Reclaim the rail line to Thornbury

Congratulations to Councillors Trevor Jones and Brian Hopkinson for supporting reopening of a rail link to Thornbury (Thornbury Gazette, Thursday January 10, 2013; Bristol Observer, Thursday January 10, 2013). They are very wise in advocating that South Gloucestershire Council should pressurise Network Rail to reclaim the line and protect its potential for future use.

Some may say that the costs would be prohibitive: £38 million construction and £3 million per year operating costs. Just hold that thought while considering that the Government's latest proposals for compensating communities living near to power stations would bring about £8 million per year if new nuclear were built at Oldbury.

Future generations looking back from 2050 would not thank us if we were to squander such an opportunity. So let's keep our eyes on whether South Gloucestershire Council acts to protect this infra-stucture that is part of our heritage.

Community benefit or indecent proposal?

The film 'Indecent Proposal' charts a wife's struggle with her virtue as she eventually agrees to have sex with another man for $1 million. Something similar could be coming to Thornbury very soon if proposals to compensate rural communities for hosting fracking sites, wind turbines and nuclear stations come to fruition.

The Times (30 December 2012) headlines one perspective: 'Bribes to halt wind farm fight'. At the other extreme is a recognition of the benefits that could be enjoyed by such communities. Just how substantial are they?

It is proposed that wind farm developers would pay £5,000 per year per installed megawatt into a fund to be spent on community benefits. Not exactly a revolution because many wind farm developers already give communities around £1,000 per megawatt per year. The key question is whether a fivefold increase would be sufficient to overcome community opposition - my guess is that it would at least introduce a more reasoned debate.

What about nuclear? EdF negotiations at Hinkley Point in Somerset are already well advanced with suggested payments of £8 million per year for 70 years or so into community trusts overseen by West Somerset and Sedgemoor district councils. Once again not a revolution since EdF already adopt the same approach for communities surrounding their plants in France.

What if a similar amount were to be paid in respect of nuclear development at Oldbury? Imagine the impact on our community of being able to spend an extra £8 million per year for 70 years!

Park Farm flood plain?

Having seen that building at Park Farm would be in the centre of a flood plain and taken note of the flooded gateway on a recent letters page in Thornbury Gazette, I decided to pay a site visit at the height of our recent inundation. So 1st January 2013 I walked to the mediaeval (allegedly) fishponds to undertake a visual survey. The result was a view surprisingly free of waterlogging ......