All the evidence has now been heard for and against a controversial Mid Devon wind farm - and both sides are claiming victory.

Planning inspector Andrew Pykett spent a week hearing evidence relating to noise at the public inquiry held in Okehampton.

Renewable Energy Systems (RES) wants to build nine wind turbines - each 120m tall, or three times the height of Exeter Cathedral - in the Den Brook Valley between Bow, Spreyton and North Tawton.

The company gave evidence from independent consultants Hayes McKenzie Associates to show the wind farm would operate within levels that national guidance says is acceptable.

Project manager Rachel Ruffle said: "We are pleased the latest noise analysis, carried out by independent noise experts, reconfirms our original assessment that the wind farm will be within noise limits and will not therefore cause a nuisance to nearby residents. The public and politicians on all sides support a shift towards renewable energy to tackle climate change," she said. "Projects like Den Brook should be allowed to go ahead without further delay. We are confident the inquiry will now conclude the project should go ahead."

But Mike Hulme, one of the directors of the Den Brook Judicial Review Group, which strongly opposes the wind farm, claims the company "swept the main issues under the carpet, either deliberately or because they're incompetent."

He claimed the developers' noise assessment was "inadequate and far from complete."

Mr Hulme admitted RES had "fought tooth and nail" but said: "We definitely had the upper hand."

The objectors to the wind farm are concerned about its detrimental impact on health, tourism and farming - and say it would make only a tiny contribution towards stopping climate change.

The inspector is expected to make a decision within the next couple of months, drawing the four-year battle to an end. Experts say the outcome could affect the future of UK wind farms.

Before the end of the inquiry, RES announced plans to give local people the opportunity to buy shares in the wind farm. This would be facilitated through not-for-profit organisation Energy4All, with whom the company is in talks. Ms Ruffle said: "We are very keen to explore how residents local to Den Brook could be offered a stake in the wind farm as a way to reap some direct benefit from the project once it is up and running."

John Malone of Energy4All said: "Local share ownership allows people to have a say in the operation of the project and to benefit from the sale of the electricity."