Transboundary Environmental Public Consultation - Wylfa Newydd Nuclear Power Plant, Anglesey, North Wales, UK

25 January 2019 – Extension of consultation deadline.

The Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government has extended the deadline for the transboundary environmental consultation on the proposed Wylfa Newydd nuclear power plant in the UK, from close of business today, 25 January to close of business on Friday 15 February 2019.

Anyone intending to make a submission is asked to make them to the planning authority for the area in which the person lives, or the head office of the body concerned is located, on or before the new closing date - close of business on Friday 15 February 2019. See contact details for each planning authority at the bottom of this page.

Under the terms of the 1991 United Nations Convention on environmental impact in a transboundary context (the Espoo Convention), and the EU Directive 2011/92/EU on the assessment of the effects of certain public and private projects on the environment (the EIA Directive), Member States are required to engage in transboundary public consultation in respect of projects likely to have significant effects on the environment of neighbouring States as part of the environmental impact assessment of a proposed development. For this purpose, the Member State in whose territory the project is intended to be carried out is required to send to the affected State, no later than when informing its own public, a description of the project and any available information on its possible transboundary impact.

Each planning authority in Ireland has recently received information in the form of a letter of notification dated 6 July 2018 from the United Kingdom’s Planning Inspectorate (PINS) to the Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government (DHPLG) relating to an application for development consent (planning application) for the proposed Wylfa Newydd Nuclear Power Plant, which is to be constructed in north Wales.

The letter from the UK’s PINS states that the Secretary of State has received an application in respect of the proposed Wylfa Newydd Nuclear Power Plant, which principally comprises a proposed new nuclear electricity generating station on the north coast of Anglesey, in north Wales with a projected electrical output of approximately 3.1 gigawatts. The proposed development would also include permanent and temporary works in the marine environment; off-site power station facilities including a control centre, laboratory and emergency equipment garage; and associated development comprising a worker accommodation campus, temporary park and ride facility, construction logistics centre and highway improvements.

The proposed development is subject to an environmental impact assessment procedure and the UK’s PINS has identified that the proposed development has potential transboundary effects on the environment in Ireland. The UK’s PINS is currently examining the development consent application for the proposed development. The UK’s PINS will submit a report on the application, including a recommendation to grant or refuse development consent, to the UK’s Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy who will then make the decision whether to grant or refuse development consent.

The letter of 6 July 2018 provides details of where further information on the proposed development can be found on the UK’s PINS website – see also link provided under “How to participate” below. The UK’s PINS has since agreed, in the case of Ireland, to extend the deadline set down in the letter of 6 July 2018 for receipt of comments.

Incorrect link in public notice in Irish Times, Irish Independent and Irish Examiner on 22 November 2018

The public notice that appeared in the Irish Times, Irish Independent and the Irish Examiner on 22 November 2018 about this consultation contained an incorrect link in the second last paragraph of the notice to the website of the UK’s PINS. The correct link to the website of the UK’s PINS is provided in the section “How to participate” below.

The letter of 6 July 2018 from the UK’s PINS can be accessed in the “Documents” section below, together with the documents appearing to be most relevant for the purposes of the transboundary consultation. A printed copy of these documents, including extracts from the applicant’s Environmental Statement, are now available for public inspection during office hours at the offices of each planning authority in Ireland for the duration of the transboundary consultation period and a copy may be purchased from the authority at a fee not exceeding the reasonable cost of copying. All documentation related to the development consent application for the proposed development, including additional or amending documentation accepted at the discretion of the UK’s PINS, is also available to view on the website of the UK’s PINS at: Wylfa Newydd Nuclear Power Station | National Infrastructure Planning

Making submissions or observations

A submission or observations in relation to the potential transboundary environmental effects of the development may be made in writing or by e-mail to the Planning Section in the planning authority for the area in which the person lives or the head office of the body concerned is located (see contact details for each planning authority at the bottom of this page). All submissions or observations must:

• be titled “Transboundary environmental public consultation – Wylfa Newydd Nuclear Power Plant”,
• include the name and address of the person, authority or body making the submission or observations and the name of the person, if any, acting on behalf of that person, authority or body, and;
• include reasons, considerations and arguments on which the submission or observations is based.

Please also refer to “Terms and Conditions” and “What we will do with your submissions or observations” below.

The deadline for the receipt of written submissions or observations by the planning authority under this transboundary consultation process has been extended to the close of business on Friday 15 February 2019 at the latest. Submissions or observations will not be individually acknowledged or responded to by the planning authority. The Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government will not accept submissions or observations in relation to the project.

Respondents are advised that the department is subject to the Freedom of Information Act 2014 and Data Protection legislation.

With the exception of a name and address, personal, confidential or commercially sensitive information should not be included in your submission or observations and it will be presumed that all information contained in your submission is releasable under the Freedom of Information Act 2014.

After the period for making a submission or observations closes, each planning authority will consult with the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government. As part of this consultation with the Minister, each planning authority will send on copies of the submissions or observations received and a summary of same to the Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government. Once this process is complete, each planning authority will forward to the UK’s Planning Inspectorate all submissions or observations it receives through this public consultation and a summary of same. Submissions or observations received or a summary of same will be published on the website of the UK’s PINS, and may be published on the website of the planning authority concerned. The Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government will not publish any submissions or observations or a summary of same.

Application Withdrawn

On 27 January 2021, the Planning Inspectorate UK, provided an update to the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, to the effect that the application made by Horizon Nuclear Power for the proposed Wylfa Newydd Nuclear Power Station has been withdrawn.

Further details on the withdrawal of the application and all other related documents can be found on the Planning Inspectorate UK website.