The construction of giant wind turbines on deep peatland could damage the environment and add to global warming, according to a Euro Tory MP. Struan Stevenson said deep peatland was a natural global sink for CO2, having been formed over thousands of years by decaying plant matter in which carbon is stored. He said the development of windfarms on peatland requires first that the peat bogs are drained and this process releases vast quantities of CO2 into the atmosphere, negating the point of creating windfarms for years to come. Mr Stevenson said peat bogs in the UK, most of which are in Scotland, stored the equivalent of Britain's output of CO2 for the next 21 years.

An SNP MSP has expressed concern about the visual impact of wind farm developments in his constituency. Stirling MSP Bruce Crawford said it was vital new developments did not "diminish an area's scenic character". His comments come despite the Scottish Government's much publicised support for wind-generated energy. Stirling Council has given the go-ahead for three wind farm projects across the local area. A forth is currently being considered. At present the district hosts a prominent 36-turbine wind farm at Braes of Doune and an almost completed 15-turbine development at Earlsburn.

Plans for two separate wind farms visible from Exmoor have come up against another hurdle. Campaign group Open Spaces Society has launched objections to the projects, stating they would have a negative impact on the feel of the moor. The two projects are the Three Moors scheme at Knowstone, North Devon, where the company Airtricity Developments hopes to erect nine turbines, and Bickham Moor, near Oakford, Mid Devon, where Coronation Power want to erect four. Kate Ashbrook, Open Spaces Society's general secretary said: "We are dismayed that the wind-energy companies keep applying to erect turbines in this part of North Devon. There are already two outstanding applications nearby, at Batsworthy Cross and Cross Moor."

Residents fighting plans which could see a wind farm appear on picturesque Bickerton Hills have stepped up their bid to stop it. Families living close to the site met last week to discuss how to stop Banks Developments Ltd’s plans for a 60m wind- monitoring mast on land off Long Lane. ...It’s the first application of its type in the locality. Objectors saying it will be a blot on the landscape. Resident Kate Reeves said: “There was a very good turnout to the meeting and it just showed how very strongly locals feel about this. They are all very, very angry.”

Residents fighting plans which could see a wind farm appear on picturesque Bickerton Hills have stepped up their bid to stop it. Families living in close proximity to the proposed site held a meeting on Thursday as they face Banks Developments Ltd’s plans for a 60-metre high wind-monitoring mast on land off Long Lane. The proposal is for a temporary period of three years for wind speed data to be collected to see if the site is suitable for a wind farm and is the first application of its type in the district. Objectors saying it will be a blot on South Cheshire’s rural landscape. Resident Kate Reeves said: “There was a very good turnout to the meeting and it just showed how very strongly locals feel about this. There were no detractors at all. They are all very, very angry.”

Supermarket giant ASDA has admitted a massive wind turbine it wants to build at its Northampton distribution depot might be visible as far away as Wellingborough. The Chronicle & Echo first revealed ASDA's plans to build a 417ft wind turbine at its Brackmills depot in May. The company wants the turbine, which would be exactly the same size as the Express Lifts Tower, to help power its distribution centre. But latest plans submitted by the company to the West Northamptonshire Development Corporation (WNDC) revealed the massive structure could in theory be seen all across Northampton, and as far away as Wellingborough and Long Buckby.

Controversial plans to create an eight turbine wind farm in the Carron Valley in rural Stirling have been given the go-ahead by the council. ...Despite the promise of payment, the wind farm plan caused divisions among Carron Valley's residents. Planning officials had originally recommended the application be refused. Scottish Natural Heritage also objected to the visual impact of the wind farm. Scotia Wind said if the plans to construct eight turbines 125m in height, a new access road, bridge, electricity sub-station and meteorological monitoring mast went ahead, they would pay an index-linked cash windfall of £48,000 a year to the local community.

The seven 406ft turbines planned at Petsoe End, Emberton, were given the go-ahead by the city planning committee. But it was anything but a breeze for supporters of the Your Energy project - with councillors split six-five on the crucial vote. ...Cllr Isabella Fraser said: "The council is caught between a rock and a hard place. We are in a no-win situation." She complained of "email harassment" by supporters of the scheme and attacked those in the public gallery for "extremely immature" behaviour in waving placards.

"Councillors, I believe you have the power to take hundreds of pounds from E.ON or preserve a historic view and environment that generations have and will enjoy. "We must not be overwhelmed by commercial interests today. Our ancestors thought of tomorrow. Let's do the same." ...PEPA representative Dr Tony Trewavas informed the committee that 2402 written objections had been submitted regarding the proposed wind farm. Around 1300 were from Penicuik residents with others from the Scottish Borders and others who had moved away from the area. Objections had also been lodged by Scottish Natural Heritage, Scottish Borders Council, Historic Scotland, West Linton and Howgate Community Councils, the Esk Valley Trust, Friends of the Pentland and the Scottish Wildlife Trust.

Applause filled the council chamber last week as councillors emphatically rejected plans for a controversial Afan Valley wind farm. Councillors on the planning and development control committee voted to refuse permission for four wind turbines to be built on Mynydd Corrwg Fechan, near Glyncorrwg. Members of the Glyncorrwg Action Group, who had campaigned against the wind farm, packed the public gallery and broke into spontaneous applause as the unanimous decision was announced. ...Head of planning Geoff White said in his report: "This development would create unacceptable impacts upon the character and appearance of the countryside which are not outweighed by the benefits of providing renewable energy."

