A new Chair has been appointed to the South Copeland GDF Community Partnership.
Andy Pratt has become the Chair after Ged McGrath’s three-year term came to an end in March.
Andy lives in Holmrook with his family, and is Cumberland councillor for Millom Without Ward. Andy will be Chair for an initial 12-month period. He brings valuable experience to this role as a former member of the South Copeland GDF Community Partnership – previously representing Cumbria Association of Local Councils (CALC), and as the current Chair of the Mid Copeland GDF Community Partnership.
He has been a school governor for the past 18 years and is currently the Chair of Governors at Kirkland Academy and the Chair of Drigg and Carleton Village Hall, as well as a Trustee of Drigg Young Farmers’ Club.
He said: “I’d like to thank Ged for his dedication and work on this important conversation so far.
“As Chair of the South Copeland GDF Community Partnership, I’ll continue to support conversations about whether South Copeland is the right place for a Geological Disposal Facility (GDF) – exploring what it could mean for the area, answering questions, and listening to concerns raised.
“The South Copeland GDF Partnership is moving forward with renewed purpose, and as Chair of both the South and Mid Copeland Partnerships, I will ensure the views, priorities and needs of each community are respected and considered separately.
“This is an important opportunity for people in South Copeland to consider, and I look forward to working constructively with local people and partners to explore it further.”
South Copeland GDF Community Partnership was formed in December 2021. Community Partnerships are long-term groups made up of local people, the GDF developer Nuclear Waste Services (NWS) and local authorities to facilitate discussion with the community and identify relevant information that people in the Search Area need when considering the possibility of hosting a Geological Disposal Facility (GDF). In South Copeland, the Search Area is the Millom and Millom Without wards, and an Area of Focus has been identified West of Haverigg.