BASILDON Council has highlighted a catalogue of issues as it opposed plans which could see 50m tall pylons towering over parts of Basildon and Billericay.

As part of the National Grid’s consultation over the controversial plans for pylons stretching from Norwich to Tilbury, the council has highlighted 16 key points that “must be resolved”.

According to a council document, major concerns have been raised over the “likely visual blight, its impacts on the openness of green belt and views from the west of the borough”.

National Grid has proposed to build approximately 184km of new electricity transmission reinforcement between Norwich and Tilbury.

It says this will be made up mostly of overhead line and pylons, along with some underground cables and a new 400 kV substation.

Basildon Council has raised a number of issues, including the lack of clarity from National Grid on why the line must be operational by 2030-31.

Questions were further raised about how the chosen route was determined over other alternatives. The council believes these matters have not been fully explained or even considered.

Basildon’s ability to propose sites in the west of the borough for the new Local Plan are also being questioned due to serious implications an overhead line presents.

These include the effect on the ability to secure the necessary infrastructure funding.

Other key issues highlighted the impact on housing delivery, and the role of the planning system in achieving a balance between economic, social, and environmental aspects of sustainable development.

When announcing the plans, the National Grid stressed how the Norwich to Tilbury project will play a vital role in delivering electricity efficiently, reliably, and safely and will support the UK’s move to reduce carbon emissions.

It adds: “The way we generate electricity in the UK is changing rapidly and we’re transitioning to cheaper, cleaner and more secure forms of energy, like new offshore windfarms.

“We need to make changes to the network of overhead lines, pylons, cables and other infrastructure that transports electricity around the country, so that everyone has access to the clean electricity from these new renewable sources.”