.
The county council has been asked for its thoughts on changing existing overhead cables. It’s in relation to the proposed substation, but is not the plans for the substation itself.
The final application in total will eventually be submitted to the government, and National Grid hasn’t been able to provide all of the details to the council yet.
Councillors at a planning committee meeting on Monday (May 11) said that the public needs to see the details.
Reform Councillor Tom Sneath said: “Construction will be a very long period of time – it’s only right that the public have all the details.
“It sounds as if [National Grid] don’t want us to read the documents. We need to be very transparent with people when changing the landscape in such a massive way.
“2033 is a long time to be suffering with construction without an enquiry.”
Head of planning Neil McBridge, said: “There’s a real prospect that this community could suffer six years of construction activities if it starts in 2027 and doesn’t complete until 2033.”
National Grid has a legal duty to attempt to connect the windfarm by 2030, otherwise taxpayers would incur costs, and said it was working as fast as possible to finish the designs.
The pylons will also form part of the new Grimsby-to-Walpole powerlines across Lincolnshire by 2033, which aims to update the infrastructure for the 21st century.
Independent Councillor Neil Murray spoke in favour of the plans, saying: “Nobody notices pylons, they’ve been there for many years – they’re not monsters. This is the way to cleaner, reliable energy for Lincolnshire.”
National Grid External Affairs Manager Craig Rivett told the committee: “This must be operational by 2030. Without them, electricity will not be connected to the homes and businesses that need it.
“Delaying could result in Lincolnshire hosting a windfarm which is unable to be turned on.”
He said it was ‘regrettable’ that they hadn’t been able to complete the planning work yet.
However the committee voted to object to the scheme, and urged that a public enquiry is held into the environmental impact.
