I’m just back from a walking weekend in Aldeburgh with my old friend Heather (pictured – and old as in going back to before I was married, and not in years!) We decided to follow the advice given in one of the local walking guides which  recommended a stroll around the Sizewell nuclear power station; the writer said it was one of his favourites.

When I announced my plans on Twitter, the response was, “what a strange place for a walk”, and “three legged-birds and mutant insects perhaps?” These were people’s perceptions of Sizewell.

In fact, cattle grazed contentedly nearby and seagulls soared overhead without being sizzled. The RSPB Minsmere reserve is but a stone’s throw away too, and presumably they would have spotted any unusual deformities. We saw lots of other walkers, some with dogs, enjoying the same Suffolk coastal scenery – and the dogs had four legs! As you can see in the picture of the meadowland, the countryside around Sizewell is stunning. Heather and I walked for about four hours in the most gorgeous rural setting.

We also walked past another site close to the  power station where the world’s biggest offshore wind farm is being developed. I’m not convinced about wind farms. How much renewable energy can they produce when there is no wind? And how easy are they to maintain? It must be very costly to maintain offstore structures which we are relying on to play a vital role in producing energy.

It could still be several years before construction starts on Sizewell C, at a time when we cannot deny that it is needed to replace existing power stations which are due for decommissioning over the next 20 years.

Pity Sizewell’s Visitors’ Centre was closed, I hear it is really interesting. I doubt it would have warned us about being forced to buy oil from Russia if we could no longer produce sufficient supplies of our own energy, and that is my fear.

And with two Google searches producing the same C02 as boiling a kettle, we could find we have a lot to worry about one day if it this is taken into consideration as a factor for using too much energy. Maybe one day we will find that even Google searches are restricted in our battle to reduce the carbon emissions we emit …..