Well that was what I thought before Christmas when the Ramblers Association decided to campaign against wind farms. I was angry - can they really not see the dire straights we are in??? I am still angry - but would urge those members to campaign to change their organisation. Certainly in other areas much good work has been done by the Ramblers Assoc in obtaining our rights of way etc.Photo: Gloucestershires' only large wind turbine at Nympsfield, near Nailsworth
Wind farms can be beautiful and certainly are an essential part of the solution of tackling climate change. In the reports the Ramblers Assoc tried to defend a position where massive centralised generating stations feed a national grid. Yet they conveniently made no mention of power and energy loss through transmission and seem to ignore the present arrangement of transmission lines, which are surely as unattractive and larger than those associated with wind farms.
Repetition of an ill-informed tirade against on shore wind farms without giving any consideration whatsoever to curbing demand and improving efficiency of energy use, is irresponsible. The use of language in describing wind farms was highly exaggerated and presumably written by someone who does not live within sight or smell of existing fossil fuel or nuclear power stations, an open cast coal or uranium mine, or had their landscape ruined by oil and gas pipelines.
The question of who is benefiting from the development of wind farms was rightly raised, though they do not offer any realistic alternative which would, for Greens, ideally tie in benefits to local communities. They also leave the door open for nuclear power - I fail to see how they could tolerate nuclear stations and waste being around for a million years and burdening future generations with their cost and poison. Why on earth did the Ramblers Association not come out with a strong positive statement supporting a sustainable energy vision for the future instead of a negative lambaste providing no new or helpful solutions to future sustainable solutions?
All this leads me to Cripp Wind Farm in Cornwall...the district council received 550 letters of objection to a planning application for three new wind turbines at Morwenstow. The hub height will be 50 metres and each will have three, 31-metre blades. Objectors raise a variety of concerns including noise, visual impact and the effect upon both the economy of the area and its wildlife. It really does seem strange how these turbines generate such opposition when all statistics show support amongst majority and that I understand usually extends to their local area. Anyhow Planning committee rightly voted for a Sites visit - many await with interest to see if they follow the officers recommendation and the silent majority in approving the application.
Clearly those of us who support turbines - and we don't support them everywhere - clearly siting is important - but there needs to be a better way to support such applications. In this country people seem to only respond to a defined threat - objections are common but writing in support much rarer. A local Green party member was last year the only witness at a public inquiry for looking at a turbine in the Mendips - there were many against. In that case planning permission was granted - see news release here.
Anyhow this came in from a Green party member down that way as his letter to the Planning Department supporting the application - it makes some excellent points.
As a regular visitor to North Cornwall both to see friends and get to the nearest good beaches, although I live in Caradon, I would like to comment on planning application 2004/01028 for a small Wind Farm at Crimp. I see from your report that many objections have centred on supposed visual impact. I would like first to address this issue before moving on to more technical matters.
As someone whose major recreation is walking and cycling the lanes, moors and coasts of Cornwall I have to say I find the objection on grounds of visual impact most odd. To me the sight of wind turbines, whether on the skyline or in the valley below, is quite inspiring, speaking of man working in harmony with nature. The structures are wonderful examples of form following function, and to my eyes at least, quite beautiful.
We should remember that the whole landscape around us, including our Cornish AONBs, is entirely man-made - and if you know how to read the landscape it has a wonderful story to tell. Just as the lines of pylons marching across the country speak of the arrogance of the 50's-70's when we thought that we could enslave nature, and the military golf-balls at Morwenstow or the dishes at Goonhilly remind us of our mid 20th century visions of a space-age future, so the modern wind turbines speak of man finally learning to use technology in harmony with nature. I find the sight of the turbines at Cold Northcott and Delabole quite inspiring.
Whether the small domestic turbines that we start to see mounted on individual properties, or the massive majestic structures you encounter in much of northern Europe, these are truly beautiful objects that serve to enhance the landscape around us. I am strongly in support of the Crimp application and urge you not to reject this progressive application on the basis of a misguided aesthetic judgement.
I am surprised that Cornwall County has gone against the advice of its officers and considered that it would have adverse landscape impact. This is a purely subjective judgement and I wonder on what authority our County Councillors presume to make such judgements.
Turning to the more technical arguments that seem to be advanced; as an electronic engineer I am not fully qualified to comment on the more detailed aspects but I would offer the following observations from my interest and study of wind power (and other renewable resources) as an activist with the Green Party.
There do seem to be some concerns about the effectiveness and return on carbon investment of very small scale domestic turbines. This application is substantially above that threshold and since it is a commercial application I would presume that the applicant has made the appropriate measurements of the available wind resource at the site and is confident of a return. Objectors suggesting that there may be insufficient wind, or that the net CO2 savings over the lifetime of the installation are inadequate, are at odds with the facts.
We have several successful and proven Wind Farm installations in the County, and Cornwall is blessed with some of the best wind energy potential in the UK. We should be seeking to take a national leadership position in developing on-shore wind in Cornwall. Crimp will certainly make a positive contribution to our renewable energy portfolio. The draft SW RSS target of 20% of the region's energy from renewables by 2020 is woefully inadequate -- we should be seeking to make the region as whole, and Cornwall in particular, self-sufficient in energy by 2020 without importing fuel (gas, oil, coal, uranium or other non-renewable resources) from outside the region.
I notice that a significant number of the objections you have received so far are from local residents, in particular the Parish Council. In general we should be trying to ensure that there is some community involvement and benefit from renewable energy developments (for example by local ownership stakes providing discounted electricity to the community) and it is a weakness of this application that it fails to address the potential community benefits. However, given the current market and commercial conditions in which on-shore wind developments have to be undertaken it is more or less inevitable that the local community will feel excluded from the process. This, however, does not seem to be a valid basis for rejecting the application.
You also seem to have an avalanche of objections from organised lobby groups opposed to any and all wind farm developments. Given that a commitment to onshore wind is enshrined in government policy, regional policy, and local policy frameworks; these objections would carry more weight if they proposed where, within North Cornwall in particular, and Cornwall in general, they would like to see wind farms developed.
I am not aware of any evidence (and I have looked) that the presence of a wind farm has any adverse effect on tourism and visitor numbers in the local economy. For every visitor who finds them intrusive, there will be another who finds them inspirational. We have had significant (and much larger than this proposal) wind installations in Cornwall for many years now, and there is no evidence of a negative impact. Personally I have friends who visit the area who have stated that they really enjoy the sight of the Cold Northcott wind farm as we drive up to the beach.
In terms of wildlife impacts once again we do not seem to have much evidence to support the assertions made by the objectors. In the few cases where there have been problems elsewhere they are generally due to specific local conditions.
I believe that we have a wonderful opportunity in North Cornwall to take the lead in development of on-shore wind facilities. I would urge the planning committee and the full council to support this application. I would like also to see the council work with both this proposed developer, and also with prospers of future applications, to try and build some genuine local benefit into the schemes.
Yours Sincerely
Roger Creagh-Osborne
I've rambled long enough - if your a Ramblers Assoc member consider writing to the Ramblers now and tell them what you think.
No comments:
Post a Comment