November 22, 2022 11.00 am This story is over 19 months old

Plans for £2bn tidal barrier scheme between Lincolnshire and Norfolk

Including a dual carriageway and container port

Plans for a £2 billion tidal barrier scheme across The Wash between Lincolnshire and Norfolk have been unveiled, including a dual carriageway, container port, and the creation of 1,200 jobs.

Centre Port wants to create the “world’s first tidal energy-powered deep sea container terminal” and has won a six-figure investment from energy firm Centrica, according to the BBC.

The 11-mile barrage between Gibraltar Point and Hunstanton could generate tidal energy to protect homes and businesses from flooding.

The proposals also include a “hydro-electric dam” and up to 15 tidal turbines under water to produce enough energy to power 600,000 homes.

Plans for a £2billion tidal barrier scheme across The Wash between Lincolnshire and Norfolk have been unveiled. | Screenshot: BBC Look North/Centre Port

James Sutcliffe, chief executive officer of Centre Port Holdings, told BBC Look North: “We have 700 square kilometres of The Wash going up and down about four and a half metres a day. In the structure there will be up to 15 turbines capturing this in both directions which should generate enough power for around about 600,000 homes equivalent usage.”

However, conservationists have raised concerns about its potential impact on a sensitive habitat for wildlife.

Steve Rowland, from the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, said: “It’s just not needed, it’s absolutely bonkers. It feels like something that would have come out of an early episode of The Apprentice, it’s been that badly put together.

“We’re just on the edge of the UK’s most important estuary for wildlife. Phenomenal area of global importance but also an area where people earn their living – the fishermen and the port industries – none of them have been consulted about this plan.”

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