Somerset nuclear site evacuation plans scaled back as decommissioning looms

Hinkley Point B ceased generating electricity in 2022 after 46 years of operation

Emergency evacuation plans for one of Somerset’s nuclear sites have been scaled back as the facility edges closer to formal decommissioning.

Every nuclear power station in the UK operates within a detailed emergency planning zone (DEPZ), with comprehensive arrangements in place to evacuate all residents within the zone should a meltdown or other nuclear incident occur.

Hinkley Point B ceased generating electricity in 2022 after 46 years of operation, was declared free of nuclear fuel in January 2026, and is now progressing towards decommissioning.

Following a report submitted by EDF Energy in March, Somerset Council has agreed to scrap the DEPZ surrounding the former power station, concluding that “urgent protective actions are no longer justified”.

The DEPZ previously covered all land and properties within a 3.5km radius – just over two miles – of the Hinkley Point B site, encompassing the village of Stogursey, the hamlets of Burton and Shurton, and a small portion of the Steart Marshes nature reserve.

Under the newly agreed changes, the DEPZ will be removed in its entirety, with EDF Energy arguing it could “no longer justify” its retention following the defuelling of the site.

The associated outline planning zone (OPZ, which accounts for the impact of an “extremely unlikely incident”) will be reduced from 30km, which previously stretched beyond the M5 as far as Glastonbury and Langport, down to just 1km.

Neil Kimmins, from the council’s emergency planning, response and recovery team, revealed that a public consultation held in June had drawn only a minimal response from local residents.

In his written report, he said: “People living near to Hinkley Point or who work in the area were asked questions about how close they resided to the site and how they felt the changes at Hinkley Point B may affect them and their properties.

“Attendance at the two drop-in sessions organised was relatively low, with eight members of the public attending the events, who were also offered the same opportunity to give any formal feedback via our online portal.

“As one local parish councillor said to the team: ‘Local people know about the lowering risk at Hinkley Point B and are simply not worried’.”

Councillor Leigh Redman, speaking on behalf of the Hinkley Point A & B site stakeholder group, said there was broad acknowledgement that Hinkley Point B had “moved into a fundamentally different phase of its life” and that these changes were therefore fitting.

Mr Redman, who represents the Bridgwater North and Central division, added: “We do not object in principle to a proportionate revision of the off-site emergency planning arrangements, including the removal of the DEPZ and the establishment of a 1km outline planning zone.

“The proposal must not be presented, or understood, as simply ‘ending the emergency plan’. Hinkley Point B will remain a nuclear licensed site and it will remain regulated.

“The public will need clear, plain English information about what is changing, what is not changing, and who remains responsible for warning, informing and protecting communities if any incident were to occur.

“Community confidence depends not only on the technical assessment, but also on transparency, continuity and clarity.”