Options, but are they the right ones?

There is a ticking clock as Longue Hougue fills up.

Whichever solution they come down in favour of will spoil part of the island’s environment and come into conflict with residents, while the benefits that come in terms of creating new land are not always in the forefront of critics' minds.

In December, the States' Trading Supervisory Board and Environment & Infrastructure favoured working solely on further reclamation at Longue Hougue, but the Assembly instead backed broadening the approach and instructed a second environmental impact assessment to be carried out on another shortlisted option in tandem.

The mood of the debate signalled an expectation that the second option would be reclamation north of Mont Cuet. Instead Trading Assets announced last week that it would look at two small former quarries in the lanes of the Vale, Guillotin and L’Epine, to the understandable distress of neighbours.

Those sites will at best buy some time and flexibility, but still not answer the question of what the long-term solution is. Combined they have a capacity of just three years.

But come 2023 two other options zoom into view – Les Vardes and the QEII marina. Here is where some joined-up thinking comes into play.

The States needs to make progress on how to develop the harbour in St Peter Port and has been promising to do so for years.

Indeed, if it had progressed those plans, which could include a cruise liner berth or moving freight operations, with any kind of vigour, these issues could be dovetailing now and saving the pain of looking at short-term solutions that will be unpalatable for many.

Once the EIAs have been completed the issue will return back to the States for member’s guidance. They will have more information before them than when the committees were heading firmly down the Longue Hougue road, but for some, keen to compare and contrast with Mont Cuet instead, it will be the wrong information.