An environmental charity funded by new nuclear power station, Sizewell C, has been established to "boost biodiversity" in the East Suffolk region where Sizewell C is currently under construction.
East Suffolk Trust (EaST), jointly established by Sizewell C, East Suffolk Council and Suffolk County Council, was registered as a CIO on 9 June this year, according to its entry on the Charity Commission register.
The new charity has pledged to spend at least £78m to make East Suffolk “the most ecologically diverse and resilient area in England” and will reportedly distribute funds to local organisations through a dedicated grant scheme.
EaST will be governed by a board of independent trustees, with the aim of serving as a “greenprint” for how major infrastructure projects like Sizewell C could “help local nature recovery across the UK”.
EaST will receive unrestricted annual donations from Sizewell C of £1.5m throughout the power station’s construction – which is forecast to finish in the mid to late 2030s – and for the first 20 years of its operation.
Thereafter, annual contributions will continue at £750,000.
With Sizewell C expected to generate power for at least 60 years and potentially up to 100, the total investment in nature in Suffolk could exceed £100m over the coming century.
Charity could be ‘first of its kind’
Julia Pyke, joint managing director of Sizewell C, said: “This charity is the first of its kind anywhere in the UK and perhaps the world.
“Taken together with the work we have already delivered to create new nature reserves around Sizewell, including our flagship Wild Aldhurst reserve near Leiston, much of which has been voluntary, it shows how major infrastructure projects like ours can be an important force for good for nature, as well as for people and businesses in Suffolk and across the UK.”
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