The planning examination into National Grid's proposed Sea Link project has reached a critical stage, with key environmental organisations and authorities required to submit final responses to questions raised during recent hearings today (10 February 2026).
The deadline follows three days of examination hearings, where Kent Wildlife Trust and local campaign group Save Minster Marshes were the only environmental groups to present evidence and raise concerns about the project's environmental impacts. The Examining Authority subsequently issued action points requesting further clarification from National Grid and statutory bodies including Natural England, the Marine Management Organisation and Kent County Council.
Kent Wildlife Trust has managed land at Sandwich and Pegwell Bay since 1987. The site contains a mosaic of saltmarsh, mudflats, sand dune systems and grazing marsh that form part of the internationally significant East Atlantic Flyway, supporting millions of migratory birds each year. The bay is also home to Kent's largest seal population.
The Trust says the proposed landfall at Pegwell Bay and associated works at Minster Marshes would devastate one of the most sensitive coastal ecosystems in the county.
Emma Waller, Planning and Policy Officer at Kent Wildlife Trust and campaign lead for Rethink Sea Link, said:
“Sandwich and Pegwell Bay is an internationally protected landscape and one of the most important coastal ecosystems in Kent. These habitats store carbon, help buffer coastal flooding and support internationally important bird populations and seals.
“We fully support the transition to clean energy, but you cannot destroy the environment to save the environment. The evidence presented so far leaves significant questions unanswered about impacts on protected habitats and species.
“This deadline is an important moment in the examination. We want to see full transparency, robust evidence and proper consideration of alternatives so that internationally protected sites are not put at risk unnecessarily. Pegwell Bay and Minster Marshes are too important, too fragile and too valuable to Kent’s ecological resilience to be treated as expendable.”
The Examining Authority will review the submitted responses before making a recommendation to the Secretary of State, who will ultimately decide whether the project receives development consent.
For more information about Kent Wildlife Trust's Rethink Sea Link campaign, visit www.kentwildlifetrust.org.uk/campaigns/rethink-sea-link