North Devon District Council wants a judicial review of plans for 22 turbines at Fullabrook Down. If the case goes ahead, the High Court could overturn the plans by Devon Wind Power. The plans were agreed by Energy Minister Malcolm Wicks, but the council says the impact on the area and local people outweigh any benefits. ...Council leader Mike Harrison said the authority had taken legal advice and it had a chance of winning its case. He said: "These are massive turbines and it will have a huge impact on the landscape. "It will affect people living nearby and the tourism industry."

Wind farms can cause environmental damage, MSPs are being told at a committee. A retired university professor says the mechanical vibrations transmitted through land-based turbines to the surrounding terrain cause the problem. Prof Dixie Dean, a former business professor who has also worked in the field of mycology, says the impact will "devastate" the sand, soil and peat in the immediate area. He claims that the problem has been "completely overlooked" in a submission to Holyrood's Petition's Committee. His petition states: "These vibrations will in time destroy the very fabric of peat, sand and soil for miles around.

THE first batch of ballot papers were yesterday dispatched to residents who live closest to the proposed site of a contentious 21-turbine wind farm west of Thurso. Caithness West Community Council is surveying the 1000-or-so electors in its patch to find out whether they support or oppose the 57.5 megawatt development. The timing is particularly sensitive as Baillie Wind Farm Ltd's scheme for farmland near Shebster is being tabled at a Highland Council hearing next month. The community council is among the objectors to the proposal, which would add to the existing nearby six-turbine cluster at Forss. But it is pledging to reflect the feedback of the vote in its representation.

NATIONAL security could be compromised by more wind turbines in the Swaffham area, but councillors have been recommended to grant permission. The Ministry of Defence warns the six new giant turbines would have "an unacceptable impact upon the air traffic control radar at RAF Marham and Lakenheath and also against the air defence radar at Trimingham". But Breckland councillors could give the go-ahead on Monday for the turbines to be built on an open farmland site between the A1065 Castleacre Road and Sporle Road in Swaffham and Sporle.

A contentious plan to build four towering wind turbines by a Norfolk coastal village has gone back to the drawing board to address strong fears over the impact of the structures on the countryside. SLP Energy has withdrawn its application to build the 125m high turbines at Hemsby, near Yarmouth, because it says it needs more time to revise its scheme to overcome a swathe of objections from residents, councils, the Ministry of Defence(MOD) and countryside groups. Concerns were raised that the turbines would loom over the village's skyline and blight its appearance and be detrimental to a nearby Site of Special Scientific Interest. Objections were also submitted by the MOD, which said the turbines would interfere with radar at RAF Trimingham and residents said they were worried the proposed site would hamper television signals.

The pylons would form part of the upgrading of the power link between north and south Scotland. Extra electricity from new wind farms being built in the Highlands must be transmitted to power users in cities in the south. Scottish and Southern Energy says the £320m upgrade - on the line between Beauly, near Inverness, and Denny, near Stirling - would consist of 600 pylons, 40 to 64 metres high, with a section going through Cairngorms National Park. The idea has horrified landowners, wildlife groups and walkers: 18,000 people have formally objected to the Beauly-Denny plan. ...should Britain's commitment to renewable energy take precedence over its need to preserve its wild places?

Business Secretary John Hutton says he wants to open up British seas to allow enough new turbines - up to 7,000 - to power all UK homes by the year 2020. He acknowledged "it is going to change our coastline", but said the issue of climate change was "not going away". The thrust of the idea was backed by Tory Alan Duncan: "We're an island nation. There's a lot of wind around." ...The other choice was, he said, whether it was "easier to have these developments offshore rather than onshore". Asked what would happen if there was no wind for a few days, Mr Hutton said that was why there had to be a mix of energy sources - including nuclear power - to cover for calmer weather periods.

Wind farm plans which generated huge controversy in the Afan Valley have suffered a massive blow.Neath Port Talbot planning officers have advised councillors to throw out Eco2's proposal to put four giant turbines on Mynydd Corrwg Fechan overlooking Glyncorrwg. At 125 metres, they would have been some of the biggest in Wales, around 34 metres taller than those already in place at Ffynnon Oer in the same valley. The authority's planning committee is due to make a final decision on the 12MW scheme on Tuesday, but, sensing victory, delighted campaigners have welcomed the officers' stance. "This is a great Christmas present

'A Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors study suggests local house prices drop by around 20 per cent when a wind farm application is submitted. If a house in the vicinity was once worth Pounds 350,000, it will now be worth Pounds 50,000 to Pounds 70,000 less,' he says. Mr Barlow is one of the leaders of the Stop Wadlow Wind Farm campaign, a group of 300 local residents opposing plans for what he describes as '13 vast, noisy turbines, each one taller than Big Ben, and visible over an area of more than 300 square miles'. ...While some estate agents claim turbines have a negative impact on prices, many others see them as an inevitable feature of the future landscape. And farmers, on whose land the turbines are often built, can certainly profit from wind.

Councillors in Conwy have voted to refuse planning permission for the development of a windfarm near Cerrigydrudion. Mwdwl Eithin, situated in the heart of the countryside, was the proposed site of a 12 turbine wind farm by developer Nuon, but at the last planning meeting county councillors decided not to grant the application. Their decision went against the recommendation of local authority planning officers, but represented the views of the majority of local residents. ..."Wind farms should only be developed when they are supported by local communities. "Everyone would agree for the need for more sustainable and renewable energy and wind power certainly has a role to play, but there must be sensitivity to the effects of wind farms on local communities and their impact on the countryside, particularly in relation to tourism."